Congo+Reconcilliation


 * "Congo Reconciliation**"

The current Congo (Democratic Republic of Congo) conflict actually refers to the Kivu Conflict, an ongoing conflict that grew out of the instability of the Second Congo War (1998-2002), occurring in the eastern part of the DRC (Bordering Rwanda), between the military of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and rebel forces under the command of Laurent Nkunda (National Congress for the Defence of the People. Also involved is the genocidal Hutu Power Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (French acronym FDLR). United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo also became involved in the conflict. Nkunda's CNDP is sympathetic to the Banyamulenge in Eastern Congo, an ethnic Tutsi group, and to the Tutsi-dominated government of Rwanda. He is opposed by the largely Hutu FDLR, by the DRC's army, and by United Nations forces.

in 2004, Nkunda's forces began clashing with the DRC army in Sud-Kivu and by May 2004, occupied Bukavu where he was accused of committing war crimes. Nkunda claimed he was attempting to prevent genocide against the Banyamulenge, who are ethnic Tutsis resident in the eastern DRC, a claim rejected by the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC). In 2005, Nkunda called for the overthrow of the government due to its corruption and increasing numbers of RCD-Goma soldiers deserted the DRC army to join his forces In January 2006, his troops clashed with DRC army forces, also accused of war crimes by the MONUC. Further clashes took place during August 2006 around the town of Sake. MONUC, however, refused to arrest Nkunda after an international arrest warrant was issued against him, stating that: "Mr Laurent Nkunda does not present a threat to the local population, thus we cannot justify any action against him. In early 2007, the central DRC government attempted to reduce the threat posed by Nkunda by trying to integrate his troops further into the FARDC, the national armed forces, in what was called a 'mixage' process. However, this backfired and it now appears that from about January to August Nkunda controlled five brigades of troops rather than two. On 5 September 2007, after the government FARDC forces claimed they had used an Mi-24 helicopter gunship to kill 80 of Nkunda's rebels, Nkunda called on the government to return to a peace process. In September, Nkunda's men "raided ten secondary schools and four primary schools where they took the children by force in order to make them join their ranks". According to United Nations officials, girls are taken as sex slaves, boys are used as fighters, in violation of international law. Following the date of the UN report, thousands more Congolese fled their homes for displaced persons camps. The government set a 15 October 2007 deadline for Nkunda's troops to begin disarming. This deadline passed without action and, on 17 October, President Joseph Kabila ordered the military to prepare to disarm Nkunda's forces forcibly. Government forces advanced on the Nkunda stronghold of Kichanga. The number of people displaced by the fighting since the beginning of the year was estimated at over 370,000.

Nkunda's group walked out on January 10, 2008, after an alleged attempted arrest of one of their members. They later returned to the talks. The talks' schedule was extended to last until 21 January 2008, and then to 22 January 2008 as an agreement appeared to be within reach. It was further extended to 23 January 2008 over final disagreements regarding war crimes cases. The peace deal was signed on 23 January 2008 and included provisions for an immediate ceasefire, the phased withdrawal of all rebel forces in North Kivu province, the resettlement of thousands of villagers, and immunity for Nkunda's forces. Neither the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda nor the Rwandan government took part in the talks, a fact which may hurt the stability of the agreement.
 * -Peace Talks-**

On October 26, 2008 Nkunda's rebels seized a major military camp, along with Virunga National Park for use as a base to launch attacks from. This occurred after the peace treaty failed, with the resultant fighting displacing thousands. The park was taken due to its strategic location on a main road leading to the city of Goma. On October 27 riots began around the United Nations compound in Goma, and civilians pelted the building with rocks and threw Molotov cocktails, claiming that the UN forces had done nothing to prevent the rebel advance. Meanwhile, gunships and armoured vehicles of UN peacekeepers were used in an effort to halt the advance of the rebels, who claim to be within 7 miles (11 kilometers) of Goma. Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for DRC Alan Doss explained the necessity of engaging the rebels, stating that "...[the UN] can't allow population centers to be threatened... [the UN] had to engage." On October 29 the rebels declared a unilateral ceasefire as they approached Goma, though they still intended to take the city. That same day a French request for an EU reinforcement of 1,500 troops was refused by several countries and appeared unlikely to materialize; however, the UN forces in place stated they would act to prevent takeovers of population centers. On November 6 rebels broke the ceasefire and wrested control of another town in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo in clashes with government forces on the eve of a regional summit on the crisis. National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) rebels seized control of the centre of Nyanzale, an important army base in Nord-Kivu province after government forces fled. Residents report that rebels have shot dead civilians suspected of supporting pro-government militia.
 * -Return to Violence-**

On 22 January 2009, the Rwandan military, during a joint operation with the Congolese Army, captured Nkunda as he fled from DR Congo into neighboring Rwanda. Rwandan officials have yet to say if he will be handed over to DR Congo, which has issued an international warrant for his arrest. A military spokesperson said he had been seized after sending three battalions to repel an advance by a joint Congolese-Rwandan force. The force was part of a joint Congolese-Rwandan operation which was launched to hunt Rwandan Hutu militiamen operating in DR Congo. Nkunda is currently being held at an undisclosed location in Rwanda. A Rwandan military spokesman has claimed, however, that Nkunda is being held at Gisenyi, a city in Rubavu district in the West Province of Rwanda. DR Congo's government suggested his capture would end the activities of one of the country's most feared rebel groups, recently split by a leadership dispute.
 * -Reconciliation?-**

Compiled by Aaron J, 09/10/2009