Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Bukavu (Fides Service)- “Bukavu is living in fear and apprehension as mysterious leaflets are circulated announcing fresh hostilities” said a missionary in Bukavu the main town of South Kivu region in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo where there have been various signals over the past few days that the civil war which ravaged the country from 1998 to 2003 is about to start again.
“Unfortunately this time these are not rumours because several rebels soldiers taken prisoner by the army have warned that the movement is about to resume hostilities” the missionary said.
According to international analysts the Banyamulenge rebels, Congolese Tutsi, are split in two factions: one wants hostilities to reopen, the other prefers the path to peace.
“Apart from the motivations of the respective rebel leaders, a new conflict would favour the group opposed to the process to democratise Congo which despite difficulties goes ahead” the missionary told Fides. “There are those who realise they have no chance of winning regular elections without violence and fraud and are willing to use every means to sabotage the electoral process. Then there are others anxious to continue exploiting Congo’s mineral riches in total impunity denying the due profit to the local people and the legitimate government”.
Tension in south Kivu is high also because of repeated episodes of violence in villages around Bukavu: in less than a year in the village of Kaniola alone 227 people were killed, 230 homes sacked and burned and more than 2,000 women and girls subject to sexual violence.
“The international community cannot remain indifferent to this situation not least because the UN has a peacekeeping force in the area supposed to maintain peace. I think therefore the people can legitimately expect the United Nations to intervene to prevent a new outbreak of hostilities” the missionary concludes.
In the five years of the last bloody civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo between 2.5 to 3 million people were killed and several millions more were displaced. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 5/11/2005 righe 35 parole 395)
