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Congo Still Needs Help

New Vision (Kampala)
EDITORIAL
June 22, 2004
Posted to the web June 22, 2004
Kampala
RELATIONS BETWEEN our neighbours Rwanda and Congo are becoming tenser by the
day, with Kigali accusing Kinshasa of planning an invasion.
Any tension between the two bodes ill for peace in the Great Lakes region,
especially given that both were central to the complex five-year civil war that
took on a multinational tone till it ended last year. Earlier this month,
Rwanda indicated that it would close the border with its big eastern neighbour,
following unrest in the Congolese border town of Bukavu.
Renegade soldiers occupied the town for some days, before government forces
took it back. But even then, fear of renewed fighting has led to massive
refugee influx into nearby Burundi. The respective protagonists of the civil
war may all be part of a government of national unity, but that does not
guarantee stability.
The situation is still in a state of flux; there is still mutual suspicion. The
country is due to hold elections next year, and so it is important that the
transition holds.
Alongside monitoring the peace in flash points like Bukavu and Bunia,
multinational bodies like the United Nations and the African Union still need
to assist the transition by supervising the full integration of all fighting
forces. But for this to happen, Kinshasa must be open. President Joseph
Kabila's government has got to be willing to take this help.
The international community played a big part in bringing the civil war to an
end. It still has a part to play in the immediate future of Africa's third
largest country

   

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