Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) – It seems that the moment of democracy has come in the dramatic crisis of North Kivu , in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. In Goma, the capital of the province, in which military and para-military forces, and the rebels of the National Congress for the Defense of the People have all been fighting since this Summer, Congo's Foreign Minister Alexis Thambwe Mwamba is present and in the coming hours will meet with Rwandan Foreign Minister Rosemary Museminali.
Kinshasa accuses Rwanda of supporting the Nkunda rebellion, while Kigali affirms that Congo's authorities should disarm the Rwandan hutu rebels, who have established their bases in eastern Congo. Also present among the Congolese delegation is Fr. Apollinaire Malu, priest and coordinator of the Amani Program, called for by the Goma Agreements, and signed by all parties involved in the crisis, including Nkuda, in January 2008. The Amani Program, which is geared towards pacifying the soldiers and reinserting them into the national army, has come to a standstill since Nkunda's men took up arms once again. Nkunda himself is seeking direct dialogue with the government in Kinshasa, refusing to use the procedures determined by the Amani Program.
Associated with the initiative of these two countries (of Rwanda and Congo) are their members of Parliament, who met in Kigali, in the Conference of the Parliamentary Forums of the countries belonging to the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR). This organization is made up of 11 countries who seek a resolution to the conflicts that are tearing apart the region and seek to create an area of economic cooperation. Initially formed by the DRC, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya, which border the two great lakes of the area (Victoria and Tanganika), the ICGLR has since extended to include Angola, Congo-Brazzaville, the Central African Republic, Zambia, and Sudan. The ICGLR signed a security and stability agreement to make the region of the Great Lakes one of development, not one of war.
There are conditions, therefore, for peace: what is lacking is the political determination so that the various agreements that have been signed in the past can be placed in effect. In order to keep this commitment in mind, a series of associations (among whom are various missionary orders and Catholic associations), have organized a “Week for Congo,” from December 2-7. On December 7, at noon in the Church of the Congolese, which is dedicated to the Nativity, in Piazza di Pasquino, Rome, there will be a closing celebration. The statement sent to Agenzia Fides by organizers says: “We are coming together to offer our time and effort to unite ourselves with the Congolese people, fasting, keeping ourselves informed, reflecting, placing pressure on authorities to take action, praying...each one in his own way. Fasting, each one in his own way, is a manner to participate in the suffering of the Congolese people and to present ourselves without arms before all whom we encounter, especially the authorities. We want to let the world know that there is a war in Congo, and what this means for the Congolese people and what are its causes and possible solutions. We will try to contact political and religious authorities, as well as the press and the people, whether it be by welcoming them in our church, or going out to find them ourselves.” (LM) (Agenzia Fides 4/12/2008)
