Print

Mail

wiki links

UN calls for peace in DR Congo

Black smoke rises above Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, on Friday. Clashes between Jean-Pierre Bemba's personal army and security forces began on Thursday. PHOTO: AP

The UN and EU called on rival forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Friday to resolve their differences peacefully after two days of bloody fighting in the capital.

More than 60 people have died in the confrontation between government troops and guards loyal to defeated presidential candidate Jean-Pierre Bemba that appeared to have ended by the evening.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement that the country had "reached a critical turning point" and needed to "turn away from violence and to actively pursue political dialogue at all levels."

The UN mission in DRC, known by its French acronym, MONUC, welcomed the end of fighting but stressed the government's responsiblity to deal with the aftermath "responsibly."

"The DRC government has assumed its responsibilities in resolving this situation. Accordingly, MONUC calls on the government to continue to act responsibly in its handling of the follow-up," it said in a statement. "The government will have to restore confidence in its judgement by the way in which it treats the defeated militia, who have largely now surrendered."

The violence flared on Thursday after growing tensions over moves to absorb Bemba's forces into the regular army.

The two day battle was the first in the city since President Joseph Kabila won last year's presidential elections, following a second round victory over Bemba.

"The international community, and especially the European Union, will not accept that the Congolese democratic experiment, a major success for the African continent, is jeopardized," EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said.

EU Development Commissioner Louis Michel, who has been in frequent contact with Bemba and Kabila, said that legal order must be respected.

"The Congolese people have clearly come out in favour of peace and national reconciliation. The democratic gains of recent months cannot be put at risk," he said in a statement.

South Africa, a key contributor to the peace process in the DRC, appealed "to all forces in the DRC to immediately stop fighting" and take part in negotiations, Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad told reporters in Pretoria.

British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett called on Kabila and Bemba to "resolve their differences by negotiation in the same spirit which ended the civil war and brought fresh hope to their country."

"The Democratic Republic of Congo has suffered enough," she said.

France also urged both sides to "work to find a peaceful, joint and lasting solution to the current crisis," foreign ministry spokesman Jean-Baptiste Mattei said.

Bemba, was vice president during a post-war transition to democratic rule overseen by the UN.

The transition ended last year with the first democratic elections here in more than four decades.

Since his election as a senator, Bemba has refused to have his vice-presidential bodyguard integrated into the regular army, saying it would put him in danger.
This story has been viewed 2041 times.