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For second day in a row, swearing-in of new Congo President Joseph Kabila was
postponed. Officials maintained inauguration would take place today. News reports said Supreme Court yet to
decide appropriate "constitutional mechanism" for transfer of presidential power. Appointment by parliament of youthful & inexperienced Kabila as chief of state annoys many Congolese, who consider it equivalent to making the nation a monarchy.
1.26.01 R.Kilborn & J.Nichols C.S. Monitor
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5.11.01 IRIN At least 30 people have been detained by the assassination inquiry commission according to ASADHO which published a list of these detainees but declined to name those it believes to be innocent. The association also condemned continued use of secret jails by authorities despite an order by the president in March on the eve of UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in the DRC Roberto Garreton's visit, to close them down. It also recommended publication of assassination inquiry results and publication of a new law liberalising political activity. ASADHO called on the govt to reveal whereabouts of its local representative in the southeastern city of Lubumbashi, Golden Misabiko, whom it believed had been "kidnapped". Govt officials contacted by IRIN were not available for comment. Observers note ASADHO's report comes a week after European foreign ministers signalled their support for Joseph Kabila by approving a grant of US $110million dollars over 2 years in development aid for territory under his control. Rebel-held territory will not benefit from the grant, which is nearly twice the level to the DRC over the past 2 years. EU ambassador to DRC, Henry Sprietsma, said this week the intl community could not wait until the Congolese had solved all their political problems before helping them. "We have to respond to a catastrophic situation," he said. "We have to save what still exists if we wait longer the cost will be even greater."
5.7.01 Chas. Cobb Jr. allAfrica.com The split between Wamba and Tibasima as well as with Mbusa Nyamwisi, another RCD vice president, has been clear since January, when three rebel leaders agreed to merge with Jean Pierre Bemba's Congolese Liberation Movement (MLC) and form a new group, the Congolese Liberation Front (CLF). Wamba refused to join, but several members of his executive, incl Mbusa and Tibasima, agreed to sign on to the new group. Wamba still heads RCD-K, says intl economist Marc Mealy, who advises Wamba in Washington, D.C. on U.S. policy. "A large number of the RCD-K cabinet body, including the governor of north Kivu, still recognize Wamba as the President." The two men were officially suspended Mealy says, but "because Tibasima, Mbusa and Lumbala are allied with certain figures in Uganda, and Bemba, Wamba's suspension of them as the elected President of the RCD-K was not able to be implemented on the ground." |
5.29.01 editorial NYTimes The U.N. report documents in impressive detail the role of Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi in the wholesale looting of eastern Congo. The panel concluded that the leaders of Uganda and Rwanda, Yoweri Museveni and Paul Kagame, two of Washington's allies during the Clinton administration, were "on the verge of becoming godfathers of the illegal exploitation of natural resources and the continuation of the conflict."
The panel did not accuse the two men of profiting personally. But it properly held them accountable for failing to
prevent their top generals, relatives and associates, along with proxy rebels & warlords in regions under their
control, from profiting in league with criminal cartels & foreign companies. Mr. Museveni has denounced the
report and noted that it overlooks the crimes of Uganda's main rivals in Congo. Angola, Zimbabwe and Congo itself
have likewise engaged in thievery.
The world must find ways to deter non-African companies & financial institutions that are only too prepared to
take advantage of Congo's misery. An embargo on minerals, timber, gold or diamonds shipped from the states
whose forces currently occupy territory in Congo, states that would not normally export large quantities of these
resources, may be necessary. Public & private financial institutions should reconsider doing business with
banks in Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi that have close ties with the armies & rebel militias engaged in Congo.
As many as 2.5 million Congolese may have died from starvation & disease in eastern Congo. Legitimate
companies should have no business profiting from this catastrophe. The cited UN report is 6 weeks old. Very easy for editors to ballyhoo humanitarian sentiments now that Sen. Jeffords has single handedly booted Helms from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee chair. Since Reagan & Gingrich, the mainstream press is useless as even a bellwether of public sentiment, let alone policy guidance. Long live the Net. Steal this news article. ] |
1.18.01 Tim Butcher Daily Telegraph
President Kabila assassinated 1/18/01 Chris Talbot WSWS News |
5.23.01 AP Tue., the govt, rebel groups and Congolese opposition groups said they had agreed to meet in July to work out a timetable for talks aimed at bringing democracy to the country. The talks were a key part of the peace deal. The report on the elder Kabila's slaying also said 11 Lebanese nationals in Congo had been "implicated'' in the killing but said nothing further regarding any roles they might have played. The 11 disappeared within hours of Kabila's killing. Congo's govt said later that they had been killed by Congolese soldiers enraged after hearing rumors Lebanese were involved. |
The Washington Post quote a "Kinshasa-based analyst" who reported that elements in
the army were feeling out support from foreign governments for a move against Kabila: "there has
been some disillusionment among some elements of the army, and they have been making
independent approaches among other people to support them." Original press reports
were of Kabila being shot, but expressed uncertainty about whether he had been killed.
Ugandan involvement in the assassination may be indicated by the fact that only Ugandan reports
were positive that Kabila was dead. A senior intelligence source in Kampala telephoned
Reuters saying "I am 101% sure he is dead." Pointing to the role of Uganda, a country which
receives military backing from the U.S., the Belgian newspaper Le Soir stated that: "It is more
than probable that this coup has been carried out with the consent of the U.S." Le Soir
claimed that "semi-official sources" in the US have been saying for several days that nothing further
could be done about a peace deal in the Congo while Kabila was still in power. They described a
scenario in which, after the "disappearance of the president", the team around ex-President
Masire of Botswana, who had negotiated the failed Congo peace deal at Lusaka in the summer of
1999, would "install an interim administration" that would proceed with their original mission of
organising an "inter-Congolese" dialogue. This idea, put forward at Lusaka, is for all the countries to
pull out from the DRC, whilst a new political framework is established between the Kinshasa
regime and the Ugandan and Rwandan-backed rebels.
Le Soir further suggested that elements of the old Mobutu regime could be brought back
into power: "But the interim administration could also open the way for the rebel Jean-Pierre
Bemba to return backed by the old Mobutists, who count numerous friends among the ranks of the
Republicans and who have already been contacted by future U.S. VP Dick Cheney."
Kabila overthrew the US-backed regime of Mobutu Sese Seku in May 1997. It was notorious
for its brutality and corruption. For three decades, the economy was run into a state of
collapse. Mobutu was a personal friend of the Bush family. A further indication of possible US involvement
is the fact that the assassination occurred on the eve of a French-Africa summit to be held at
Yaounde, Cameroon. The summit, entitled "Globalisation and Africa", is to be attended by some 30
African heads of state. It is intended to boost French policies in Africa and offset US influence on
the continent. France's overseas development Minister Charles Josselin attempted to
distance his government from any connection with corruption scandals in Africa, incl those involving
former French President Mitterand's son, by stressing the fact that France is the largest
development aid donor to sub-Saharan Africa.
Kabila was clearly hoping to strengthen his position by gaining support at this
meeting. After the military reverses, he had made what the French newspaper Libération
described as "two small victories". One was passage of the United Nations Security
Council resolution in December, strongly backed by France, demanding that Rwanda and
Uganda withdraw. The second was an agreement negotiated personally by Kabila last week at
Libreville, Gabon between President Buyoya of Burundi and the Hutu militia, the FDD, who had
been conducting a civil war with the Burundi regime from bases inside the Congo. The
intention was to get Burundi, whose forces have been backing Rwanda, out of the Congo war. Hutu
militia, numbering as many as 40,000, and including the Interhamwe, the rump of the Rwandan
regime that carried out the 1994 genocide, have made up a major part of Kabila's forces. In the
1960s, Kabila had led a guerrilla struggle against the Mobutu regime. One of his claims to fame
was a meeting with Che Guevara, although Guevara apparently considered him a
liability— who spent more time in bars and brothels than in politics. Kabila's group controlled a tiny
region in the South Kivu region of the Congo, where it was sustained by gold mining and ivory trading,
and where the group is said to have brutalised the local population. In the 1980s Kabila
moved to Dar es Salaam, selling gold mined in the Congo. Here in 1996, he was contacted by fellow
Pan-Africanist Julius Nyerere, the former President of Tanzania. Kabila was taken up by his
former Pan-African associates President Museveni of Uganda and the then Vice-President of
Rwanda Paul Kagame.
Like them, Kabila had abandoned any pretence of Marxism and was a committed
supporter of the profit system. Uganda and Rwanda were fighting against the Interhamwe in eastern
Congo, then called Zaire. But because of the collapse of Mobutu's army they soon swept across the
country and installed Kabila in power in 1997. With his anti-imperialist rhetoric, Kabila was
initially very popular amongst the Congo population. The US clearly hoped he would become one of
the "new African leaders", like Museveni and Kagame, who were being lauded by President
Clinton. They believed that Kabila, the Pan-Africanist turned free-marketeer, would bring stability to
this huge country, and provide access to its considerable mineral wealth. After little more than a
year in power, however, Kabila broke from his Ugandan and Rwandan backers. The two
countries supported rebel forces in an attempt to oust Kabila, but with backing from Angola,
Zimbabwe and Namibia, he hung on to power and the civil war began. Now that Angola &
Zimbabwe are under pressure from the West to pull out, and the economy of the DRC has all but
collapsed, it is unlikely that Kabila's removal will bring stability to a region dominated by numerous rival
factions, and where the tribalist conflicts created by colonialism are rife. Moreover, the rival
imperialist powers: France, Belgium, and Britain, as well as the United States, all have an abiding
interest in the region.
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RELATED STORIES: 1/4/01 Congo, Zambia leaders meet to discuss fate of soldier-refugees 1/2/01 Congolese rebels accuse government of bombing southern lake port 12/28/00 U.N. demands Uganda, Rwanda cease offensives in Congo 12/27/00 Rwanda wants to question Congo troops on 1994 genocide 12/26/00 More than 800 rebels surrender to Rwandan army, officials say 12/19/00 Rwanda says Congo pullback threatened by southern fighting 12/6/00 African defense chiefs sign deal on Congo withdrawal |
01/11/01 AP |
"I do not know what authorizes him to say that MONUC does not report (the violations). I can reassure him that our
mission is a peace mission. We have nothing to hide, we work in full transparency," Mountaga said. Despite the
verbal sparring and recent disputes, both men insisted that relations were cordial. The war in the Democratic
Republic of Congo, formerly Zaire, began in 1998. Uganda and Rwanda back rival Congolese rebel factions, while
Kabila draws support from Zimbabwe, Angola and Namibia. Repeated cease-fire agreements have all
collapsed and the continued fighting has prevented the United Nations from deploying a full peacekeeping force as
agreed to under an earlier peace deal. The U.N. Security Council last week told Rwanda and Uganda to halt their
latest offensive and pull their troops out of Congo. Rwanda replied by saying its forces were only defending
themselves from attack.
The clash started when a newly formed rebel group, led by Roger Lumbala and sponsored by
the Ugandan army, tried to take control over the lucrative diamond business north of Kisangani. The fighting
took place about 75 miles to the northeast, said Lt. Col. Mohamed Khaled Khan, head of the United Nation's 35
unarmed military observers in Kisangani. Khan said he could not rule out more skirmishes in the tense diamond
area, where those who control it regularly collect hefty taxes from foreign diamond dealers. Rwanda and Uganda
support different rebel groups in Congo. The two nominal allies fought heavily for control of Kisangani in
1999 and again last year before they withdrew from the city under intl pressure.
All the warring sides signed a peace agreement last year calling for a 5,537 strong U.N. mission to monitor a
fragile cease-fire and the withdrawal of foreign troops from Congo. But persistent fighting and Kabila's refusal to
allow U.N. observers and troops to deploy have jeopardized the operation. Meanwhile, in Kinshasa, a Congolese
independence leader and longtime opposition figure was released after more than a year in prison, relatives and
government officials said Tuesday. Kabila ordered Cleophas Kamitatu, 71, released Monday so he could
participate in the govt's planned talks with unarmed opposition groups on the country's political future, justice
ministry aide Celestin Cibalonza said. Kamitatu was a key negotiator for Congo's independence from Belgium in
1960. He later served as governor of Kinshasa and as a finance minister.
The Zambian government, worried about the spillover of the 2 year Congo war along its borders, has said it had
disarmed some of the fleeing Congolese soldiers, but a significant number of them refused to give up their
weapons and settled in border villages. Despite the rebel gains, Mazimhaka said neither the rebels nor the
Rwandan army fighting alongside them had the intention of advancing further toward Lubumbashi, Congo's
second largest city and Kabila's stronghold. "We want to secure our positions and stick to the peace agreement,"
he said.
The Security Council urged all parties, including the government of Congo, to "cease immediately all forms of
assistance and cooperation with all armed groups.'' On Wednesday, Congo's foreign minister asked the Security
Council to give U.N. peacekeepers explicit enforcement powers to end the civil war. However, the United States
and Britain stressed that the parties to the conflict have the primary responsibility for ending it. The council also
emphasized that the conflict in Congo will not be settled until former Rwandan soldiers and Hutu militiamen are
disarmed and demobilized, a key demand of Rwanda's Tutsi-led government.
…
The U.N. Security Council last week authorized the deployment of up to 500 unarmed observers into Congo, in
addition to 224 already in place, to monitor the disengagement and serve a vanguard for the planned force of
5,537 strong peacekeepers. But U.N. SecGen Annan has warned that fighting must cease before the deployment
could proceed. Kabila has in the past hampered the deployment of U.N. personnel in government-controlled
western Congo, and rejected an African-appointed mediator for talks on Congo's postwar transitional
govt. Once in place, the U.N. troops were supposed to supervise the withdrawal of foreign troops from
Congo and political talks among the Congolese parties.
U.N. Peacekeepers To Stay in Congo
UN UN Security Council voted unanimously Friday to keep U.N. peacekeepers in Congo for another year,
buoyed that a cease-fire in the country's 2½ year war was holding. But the 15-member council expressed its
disappointment and condemned recent incursions by armed groups into neighboring Rwanda and Burundi and
stressed that peace in Congo "should not be achieved at the expense of peace in Burundi,'' which has been
engulfed in a 7½ year civil war.
6.15.01 AP
The resolution adopted by the council backs Sec.Gen Annan's recommendation to maintain the U.N. force's
authorized strength of 5,537 troops incl 500 military observers. There are currently 2,400 troops in Congo, but
Annan said he expects that will increase to the authorized maximum as the next phase in the peace process,
demobilization and withdrawal of foreign combatants, gets under way. In a report to the council Monday, Annan
expressed "foreboding'' about reported movements of unnamed armed groups into eastern Congo and their
incursions into Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. He said there was speculation that these groups were trying to
evade participation in a program to disarm, demobilize and reintegrate combatants. Rwandan-backed Congolese
rebels said Hutu militias, known as Interahamwe, were heading east to Rwanda and their spokesman, Joseph
Mudumbi, warned Thursday that "signs of resumption of war are obvious.''
A 1999 cease-fire accord, which was repeatedly violated, gained momentum following Kabila's Jan. 16
assassination and the succession of his son, Joseph, to the presidency. Since then, most belligerents have pulled
back their forces from front lines and the United Nations has deployed troops to guard installations and equipment
used by unarmed observers monitoring the cease-fire.
Congo remains a source of contention between Western govts. France's UN meeting delegate Chas. Josseling,
Minister for Francophone Africa, opposed the decision not to send a larger peacekeeping force. … Louis
Michel, Belgium Dep. PM , backed this, saying, "The intl community should not remain on the sidelines." Michel
stressed that European involvement is "a prime factor" in the recovery of the Congo. Press reports reveal that
Kabila had a private meeting with the French delegation after the UN meeting. Michel & Josseling spoke on
behalf of traditional Euro interests in Congo.
The lucrative diamond mines in the Congo are part-owned by the Belgian company Sibeka. One of the principal
considerations in the present US initiative is to restore the huge mineral wealth of the Congo to Western
corporations. During the war, Rwanda, Uganda and Zimbabwe have benefited from looting gold and diamonds from
Congo mines, whilst Zimbabwean soldiers and businessmen have begun regular hauls of copper and cobalt out of
Katanga province.
After the UN meeting, African leaders were fêted by US businessmen. Maurice
Templesman, Washington-based Corporate Council on Africa chair, hosted dinner at NY Metropolitan Club.
Attending were presidents Kabila, Museveni (Uganda), Mugabe (Zimbabwe), dos Santos (Angola), Chiluba
(Zambia) and Chissano (Mozambique). Templesman himself has several mining interests in Africa. Executives
from the US Export-Import Bank, Amoco, Chevron and other companies were also present.
… massacre in NE Congo. DRC government & Ugandan-backed rebels whipped up fighting between
Hema & Lendu ethnic groups, leading to the mass slaughter of women & children with machetes.
Massacre came into prominence after little known charity Christian Blind Mission circulated video to news stations
to coincide with UN meeting. … Belgian colonial administrators created and fomented the division between the
pastoralist Hema & Lendu farmers in same way they divided Hutus & Tutsis in Rwanda. Mobutu won
Western support for his regime when he continued with the same policy.
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Defense chiefs weigh Congo disengagement plan 12.5.00 More than 10,000 refugees flee fighting in southern Congo 12.4.00 Crisis in Congo affecting 16million people 11.29.00 African leaders start Congo peace talks in Mozambique 11.27.00 U.N. denounces Congo ceasefire breaches 11.22.00 S.Africa, Angola discuss regional peace drive 11.20.00 U.N. gives Congo's warring sides 2 months to resume peace talks 1.013.00 Aid group est. war-related death toll in east Congo at 2million 6.21.00 |
African defense chiefs agree to withdraw troops from
Congo
Defense chiefs from 6 African countries as well as rebel groups fighting in DRCongo
signed an
agreement Wed. to begin withdrawing troops from front-line positions later this
month. |
Rebel group absent from signing.
The defense chief of the Ugandan-backed Congolese Liberation Movement (MLC) was not present for the signing.
But Zimbabwean government officials said the MLC had endorsed the plan at a meeting in Lusaka last month. Namibian High Commissioner
Ndali-Che Kamati said, however, he was concerned that the deal would fail without the MLC's formal signature.
"They are one of the main players in the conflict and if leaders in the region do not succeed in persuading them to
sign, that spoils the chances of the agreement holding," Kamati told Reuters in Harare. The MLC, headed by
Jean-Pierre Bemba, operates in northern Congo and controls areas that are home to numerous gold &
diamond mines.
Clashes in MLC-controlled areas have continued unabated since a shaky peace deal was reached by the
combatants in the Zambian capital last year. Fighting continues in Pweto. Wednesday's agreement was signed
against a backdrop of renewed fighting in which rebels captured the government-held town of Pweto earlier this
week, triggering an exodus of refugees to neighboring Zambia. Rebel officials have claimed that Pweto fell
to rebel forces Sunday evening. The UNHCR described the influx of Congolese refugees, the largest into Zambia
during the 2-year Congo civil war, as an emergency. Zambia already is home to 200,000 refugees, most of whom
fled nearly three decades of civil war in Zambia's western neighbor, Angola. About 10,000 refugees entered Zambia from
Congo on Monday, and the UNHCR had no figures for Tuesday and Wednesday.
Refugees streaming into Zambia included about 3,000 Congolese soldiers and militiamen, and an undisclosed
number of Zimbabwean soldiers, Zambian officials reported Wednesday. The U.N. refugee agency said
authorities were trying to disarm the soldiers and keep them in holding camps. Zimbabwean army officials
could not confirm reports of refugees. "Pweto was attacked ... but I have no details of the results of the attack,"
Zimbabwe Defense Forces Commander Vitalis Zvinavashe told reporters. All sides involved in the conflict signed a
peace accord in Lusaka in 1999 and reaffirmed their commitment to it at a summit in Mozambique last month. But each side has
repeatedly accused the other of launching fresh attacks in violation of the deal. Dubbed "Africa's World War
One," the Congolese conflict has claimed thousands of lives and displaced more than 1.5 million people in
Africa's third-largest nation.
A major worry is that the amount of money being funneled into the relief operations seems dwarfed by the needs of
the Congolese. World Food Pgm issued an appeal to rich countries in January to more than double its Congo food
aid to $110million, but barely one-third of that request has been raised. UNICEF has received only a tenth of the
$15million it asked for essential drugs & therapeutic feeding centers. U.S. disaster relief to Congo remains at
just $13million. Halfway through the fiscal year, that sum has already been reached. Nevertheless, aid trickling in
is bringing hope to the countryside. 2 weeks ago, for the first time since the town of Kabinda was encircled, an old
cargo plane carrying medicine & food touched down on the nearby airstrip. Boys & men rushed barefoot
to greet the plane and formed human chains to unload its cargo. For the people of Kabinda & towns like it
across the front line of the war, the troop withdrawal is like a gift from God. "Now we can breathe again and pray
for a normal life," Kamanda said.
For latest Congo "death census," the IRC 8 health districts in 5 eastern Congo provinces. It sent trained African
staff members to 1,460 homes to ask inhabitants: How many people live here? Have any died in the last year?
Results were tallied and compared with the number of deaths that the Centers for Disease Control &
Prevention say should be expected in Congo: 1¹ deaths per 1,000 people per month. The rate assumes that,
in peacetime, Congolese die at 3 times the rate of Americans. IRC teams found the war has multiplied that another
2 to 8 times.
The main rebel group controlling eastern Congo has condemned the team's preliminary findings as sensationalist."
Thomas Nziratimana, Congolese Rally for Democracy spokesman, said that remote jungles the team says are full
of dying people are in fact largely empty and that thousands of villagers have crowded into eastern Congo's few
functioning cities to ride out the war's turmoil. Although epidemiologist Les Roberts, who led the study,
acknowledged the risk of extrapolating a death rate for a whole province based on house-to- house interviews, a
National Academy of Sciences committee approved the methodology. Some of the team's key findings,
extremely high mortality among adults & extraordinary death rates among young children, were replicated by
a second aid agency in a January survey of one relatively peaceful eastern Congo district. Around Kalima in
Maniema province, British medical aid group Merlin documented 2 1/2 times more deaths than births.
The IRC surveyors also found that some 34 percent of the excess deaths are children under 5, and, depending on
the location, 30 to 40 percent are children under two years of age. In addition to the violent deaths of children in
battle zones, it is presumed that excessive infant mortality rates and high maternal death rates have contributed to
this troubling discovery. Dr. Roberts and his team also found that "violent deaths" and "non-violent" deaths are
inseparable. In eastern DRC, war means disease. In areas surveyed, the higher the number of victims from
infectious disease and malnutrition. Access to any kind of health service is severely limited in areas where
there is a high level of violence or for populations forced to flee unrest. Researchers concluded by stating
that "there is a direct link between deaths by disease and deaths by violence; when violence increased, so did
disease."
"Eastern DRC is an unchecked incubation zone for disease. In the five surveys conducted, both endemic and
epidemic illnesses were rampant, with major outbreaks of cholera, shigella, and meningitis reported by
households. Suspected polio was reported in two of the five areas," writes Roberts. Violence against civilians is
inflicted by all sided in the war, researchers found. Among the deaths attributed to violence, family members and
witnesses reported that killings were committed at a similar frequency by both govt and rebel forces. Violence
against civilians, it was found is indiscriminate. Women and children constituted 47% of the violent deaths
reported. The overall mortality rate in the year 2000 is higher than it was in 1999, the research states. The
numbers appear to be climbing and none of the collected information indicates a decline in the forseeable future,"
says Roberts. The IRC conducted a series of five mortality surveys in eastern DRC between April 18th and May
27th, in order to quantify the levels of civilian death and violence and to guide health programs for war-afflicted
populations. The areas surveyed incl the city of Kisangami in Orientale Province, Katana and Kabare Health Zones
in South Kivu Province & approx. 1,000 square kilometers surrounding Moba in Katanga Province.
These sites represent three of five eastern provinces in DRC and have a collective estimated population of 1.2
million people. The estimated population living in all five eastern provinces is nearly 20 million. From these
surveys, Dr. Roberts and the IRC calculate that over 2.3 million people died in these five provinces between
August 1998 and May 2000. Using a baseline mortality rate of 1.5/1000/month as suggested by the Centers for
Disease Control, 600 thousand people would be expected to die in this area during this time. Of the 1.7 million
excess deaths, 200,000 were attributable to acts of violence. The vast majority was due to the war-related
collapse of the region's health infrastructure and delivery of health and nutrition services. Today, most health
centers in the DRC do not have drugs, researchers found. "Maternal and child health services are grossly
inadequate. Vaccination programs have ceased.
Many health professionals have fled the region. Health facilities are looted or destroyed by the warring groups.
This breakdown allows common illnesses such as malaria, diarrheal diseases and respiratory infections to run
rampant and kill. The tragedy is that these deaths are preventable when help is available," Roberts states. He
reflects still on the Eastern D.R. Congo, which is quite rural, so much so that people live in small hamlets
distributed across the countryside which can only be reached by foot or motorbike. He writes " … it was the
first time we realized just how profoundly displacement means death in the Eastern D.R. Congo. These folks, from
an area the size of a small state, have virtually all fled to the area near Bukavu, and we were dumbfounded to
find that fully seven percent of these people's families had died in the last six months."
Severe displacement was also found in the port town of Moba, in the south of the country. Roberts says that
people (there) would often flee into the bush and spend weeks without food, water containers, blankets and shelter
and would die. Reacting to the report's findings, Reynold Levy, IRC's president said that "The loss of life in Congo
has been staggering. It's as if the entire population of Houston was wiped off the face of the earth in a matter of
months. With this new evidence in hand, policy makers must take action," said Levy. "Securing peace and
financing humanitarian aid at much higher levels will be necessary to stem the tide of death revealed in this
report." The Intl Rescue Committee is calling for increased humanitarian assistance in proportion to the horrific
level of death and suffering in the DRCongo; unconditional and unrestricted access to needy populations in order
to facilitate the delivery of life saving humanitarian aid; international support for robust UN peacekeeping mission in
the DRC and an immediate ceasefire by the warring parties and a renewed commitment to resolve the conflict.
"Until then, 2600 excess civilian deaths per day will mark the time spent waiting for peace," states IRC
researchers.
War in the DRCongo dates back to August 1998 when rebel forces, backed by Rwanda and Uganda, launched a
drive to overthrow the govt of President Laurent Kabila. Nearly two years later, the conflict continues to ravage the
region. Aug. 1998 outbreak of the civil war in the eastern part of the DRC took the entire country by surprise.
Reports indicate that many people who had traveled to Kinshasa before the fighting for work, business, studies or
personal affairs, were caught unexpectedly in the city, unable to return home. Others, expecting the conflict
to end quickly, fled their homes to seek protection in the capital during the early stages of the war. As a result,
Kinshasa currently hosts over 13 thousand internally displaced persons, who have been cut off from their homes
and families since August 1998, with little possibility of return.
The problem of displacement is nationwide, says activists who have traveled to the country. Over 1.1 million
people througout the country have fled their homes and villages to escape the violence, many into the Congo's
vast rainforest most into cities and towns, where an estimated 4 million people provide lodging for them. Since
1994, however, the people of eastern DR Congo have had over one million refugees pass through their fields and
towns, bee n terrorized by various armed groups, and seen their economic, social and political coping mechanisms
weakened or wiped out. Eastern DR Congo is the home to a variety of ethnic groups including a small population
of Banyamulenge, a group of ethnic Tutsis who migrated from Rwanda generations ago. The Banyamulenge have
often been the target of jealousy and distrust due to their relative economic success and the fact that they have
maintained a closed society, rarely marrying or interacting with other ethnic groups in the region.
During the early 1990's, Mobutu Sese Seko, the Congo's (formerly Zaire) president, fomented this distrust in
speeches and repeatedly denied nationality and other citizenship rights to this population. In neighboring Rwanda,
the 1994 genocide and civil war resulted in close to one million deaths (mostly Tutsi). With the genocidal govt
losing the war, over one million Hutu refugees fled into eastern DR Congo and huge refugee camps were formed
near the Rwandan border. Hutu soldiers used these camps to stage campaigns of terror into Rwanda and
the surrounding countryside of the DR Congo. These two destabilizing phenomena then coverged upon eastern
DR Congo. In 1996, the Banyamulenge revolted against new oppressive actions of the Mobutu regime. Rwanda
had been training and supporting the Banyamulenge and provided troops to assist the revolt.
The Rwandan govt used this opportunity to attack the camps in eastern DR Congo in an attempt to defeat the Hutu
military remaining there. The camps exploded and hundreds of thousands of people spontaneously began walking
home to Rwanda, while hundreds of thousands of others fled into the dense forests of DR Congo. A few months
later, the Rwandan led revolt succeeded in reaching Kinshasa, the capital, and ended Mobutu's thirty year
dictatorship. Laurent Kabila was named the new president. In mid 1998, Rwanda's dissatisfaction with the new DR
Congo govt erupted. Kabila had been unable to control his eastern border and the former soldiers of the deposed
Rwandan Hutu govt continued to attack Rwanda at will, resulting in a daily death toll. Rwanda again supported a
revolt that began in eastern DR Congo in August 1998. What began as a civil war quickly became international;
Uganda sent troops to support the rebellion and to attack Ugandan rebels based in eastern DR Congo. Angola,
Zimbabwe, Namibia and Chad sent troops to support Kabila's forces.
The country is now divided in two, as neither the rebel controlled eastern side nor the govt controlled western side
can decisively win the war. The result, according to the IRC: "The security of host families and communities is
marginal(ized) as residents struggle to survive in an economy that has been devastated by war. Eighty percent of
govt revenues are spent on the war effort and escalating military expenditures, while the disruption of food
production and transport have led to a 333 percent rate of inflation."
|
USAID
democracy pgm IFES |
5.13.01 Panafrican News Agency (Dakar) |
|
Peru Rwanda Sierra Leone UN peacekeepers |
1994-1998 Sr advisor Global Coalition for Africa, 38 year diplomat, last Asst Sec.State for Africa in Bush pere admin.
Senior IMF Official Cautiously Optimistic
Nairobi IMF asst dir. for Africa Jean Clement said Wed. he was "heartened" by the attitude of the
new authorities in DRCongo, although debt arrears meant the IMF could not offer new loans yet, Reuters reported
from Kinshasa. Clement was in the DRC capital with an IMF delegation for second round of talks on resuming aid.
"We are here to finish evaluation of the economic situation and to discuss an agreement on staff monitoring of the
govt's interim pgm," he told Reuters. "As the country is still in arrears to the IMF, our charter prevents an agreement
on additional loans." Under such a pgm, IMF staff would be posted to various govt institutions for up to a year, after
which donors could come up with a loan to help finance Congo's massive external debt & arrears payments,
depending on progress. New Cong. Pres. Jos. Kabila reopened dialogue with the IMF during a Feb. visit to
Washington following years of tense relations with late former presidents Laurent-Desire Kabila & Mobutu
Sese Seko
Trade & project financing
With only one commercial bank currently providing letters of credit, trade financing is difficult. ExIm Bank Financing
is not available. World Bank and the African Development Bank are lending to the Congo, … the World Bank
is concentrating on privatization & financial sector reform before moving to sectoral projects. … The
Union Congolaise des Banques has a correspondent relation with CitiBank.
Congo set on reviving Mining Industry;
DRCongo outlined new mining code to encourage foreign investment in hope of reviving current mining industry
standstill. In recent years, political instability & rebel conflict has compelled foreign investors to halt production
activities in the region. According to Andre Lwanyi, Permanent Secretary of Mines, mining rights would be granted
using a transparent, uniform system on a first come-first serve basis and would not be taken away arbitrarily. A
draft code is expected by April. In addition, a new fiscal regime will be introduced. "There will be no tax exemptions,
but rates will be reasonable and will take in to account projects' profitability," says Lwanyi. The Minister of Mines
will have the power to grant mining titles and will streamline procedures to register companies, no longer requiring
the president's signature. Other key features include introduction of environmentally friendly regulations for waste
treatment & promotion of small-scale mining. "Our goal is to make our country internationally competitive
& attractive to foreign investors," says Lwanyi adding "the Congo is open for business." The country's
diamond reserves are estimated at 240 million carats. Meanwhile, the Congolese Government is compiling a
list of abandoned mines that could be reopened.
Congo's business leaders condemn IDI for economic collapse
DRCongo business leaders recently blamed collapse in the country's currency & worsening economic
problems on the govt's decision to award an exclusive export agreement to Israeli based IDI Diamonds. Under the agreement which Kinshasa
diamond merchants fervently oppose, DRC govt will suspend all other existing diamond export licenses. Since
diamond merchants have allegedly rejected the proposal to sell their diamonds to IDI Diamonds, there have been
reportedly no foreign exchange earnings since the announcement of the new agreement. DRC govt plans to set up
an arbitrational body to settle pricing disputes between IDI & traders. The Congolese Business Federation
(FEC) warned DRC's Minister for Economy, Trade & Industry Gregoire Bakeandeja that the severe foreign
currency shortage could lead to an economic collapse.
DRCongo creates "one-stop" investment office
"My office, the Special Advisor Responsible for Investments, was created in an effort to show the world community
that the DROC has a new view of the country's relationship with investors," Dr. Ntanda Nkingi Nkere, Special Asst
to President Kabila, told a CCA audience at a gathering on February 24. Dr. Nkere admitted that the DROC Govt
of President Laurent Kabila had received numerous complaints from investors about the bureaucratic maze in
Kinshasa. "Our office is an attempt to remedy those complaints, to see what can be done so that investors feel at
ease and can get down to business in the Congo," said Dr. Nkere. Dr. Nkere left his teaching position at the
College of Notre Dame of Maryland to return to the Congo and set up the new office at the invitation of Pres.
L.Kabila. Nkere's office is designed to take over activities previously undertaken by a variety of Ministries. Potential
investors and business people were forced to deal with the Central Bank, the Ministry of Finance & the
sectoral ministries to operate in the Congo.
not for long, no doubt
Foreign mining companies seeking cash for projects in the war torn DRCongo are getting a firm "no" from the
world's biggest lenders to the industry. "We've been asked to take a look at projects in the Congo; the answer is
no," Peter Dupak, Chase Securities' global mining & metals group vp (corporate & project mine financing
global leader Chase Manhattan Bank), told a conference in Johannesburg. "I think the political situation has to
settle down there. It may take 2 or 3 years," he added. Chase Manhattan was the biggest lender to global mining
projects in 1997 at US$1.36 billion, followed by Citibank at US$548 million. Chase was also the industry's
biggest corporate lender at nearly US$8 billion last year, with Canada's Bank of Nova Scotia second at US$4.8
billion. "I don't think North American banks would have an appetite for the region at the moment," said Robert Fig,
subsidiary Scotia Mocatta assoc. dir. of base metals in London. Fig said the Canadian bank would prefer to work
with a S.African bank partner in exploring financing opportunities in the region. "S.Africans have more exposure in
dealing in Africa," he said. |
Clinton Legacy: Uplifting Rhetoric, Grim Realities … during Clinton historic spring of 1998 12 day trip to Africa, he spoke of potential for an "African Renaissance" sparked by a "new generation of African leaders" in nations such as Uganda, Rwanda, and Eritrea. In 1999, passage of African Growth & Opportunity Act with stated goal of creating solid economic partnerships with African countries to integrate them into the global economy and help facilitate the African Renaissance. Jan. 2000, UN Amb. Richard Holbrooke … genocide in Rwanda, chaotic transition of power from Mobutu to Laurent Kabila in DRCongo, Kabila succeeded in office by his son who had been in charge of DRC's armed forces during his father's rule. … Clinton admin openly supported undemocratic regimes of Paul Kagame in Rwanda and Yoweri Museveni in Uganda, holding them as a model of new leadership to solve Africa's problems of debt, poverty, and conflict. Clinton's pro-democracy, pro-growth rhetoric concealed same policy as during Cold War, U.S. arms & training to favored allies. Despite State Dept HRts reports of Rwanda & Uganda military abuses in their own countries & DRCongo, US continued millions of dollars worth of arms & training to these regimes. $75 million in emergency military assistance of arms & military training toKagame's Rwanda govt in 1994 after the genocide & regicide. Clinton administration actively lobbied to withdraw UN forces from the country; could have supported efforts to stop the killing. Result millions dead in Rwanda and eastern DRCongo even as U.S. corporations in region mining deals.
Many bear responsibility for unopposed Rwandan genocide and DRCongo war. Past U.S. arms shipments to
Africa in fuel current conflicts in Angola & DRCongo. During Cold War, US shipped $1.5 billion in armaments
to African military forces, including $400 million in arms & training to Mobutu's DRCongo and over $250
million to Jonas Savimbi's UNITA forces in Angola. Since Berlin Wall fall, U.S. arms transfers to Africa continued.
From 1989 to 1998, US provided $227million+ in weapons & training to African military forces, of which over
$111 million went to govts directly or indirectly involved in DRCongo war: Angola, Burundi, Chad, DRCongo,
Namibia, Rwanda, Sudan, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. ¹ Addtl $75million emergency aid to
Rwanda in 1994.
Participation by African nations in Pentagon's Joint Combined Exchange Training (JCET) program dropped
significantly in FY1999, most recent year for which full statistics are available. JCET programs in Africa during
1999 were conducted in Chad (35 personnel trained), Namibia (39 students trained), Djibouti, Mali, and Malawi.5
African Ctr for Strategic Studies, U.S.-initiated school that allegedly trains foreign military personnel in
management issues, has hosted soldiers from Angola, Chad, the DRC, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Liberia, Namibia,
Rwanda, Sudan, Uganda, and Zimbabwe in recent years.
Economic Interests Link U.S. corporations were very active in vying for new mineral deals with L. Kabila, even while as rebel leader. Wall St Journal gathered from, "an American pilot flying for the rebels." U.S. trained rebel high commissioner of finance Mawampanga Mwana was key liaison for deals with U.S. mining companies. Bechtel Corp. worked closely with Kabila to draw up "most complete mineralogical & geographical data of former Zaire ever assembled, information worth a fortune to any prospective mining or oil firm." Relationship between Bechtel & Kabila's rebels went beyond business. Robt Stewart, Bechtel exec became a close Kabila advisor, travelling the country at his side "to help him deal with ethnic uprisings ." Suspicions that Bechtel's information assisted Kabila in war strategy.Classic cronyism in first mining deal made with L. Kabila by American Mineral Fields. At the time, the head of AMF was Mike McMurrough, a native of Bill Clinton's home town of Hope, Arkansas. AMF secured a $1 billion deal for the mining of cobalt & copper. Reported AMF in negotiation with Kabila well before many throughout DRCongo were aware of Kabila's visions or political philosophy. DRCongo minerals are considered among world's purest & "under-explored" in experts' eyes. … Corporations willing to endure country's instability for future profits. Unlike many other African countries where large, established firms control natural resource extraction, DRCongo is somewhat frontier … Jan. 2001 rebel Cong. Rally for Democracy statement said it was selling mining 'monopolies' in areas it controls. Also been reported the area controlled by Jean Pierre Bemba "has become a separate economy" in which "Foreign entrepreneurs involved in developing businesses for market of 7 million pop."
Bush Policy & Prospects for Peace in the DRC
… Detailed assessment of Bush admin Africa goals from Powell's appt Asst Sec.State for African Affairs Walter Kansteiner III, recycled Bush pere Defense Dept strategic minerals
task force& former commodity trading & manufacturing co. exec. vp that mainly worked with developing
countries. … Collaboration of corporate interests and arms & training to African countries have
devastating effects. 1990s Kansteiner essays re Clinton admin Great Lakes region policy agreed with perceived Clinton neglect of unfolding disaster, "any U.S. attempt to become militarily
involved would have been a very unfortunate mistake."
When J. Kabila visited U.S. after his father's death, he met with Corporate Council on Africa,
and was introduced by Maurice Tempelsman. Kabila, "promised to make
the country safe for investors and reassured the Chevron Oil Company that under his leadership there would be
stability."
Peace Recommendations
¹ Deadly Legacy: U.S. Arms to Africa & the Congo War, NY, World Policy Inst. Jan. 2000, pp8-
10 |
|
Monopoly on DRCongo wonder mineral ends 3.31.01 Nick Long Sunday Independent
Kinshasa Rebel authorities in DRCongo announced Saturday they were scrapping a monopoly on
exports of colombite tantalite, or coltan, the lucrative mineral that is allegedly fuelling the war in the east of the
country. … Last Christmas, when shoppers fumed at the shortage of PlayStation 2 platforms, the reason was
a global shortage of the black sand. An exclusive contract to export 100 tons of coltan every month was granted
last Nov. to the SOMIGL company which offered $10 (about R80) a kilogram export
duty to the rebels, the Rally for Congolese Democracy (RCD). But in February SOMIGL bought only 27 tons and
paid only $270,000 tax, say the RCD authorities, who blame smuggling for most of the shortfall. "We realise the
monopoly isn't working so we've decided to get rid of it," said Dr Adolphe Onusumba, the president of the RCD.
"We want to raise as much as possible from coltan so that we can realise our main objectives of saving lives,
fixing hospitals and getting medicines for people in need."
When war broke out in the Congo Aug. 1998 hardly anyone had heard of coltan and it was selling on the intl
market for less than 15% of its current price. "At that time no one could know what coltan would cost," said
Onusumba, who denied UN reports that coltan is an implicit motive for the war. In the past 18 months the
price has doubled & redoubled till it reached about $440 a kilogram last December, before settling at about
$330. Miners see little of the proceeds. On average they might dig 5kg a month of coltan ore, which averages
about 15 to 18% coltan. Each kilo sells for about $10 to the middlemen, who have been forced to sell to
SOMIGL for $20 a kilo. The product is partially refined till it averages 20% to 50% coltan then exported to
Rwandan capital Kigali and from there to Europe.The value of the Congo's exported coltan ranges between $30
and $80 a kilo, said Nestor Kyimbi, RCD's mining dept head. The RCD said coltan raised more for them than
gold or diamonds combined. Kyimbi estimated that about 100 to 150 tons had been exported legally
or smuggled from the Congo each month since the middle of last year, a claim backed by Victor Ngezayo, former
president of Sakima, a U.S.-owned mining company in Kivu whose equipt has been confiscated by the
rebels.
RCD figures suggest total proceeds from Congolese exports of the mineral could amount to $5.5million to
$8million a month, with the companies exporting from Rwanda making further profits. Ngezayo believes the value
per kilogram of the exports could be much higher. UN experts have been investigating how much the top people
in Rwanda & DRCongo benefit from coltan, and their report was due to be heard on Friday at the UN security
council in New York. It may be no coincidence that Onusumba announced the end of SOMIGL's monopoly on the
same day. Politicians & security chiefs in Congo & Rwanda are essential partners for any company
doing business in their territory, said Ngezayo, who said the SOMIGL monopoly was not intended to clamp down
on smuggling but to encourage it, thereby netting more profits for an inner group of rebels & Rwandans who
organise the smuggling themselves. It is a charge that Onusumba hardly bothers to deny. "I can't say yes or no,"
he said, when asked if the security chiefs were involved in smuggling. "I can't say that such & such a person
is more involved in smuggling than others. We're living in a country where there is no respect for any normal
value."
Uganda Pres.Museveni, whose country's revenues from gold have risen tenfold since Ugandan troops moved into
Congo in 1997, has estimated he can keep 20 000 soldiers in the field for just $3 million a month. President
Joseph Kabila, whose army is thought to number about 70 000 men, was estimated to be spending $1million a
day on his war effort, incl arms purchases, fuel and payments to Zimbabwe. Unlike the Ugandans &
Rwandans Kabila is investing heavily in aircraft. A few million a month could go a long way towards financing
the lightly armed Rwandan & Congolese forces, who live off the country in the regions that they occupy.
Whether the money is in fact spent that way, or lines the pockets of a few in power, is another question. Rwanda's
policy is clearly to create a buffer zone to cut off the "negative forces" from their homeland in the hope that they
will wither away in a foreign country. Analysts believe Rwanda's exploitation of the Congo has been more
systematic than Uganda's, and much of the proceeds may well be channelled into maintaining a buffer zone. In
the final analysis, exploiting mineral resources and maintaining border security look like inseparable objectives for
the ethnic minority regime in Kigali.
b) Nonpayment of taxes to the administration in place; Rwandan operators do not pay any tax and
are subjected to no regulation. Quantities exploited are unlogged anywhere and taken by road to Rwanda in
helicopters or trucks.
c) Prevention of any Congolese artisanal or organized exploitation of ores; only Rwandan
extraction permitted.
Thus Congolese which obtained some income by digging ore are deprived livelihood. RCD/Goma, pledged to
Rwanda, turns a person ear. Understandably, Kigali is busy since the last half of 2000, "producing" for
Interahamwe and creating general insecurity in Bukavu & nearby villages. It needs to reinforce its alibi while
forming militias to kill, violate, worry and plunder, facilitating its Congo exploitation. Bonds between "false or true
Interahamwe " and APR officers continue to be very solid. Plundered goods (cows, computers, machines, solar
panels, medical equipt) from Kamembe & Lake Kivu by these Interahamwe are accepted by the Rwandan
officers in Rwanda.
|
| Col-tan is an ingredient in that war as well. The two wars that have ravaged Congo for four of the last five years have been funded by minerals, a substantial portion of which are siphoned off for leaders of the armies fighting them. In Congo's eastern section, home to some of the richest col-tan ore deposits in the world, the mineral in recent months achieved a prominence commensurate with its value, which spiked spectacularly in the closing months of 2000. The first time the world price doubled, Congolese peasants who had been mining gold were instructed to forsake it for col-tan. When the price doubled again, and then again and again, to more than $200 a pound, the rebel group that controls the area declared a monopoly on exports. "I mean, we are at war," said Adolphe Onusumba, president of the Rally for Congolese Democracy (RCD), the rebel group sponsored by Rwanda, whose own war effort is also funded by col-tan. "We need to maintain the soldiers. We need to pay for services." |
Coltan mining threatens World Heritage sites in DRCongo 3.19.01 IUCN World Conservation Union |
Even a U.N. panel of experts assigned by the Security Council to bring coherence to allegations of plunder in
Congo was surprised to learn the outsize position col-tan has come to occupy in the war. On the Congolese govt
side, granting of mineral concessions to military allies has been well documented: offshore oil wells to Angola,
diamond and cobalt to Zimbabwe, a share of a diamond mine to Namibia. Among the rebels and foreign invaders
who control the eastern half of Congo (and perhaps 20 percent of its resource wealth, according to the
government minister for investments), the expropriation of diamonds, timber, coffee and gold is also taken for
granted. Uganda, which supports the rebel group that occupies Congo's premier gold-mining region around
Bunia, exported 10 times more gold ore after entering Congo than it did five years ago, according
to official statistics.
But col-tan, once regarded as less desirable than the tin ore with which it usually is found, would outpace them all.
"We raise more or less $200,000 per month from diamonds," said RCD leader Onusumba, whose army also
controls the regional diamond trading center of Kisangani and charges diamond dealers 10 percent of the cash
they carry into the territory. "Col-tan gives us more: a million dollars a month." The money pays the expenses of
RCD's lightly trained rebel army of 40,000, Onusumba said, and supports the recruiting drive for additional troops,
who will be expected to fill the gap as Rwandan forces pull back from front lines as part of a regional peace plan.
That plan, rejuvenated since Joseph Kabila replaced his slain father, Laurent, as Congo's president in January,
calls for U.N. peacekeepers to deploy, but merely as observers.
Rwanda has been the primary military force in Congo since starting the war, but how the tiny, impoverished country financed its campaign, especially the military air transports needed to maintain a 1,000-mile front line, has frustrated diplomats and World Bank officials examining an official defense budget barely large enough to feed its army. Informed that Rwandan Pres. Kagame had quietly told diplomats the RCD covered such costs, Onusumba nodded. "That is why I can't show you our bill," he said, referring to the bank statement the RCD finance minister had just placed in front of him. "There is cooperation, but Rwanda is not charging us the fees like Zimbabwe charges Kabila," Onusumba said. "It is a brotherhood. … If the Rwandans come and they get col- tan from Punia or Walikale, it's up to them." In Walikale, said to have the highest quality col-tan ore in N.Kivu province, farmers were even flown in from Rwanda to work in the mines, according to Eugene Ngayabaseka, N.Kivu's provincial governor, who complained of being deprived of export tax revenue from col-tan mined at the site.
|
The tax, which runs $10,000 a ton, is collected by SOMIGL, the company established in November to monopolize
exports. To manage the firm, the RCD chose Aziza Kulsum. Kulsum is a legendary figure in Africa's Great Lakes
region, where she is known as Madame Gulimali and is reputed to be the region's premier smuggler. But
her past ties to Hutu militias in her native Burundi make her a puzzling ally for rebels backed by Rwanda's Tutsi-
led government. "I have no relation with them now," Kulsum said of the Burundian Hutus, while drumming her
fingertips on the edge of her desk and grinning toward the ceiling. "I did in the past."
Kulsum also denied her reputation for smuggling, but Onusumba said her notoriety was what attracted the RCD to
her. "When the price went sky-high on this col-tan thing, we were trying to see a way of making money, clean,
proper money," Onusumba said. "I know she was involved in smuggling, cigarettes, gold. She was approached.
… Isn't it better to have her on your side, then she will help you? She knows every channel that things go
out." At the time the monopoly was formed, the RCD estimated that territory under its control was producing
between 100 and 200 tons of col-tan a month and that SOMIGL would collect at least $1 million a month. In the
first month, it did. Official exports for December were 123 tons, and the RCD was able to pay civil servants and
teachers, many of whom had not been paid in years.
Even at half the peak price, the economics of col-tan remain lucrative. With shovels they buy themselves, the
miners work eight-hour shifts in mines that belong to no one and can be wildly hazardous. Last weekend, a
collapsing hillside buried at least 50 workers at a mine 30 miles northwest of Goma. The mine that Pierre Hitiman
visits twice a week lies in the mountains above Lake Kivu. He drives part of the way in his Toyota pickup, with four
soldiers, since being hijacked six months ago and losing an entire ton of col-tan, and walks the last hour, along
footpaths that hug hills so steep the potato and corn fields seem almost vertical. The ore the miners carry in
sacks on their heads to the car is "good," said Hitiman's employer, a Congolese who declined to give his name.
The spectrometer at his Goma warehouse finds 25 percent tantalum in the samples, which are ground, washed
and poured into 55-gallon drums for export. |
4.5.01 AFP SOMIGL is a DRCongo company with shareholders from AFRICOM, PROMECO and COGECOM, respectively run by a US national, a Rwandan and a S.African, These three firms are established under local legislation. 2 weeks ago in Goma, RCD Sec.Gen Azarias Ruberwa warned measures would be taken against tax fraud & illicit trading in minerals. A source close to the coltan trade on Wed. told AFP that SOMIGL had failed brief because of a high rate of illicit traffic in the prized mineral. … RCD's "energy minister", Nestor Kiyimbi, has said that SOMIGL was set up to "improve the organisation of the coltan trade and increase public sector income by putting an end to the fraud that has been been undercutting state revenue."
RCD undertakes allocation of strategic economic-financial sector 1.23.01 Dah Dadein Le Soft [auto-transl.] A well known businesswoman of indo-Pakistani origin in the subregion of Bukavu, Dar-Es-Salaam and Bujumbura, Mrs. Gulamali Aziza Kulsum, put the RCD administration in the pink by denouncing the counters' fraud and collecting some of the dividends in the process; one of her firms, Cogecom, was entrusted by the RCD to head the super counter, SOMIGL, created with two other partners, Africom & Premeco represented respectively by B. Banza & E. Kabanda. Interdepartmental decree # 043/RCD/CE/DFBP, DTME&DEPIC/2000, signed 11.20.00 by 3 dept heads, Jean-Marie Emungu Ehumba of Finances, Budget & Portfolio, Nestor Kiyimbi Mutangi of Grounds, Mines & Energy and Gaston Rutong Sandam Muyey of Economy, Plan, Industry & Trade, explicitly said export of colombo-tantalite on all Territory under RCD control reverts exclusively to SOMIGL. |
5.21.01 AP
In March, warring parties in control of different stretches of the river agreed to allow traffic, provided that boats bear
the U.N. flag. On Monday, porters & traders whose livelihoods depend upon the river still were worried, fearful
of combatants out in force along the river. "They're capable of anything,'' said Mpure Nkoy, 24, carrying bundles at
the river port in Kinshasa, Congo's capital. The U.N. Security Council delegation, making a rare trip abroad, is
pressing for an end to Congo's war, incl the withdrawal of foreign troops. U.S., Britain, China and 9 other Security
Council nations are taking part. Fighting has carved mineral-rich Congo into military fiefdoms and killed an
estimated 2.5 million people, mostly civilians. The Congo River, crisscrossing the equator, always has been the life
route for the country. 10 miles wide at spots, the river is Africa's second-largest after the Nile, and the world's
second only to the Amazon in the volume of water it carries.
With 1 million square miles in territory, Congo has only a few thousand miles of roads, and those are almost
uniformly bad. Reopening of the Congo River to normal trade, as well as resumption of traffic on the limited rail
system, is almost all that's needed to help 13 million of those Congolese in need, said Michel Nourredime Kassa, a
head of U.N. humanitarian efforts in Congo. "This country is affected by a very severe crisis, but we should never
forget that it has the means the manage the problem,'' Kassa said. Needs of another 2 million to 3 million people in
the rebel-held east are more dire, and require urgent relief, he said. Emaciated, dying people reaching hospitals in
the east and across front-lines speak of massive hunger there. 2 U.N. barges, making a test run on the river, are headed to Kisangani. If that works, Kassa hopes to bring barges back down the river, proving to farmers up the river that markets downstream are open again. With the Congo River closed by war, farmers in Congo's most fertile regions have been planting only enough to feed themselves, sometimes burning surplus. In cut-off cities, meanwhile, countless Congolese are getting by on only one meal a day or every other day. In Kinshasa, the capital, aid organizations estimate the city's 8 million people are getting only half the food they need. "With the stopping of traffic on the river, the country is all but paralyzed,'' said Celinne Ekanga, a businesswoman when river business was thriving, now a waitress. British Security Council Amb. Jeremy Greenstock urged patience, however, warning on Monday that it would be weeks before boats & barges could travel as normal. The situation will not improve "from one day to the next,'' Greenstock said. |
4.12.01
Illegal exploitation of natural resources report
refrain Uganda response
Report names culprits in Africa's dirty war 4.18.21 ENS NYC … "Key individual actors including top army commanders & businessmen on the one hand, and govt structures on the other, have been the engines of this systematic & systemic exploitation," said the report. The private sector plays a "vital" role in the exploitation of resources and the continuation of the war, said panel chairwoman Safiatou Ba-N'Daw, who added that several companies have fueled the conflict directly by trading arms for natural resources. "We were very surprised by what we learned, not only the scale of the exploitation, but the speed in which it is taking place," said Ba-N'Daw, at Monday's press conference at UN Headquarters in New York. … The panel was established in June 2000 by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan at the request of the UN Security Council. … "Top military commanders from various countries needed and continue to need this conflict for its lucrative nature and for temporarily solving some internal problems in those countries as well as allowing access to wealth," the report states. The report said the consequences of illegal exploitation had been twofold. First, it cited the "massive availability of financial resources for the Rwandan Patriotic Army, and the individual enrichment of top Ugandan military commanders and civilians." Second, had been "the emergence of illegal networks headed either by top military officers or businessmen. "These two elements form the basis of the link between the exploitation of natural resources and the continuation of the conflict." Even if foreign armies retreat from the DRC, conflict is likely to continue because military commanders have created or protected criminal networks to plunder the country's wealth, said the report.
Illegal logging is adding to wildlife woes in the DRC, formerly known as Zaire. DRC is blessed with significant
quantities of coltan, diamonds, copper, cobalt and gold, as well as timber, coffee and ivory. The country, which is
about one quarter the size of the United States, supports several rare & endangered species such as the
bonobo , eastern lowland gorilla, mountain gorilla, chimpanzee, white rhino, okapi, and Congo peacock. Yet these
blessings appear only to have cursed the majority of the DRC's 52 million people, particularly since 1994. In that
year, ethnic fighting between Hutus & Tutsis in neighboring Rwanda and Burundi sparked a massive inflow
of refugees to the country, then known as Zaire. This led to widespread fighting within the DRC, drawing no fewer
than five other countries, Uganda, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Angola and Namibia, into the conflict. Some 875,000
refugees returned to Rwanda in late 1996 & early 1997, but another 173,000 Rwandan refugees are thought
to have been killed by DRC forces.
Despite a 1999 peace accord, skirmishes continue as 50,000 foreign troops, mostly from Uganda & Rwanda,
remain in parts of the DRC under the guise of "security reasons." The Alliance of Democratic Forces was the guerrilla movement led by Laurent Kabila, who overthrew dictator Mobutu Sese Seko in May 1997. "Proceeds of that illegal activity went to the foreign armies & other forces within the country," said Ba-N'Daw. "Plundering, looting, racketeering and the emergence of criminal cartels in occupied |
Asked about the relationship between BCDI & Citibank in New York, Ba-N'Daw said that Citibank had been
the correspondent bank of BCDI, but did not finance the diamond trade. "Illegal activities also benefited from the
old transportation network that existed prior to the 1998 war," continued the report. "This network consists of key
airlines and trucking companies, a number of which aided AFDL troops in their war against the Mobutu regime.
"The pattern of transport remains similar today: merchandise or arms are flown in and natural resources
or their products are flown out. "For example, Aziza Kulsum Gulamali, a businesswoman operating within
the region for some time, utilized this network even in the 1980s. She contracted Air Cargo Zaire to transport arms
to the Hutu rebels in Burundi and smuggled cigarettes on the return flight. "Since 1998, aircraft also fly from the
military airports at Entebbe [Uganda] & Kigali [Rwanda], transporting arms, military equipment, soldiers and,
for some companies, merchandise.
"On the return flights, they will carry coffee, gold, diamond traders and business representatives and, in some
cases, soldiers." The report details the various methods used to extract minerals from the DRC prior to selling the
materials abroad. "In the mining sector, SOMINKI (Société minière et industrielle du Kivu) had seven years' worth
of columbo-tantalite (coltan) in stock in various areas," said the report. "From late November 1998, Rwandan
forces and their RCD allies organized its removal and transport to Kigali [Rwanda]." (RCD stands for
Rassemblement congolais pour la démocratie - Rally for Congolese Democracy.) "Depending on the
sources, 2,000 to 3,000 tons of cassiterite and 1,000 to 1,500 tons of coltan were removed from the region
Nov. 1998 to April 1999. … Rwandans took about a month to fly this coltan to Kigali.
"The Panel, however, received official documents including one in which RCD acknowledged removing six tons of
coltan and 200 tons of cassiterite from SOMINKI for a total of US$722,482." The report goes on to detail a well
organized campaign by Rwandan soldiers to poach elephants for ivory inside the DRC's national parks, many of
them UNESCO listed World Heritage sites. "Numerous accounts and statistics from regional conservation
organizations show that, in the area controlled by the Ugandan troops & Sudanese rebels, nearly 4000 of
12,000 elephants were killed in the Garamba Park in northeastern DRC 1995 to 1999. "The situation in other
parks & reserves is equally grave, including Kahuzi-Biega Park, the Okapi Reserve and Virunga
Park. Okapis, gorillas and elephants has dwindled to small populations. "In the Kahuzi-Biega Park, a
zone controlled by the Rwandans and RCD and rich in coltan, only two out of 350 elephant families remained in
2000. There is serious concern among conservationists that the rest fled of their own accord or were killed, as two
tons of elephant tusks were traced in the Bukavu area late in 2000."
Under the heading "Facilitators or passive accomplices?" the report names companies and individuals who while
not part of the conflict, have helped the exploitation of DRC's resources. "Sabena Cargo as well as SDV of the
Bollore group have been among the key companies in this chain of exploitation and continuation of war," said the
report. "Thousands of tons of coltan from the DRC were carried from Kigali or through the port of Dar es Salaam
[Tanzania]. "U.S. honorary consul in Bukavu [DRC], as he presented himself, Ramnik O. Kotecha, in addition to
promoting deals between American companies & coltan dealers in the region, is himself Chairman of the
Kotecha group of companies based in Bukavu and deals in coltan." Increased revenues of Rwandan army from
coltan sales was made easy by, "passive role some private companies such as Sabena and SDV for the transport
of coltan, Citibank for the financial transaction as corresponding bank of BCDI, the self-proclaimed U.S. honorary
consul in Bukavu and some staff in various embassies in Kigali." Report also cites "the rush to profit" of foreign
companies ready to do business regardless of "elements of unlawfulness and irregularities."
SDV is subsidiary of the French based Bollore group, one of Europe's top 200 companies with 27,000 employees
worldwide. Sabena is the national airline of Belgium, the former colonial power in DRC when it was known as
Belgian Congo, till independence in 1960. The World Bank comes in for heavy criticism by the panel's report. The
Bank has praised Uganda's economic performance and reform program as a model for its new debt relief
program, the Highly Indebted Poor Countries initiative. "The Panel has however indications that this economic
performance was driven in part, especially over the past three years, by the exploitation of the resources of the
DRC," said the report. "Notes exchanged between World Bank staff clearly show that the Bank was informed
about a significant increase in gold & diamond exports from a country that produces very little of these
minerals, or exports quantities of gold that it could not produce."
"In the case of Uganda and its exploitation of the natural resources of the DRC, the World Bank never questioned
the increasing exports of resources and in one instance a staff member even defended it. "During the Panel's visit
to Uganda, the representative of the Bank dismissed any involvement of Uganda in the exploitation of those
resources. The Bank not only encouraged Uganda & Rwanda indirectly by defending their case, but equally
gave the impression of rewarding them by proposing these countries for the Highly Indebted Poor Countries
debt relief initiative." Sample of 34 companies importing minerals from the DRC via Rwanda are largely
coltan importers based in Belgium, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia and India. Coltan
(colombo tantalite) is a precious hardening agent for metal used by high tech companies producing modern
electronic products.
[ Xmas 2000 Sony Playstation 2 videogame shortage ]
Ba-N'Daw … said the panel wants UN Security Council to declare temporary embargo on import/export of coltan, pyrochlore, cassiterite, timber, gold and diamonds from & to Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi until their involvement … cleared. The panel wants an immediate embargo on weapons & military material to rebel groups, extending that embargo to the countries that supported those groups. Also recommended that Security Council ask World Bank & IMF to suspend support to Rwanda & Uganda budgets until end of conflict. … In 1997, UN SecGen K.Annan sent team to investigate war crimes committed by all parties during the first Congo war. It concluded that crimes against humanity & perhaps genocide had occurred during the 1996 conflict. That did not prevent resumption of fighting in 1998, … "Aug. 2000, Uganda airlifted 163 children from DRCongo to Kampala, Uganda, for military training," said Alison Des Forges, sr adv. Africa Div. HRts Watch.
2.12.01 6th MONUC report
By last year fewer than 2,000 Angolan troops remained in Congo and their alliance with Mr Kabila was
increasingly strained. In the last few months, Mr Kabila's real allies were Namibia, which has 2,000 troops in the
Congo, and Zimbabwe. Namibia said yesterday: "The Namibian government is closely monitoring the situation
… our troops remain in their defensive positions." Zimbabwe's motive has been the same as that of all those
who have intervened in the vast, mineral-rich country, the dream of plundering its wealth. In return for keeping Mr
Kabila in power, Zimbabwe sought endless commercial concessions. Mr Kabila rewarded his chief rescuer with
most of the diamond mines around the town of Mbuji-Mayi. The Zimbabwean army set up a company called
Osleg to exploit them and formed an alliance with Oryx, a diamond company refused a listing on the London
Stock Exchange last year. Senior officers scrambled for a share. Lt-Gen Vitalis Zvinavashe, commander of the
Zimbabwean Defence Force, became a director of Osleg, alongside Job Whabira, then permanent secretary at
the Defence Ministry.
Kabila is gone but diamonds are forever
Harare LAURENT Kabila's gleaming white presidential jet stood parked at Harare Airport in
Zimbabwe last night, proof that in his last moments the Democratic Republic of Congo's leader had flown towards
the safety offered by his closest ally. The Boeing 707 was next to the Manyame military terminal, surrounded by
the Zimbabwean air force aircraft that had kept him in power. From the moment that war began in August 1998,
Zimbabwean military muscle was crucial in repelling the Congolese rebellion. During the climactic days when the
rebel alliance attacked Kinshasa and seemed on the brink of success, Zimbabwean special forces landed on
the roof of the presidential palace and spirited Mr Kabila to safety while others cleared the capital of insurgents.
President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe joined Angola and Namibia in sending thousands of troops to rescue Mr
Kabila. Mr Mugabe sent more soldiers than anyone else and by July 1999, 11,000 Zimbabweans were fighting in
Congo. He had become de facto leader of the "allied forces" backing Mr Kabila.
1.18.01 David Blair Daily Telegraph
Although economists believe that the war costs Zimbabwe around £700,000 a day, Mr Mugabe publicly referred to
Mr Kabila as "my brother". His support never wavered and he called Uganda and Rwanda, supporters of the
rebels, "aggressors & thieves". Zimbabwean ministers were quick to rule out a withdrawal from Congo in the
wake of Mr Kabila's killing. Moven Mahachi, Defence Minister, said: "Zimbabwe will continue to help the people of
the Congo even more so under these circumstances. We won't abandon them at this critical hour." Mr Kabila also
received backing from Angola, which has the most powerful army in central Africa. President Jose Eduardo
Dos Santos joined the coalition backing Mr Kabila to eliminate Unita rebels based in remote areas of western
Congo. Angola sent at least 5,000 troops to Kinshasa and to ensure that Unita's supply lines were closed, but as
the civil war flared again in 1999, it withdrew most to cope with rebel attacks at home.
Gecamines, Congo's bankrupt state mining company, was briefly placed under Billy Rautenbach, a Zimbabwean
linked to Mr Mugabe's government. Emmerson Mnangagwa, now Speaker of Parliament, became the chief deal
broker, charged with turning the Congo war into a money-maker. As Zimbabwe's economic crisis deepened, Mr
Mugabe tried to use his favoured position in the Congo to rescue his domestic position. He avoided black-outs in
Harare by importing electricity from the Inga dam, near Kinshasa, paid for in the nearly worthless Zimbabwe
dollar. With so many senior figures benefiting from the war it is almost impossible for Mr Mugabe to withdraw.
Indeed, his pride would not allow him to do so, regardless of the vested interests.
Zimbabwe Investments Safe, Says DRC
Harare DRCongo govt recently assured Zimbabwean investors in the Kasai province that their
businesses were safe and that there would be no riots against Zimbabwean companies in the region. A recent
issue of the pro-govt French- language newspaper l'Avenir said outgoing DRC Justice & Parliamentary
Affairs Minister Mwenze Kongolo had given an assurance that the Senga Senga population near Mbuji-Mayi
would not rise against Zimbabwe's exploitation of diamonds in the Kasai Province. Zimbabwe is involved in a joint
venture company with the Congolese government to mine diamonds in the mineral- rich province. Apart
from diamond mining, there are also Zimbabweans in the retail business in the region. Kongolo said the mining
initiative was meant to develop the South- South co-operation agreement signed between the two countries in
December. Sources in the DRC said the politically-charged atmosphere in the Senga Senga area had threatened
the exploitation of the diamond reserves by Sengamines in which Zimbabwe was a partner.
4.20.01 Vincent Kahiya Zimbabwe Independent
Last month the governor of Kasai Oriental province, where the Sengamines deposits were located, Paul Kabongo
Misasa, was fired on allegations that he was inciting the Kasaians against Zimbabwe's involvement in the mining
of diamonds in the province. Sources in the DRC said Kabongo Misasa had quarelled with Senga-mines boss
Jean- Charles Okoto Lolakombe, a former foreign affairs minister, with the latter accusing the governor of
habouring anti-Zimbabwe sentiments. Despite the assurances, analysts said, the tension could remain as the
Kasai people had repeatedly complained they had not been benefiting from the exploitation of resources in their
region. Last year, Kasaians alleged that Zimbabwean troops in the province were put on full alert to deal with any
protest against foreign involvement in the diamond mining sector.
There was also the question of the location of the Sengamines headquarters in Kinshasa, which the people of
Mbuji-Mayi said was unfair as this entailed the translocation of riches to the capital. Analysts said there was now a
real danger that Zimbabwe would become embroiled in the ethnic politics of the DRC. "Beyond the current
conflict, the main question deriving from this situation is whether Zimbabwe can sustain diamond operations in
such a politically charged environment," said Mukeba Lufuluabo, a Congolese analyst based in the U.S.
UN Report Russian arms dealer supplying African rebel groups
… former KGB officer, Victor Anatoliyevich Bout, undermining sanctions by trading arms for diamonds to
rebel forces in Africa. Bout, a Russian arms dealer who uses at least 5 passports & some 7 aliases, has
been identified as the businessman responsible for fueling civil wars across Africa incl Sierra Leone, Angola and
DRCongo. He is charged with transporting heavy weapons, automatic rifles and ammunition from Eastern Europe
to rebel groups that control diamond mines. The UN report alleges that Bout sent 38 flights carrying heavy military
equipment to the Angolan rebel movement, Unita. A separate UN report claims that Bout's fleet of ex-Soviet
planes registered as Air Cess, had been used to deliver attack helicopters, armored vehicles and anti-tank mines
to Liberia, which supports the RUF rebels in neighboring Sierra Leone. The report, which is unusual to focus on
one man, lists Bout's address & phone#, his DOB, his wife's name and a breakdown of his gunrunning
& air freight contacts around the world.
Jan. 2001 Mazal
U'Bracha
European presence
UN Congo report may affect EU aid to Uganda
The outcome of the on-going public debate in NewYork about the accusations by a UN panel of experts that
Uganda was among the countries that were plundering the natural resources of the DR Congo could affect
European Union (EU) aid to Uganda. Amb. Bernard Ryelandt, Head of Delegation, European Union, told The
Monitor in an interview yesterday that the EU had been watching the events in the DR Congo carefully and would
soon meet to make a decision on moves to take should the allegations be proved true. He said negative results
may create problems for Uganda, and that after the final report, there will be global judgment and discussions by
the EU countries to decide on what position to take against, or for the report. The UN, April 16 released a
report accusing Uganda & Rwanda of exploiting minerals and timber from the DR Congo, and cited top govt
officials of involvement in the same. Both countries have however, vehemently denied and dismissed as biased,
the findings of the panel of experts published last month. He said however, because Ugandan economy is well
managed, and has managed to attract a lot of supporters from the donors, there will be a balance between
economic & political considerations, the looting, and the willingness of Uganda to be a part of the Congo
peace process.
5.5.01 Evelyn Kiapi Matsamura The Monitor
Ryelandt said although UN Security Council has not yet taken any final decision, much of what is contained in the
report is common knowledge and that the EU countries would later; also meet to discuss the report. There are
quite a few elements in that report which confirm what I would say everybody knew already before. That Rwanda
is organising at state level the exploitation of resources in the DR Congo, and as far as Uganda is concerned, its
more individual activities by very top ranking military persons and other big personalities in Uganda, with the
obvious knowledge of the Ugandan authorities. So if that is true, Uganda is trapped, Ryelandt said. He asked the
Uganda government to carry out proper investigations into the allegations and condemn any acts of the same.
House
2.15.00 Peacekeeping in DRCongo HIRC Africa
subcomm
NGOs
HR Watch Congo campaign
Suliman Ali Baldo, HRW
sr
reseacher, Africa Division w/
Salih Booker, senior fellow and director for African Studies, Council on Foreign
Relations
Ambassador David J. Scheffer, ambassador-at-large, War Crimes Issues
Leonard Robinson, executive director, National Summit on Africa
Amnesty Intl
U.S. Committee for Refugees
The International Rescue Committee
Mortality Study, E. DRCongo
Anch'io a Bukavu
Congo Defense Fund (CDF) (French)
IFES
Uganda New Vision
daily
Army kills ADF chief's bodyguards in Congo
Kasese Ugandan army yesterday said it killed 3 of Allied Democratic
Forces (ADF)
chief commander Abdallah Yusuf Kabanda's bodyguards. "We hit Kabanda's guards in
eastern DR
Congo areas of Buhira, Kiribata and captured Abdula Nasser, Kabanda's brother-in-law,"
said
acting UPDF 2nd Div. commander Lt.Col. Tumusiime Nyakaitana, based in Mbarara.
"Nasser was
brother of ADF's financial controller, Falcon Kyeyune". Kyeyune's father is Ugandan of
Yemeni
origin and his mother hails from Pallisa district. "We also seized a generator and a
satellite
communications battery from Nasser," Nyakaitana said. Army Chief of Staff Brig. Jas.
Kazini
yesterday confirmed the offensive. Bodyguards' deaths makes 10 commanders killed
since last
month. Recently the army killed Kabanda's chief guide, Wilson Kireru, a.k.a. Kilama and
his chief
of intelligence, Muloberyo Mukyeza Watoto. Those captured are more than eight incl
ADF chief
director of records, Hajji Sadat Kinobe and senior armoury man, Moses Kakaire alias
Hussein
Vimbe, two women commanders, Hadijah Nalubega & Nambalirwa, from Kampala
&
Mpigi districts. …
5.14.01 John Thawite New Vision
Museveni Tells MPs to Back DRC Exit
Kampala … In televised address to Parliament last night, Museveni
blasted
UN experts panel for implicating Uganda in
alleged mass
scale looting of Congolese wealth. He said the panel "confused the sensible with the
abnormal"
and relied on malicious & false information it received from 'enemies' of the Govt in
Kampala.
He said the panelists were not experienced and were not informed. He said one member
of the
panel was formerly a policeman in NY while the panel chairperson, Safiatou Ba-N'Daw,
was a
minister in deposed govt of Cote d'Ivoire. Museveni further told Parliament that Uganda
no longer
has "reliable" allies in the region & in the Congo. He said he had initially
recommended to
Cabinet a complete pullout of UPDF troops and that Uganda withdraws from the Congo
peace
process. He said on the advice of AttyGeneral Bart Katureebe, Cabinet decided that
Uganda stays
in Lusaka peace process. He said he was informed that if Uganda withdrew from the
Lusaka
agreement, it would not be able to retain troops on the western slopes of Rwenzori
inside
Congo.
5.10.01 J.Kakande & F. Osike New Vision
Museveni also said the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, had written to him saying it
would not
be good for Uganda to withdraw from Lusaka agreement. … Museveni criticised
UN for
scaling down Observer mission from 5,537 people to mere 500 military observers and
2,460
support personnel. "These numbers will not be sufficient given the size of territory &
tasks,"
… He attacked The New Vision for not highlighting the story about the 34 ex-ADF
rebels who
surrendered to UPDF in eastern Congo early this month. "We killed all the top
commanders of
ADF. We killed 80 rebels in Kitagwenda 12.26.00 incl Cobra Matovu," Museveni said.
"Since we
have crashed ADF, why should we be part of this confusion in Congo?" asked
Museveni.
"Because they are corrupt, they think everybody is corrupt. Because they loot, they think
everybody was looting. Patriotism is not in the vocabulary of these people," Museveni
said. He
said even 'friends' (donors) were subjecting Ugandan to questions about involvement in
the
Congo. "We patriots cannot get on with colonial-minded people. They think of
exploitation, when I
think of liberation," Museveni said.
4.20.01 IRIN
Rebel leader confirms what Western donors deny
KAMPALA Uganda & Rwanda armies' extensive looting of Congo
admitted by
Uganda's Congolese ally, rebel leader Wamba Dia Wamba, in an
interview
with Aktuelt. 'In the case of Rwanda it is a state policy. In the case of Uganda it is
individuals,' says
Wamba Dia Wamba, leader of one of the 3 rebel groups supported by Uganda &
Rwanda
that control major parts of Congo in the war against govt in turn supported by Angola,
Zimbabwe
and Namibia. …
10.5.99 AP |
5.11.01 Reut ers … Museveni's call at a supporters' meeting this week for more govt investment in farming, mining and education to spread fruits of economic growth a further sign of an increasingly domestic agenda. "My target in the next 5 years is economic growth but with transformation," Museveni said. For the last 9 years Uganda's economy has grown 6% annually but Museveni said this had not led to widespread transformation of the lives of ordinary people. Museveni won landslide victory in March elections with nearly 70% of vote. Criticism of his increasingly autocratic govt is rising, and the elections were marred by allegations of substantial vote rigging and intimidation by the president's supporters. Donors who bankrolled Uganda's economic success increasingly impatient with Museveni reluctance to open politics and with rising official graft. Uganda ranked 11th most corrupt in 1999 survey of 90 countries by Transparency Intl. "There are a lot of plans but that is not good enough," the European Union's head of delegation in Uganda, Bernard Ryelandt, told Reuters recently. "There is a lack of political will to root out corruption especially high level corruption," he said. Attempts to ease restrictions on political parties banned since 1986 suffered setback after Museveni's refusal last month to assent to a bill allowing more regional party activity. "I hope the system can still evolve in the right direction, otherwise we shall lose trust in the political direction and therefore our involvement in Uganda," Ryelandt said. The West invested a lot in Museveni; foreign aid makes up nearly half the country's budget. … "Our future lies in the fact that donors have more leverage over Museveni than the internal opposition," Apuuli said. "If donors pull strings we'lll see more political advantages." Uganda's constitution bars Museveni from standing again in 2006, and the president says he will be ready to retire then, to tend his cows. Whatever faults, Museveni's legacy will probably be safe if he keeps that promise, and joins a small but growing group of African leaders who have left power peacefully. |
Jared That was the subject of the book, "Heart of Darkness" by Conrad. It
ends with
one of the Belgian colonialists dying, and his last words are "The horror!" Ten million
human
beings.
DB Imagine if the Congolese had done that to some Western country.
And in 1908
when the colony was handed over to the Belgian colonialist administrators they didn't do
much
better. They still used the colony for resource-extraction. Cleaned up their human rights
act a bit
but still exploited Congo harshly. Other than the brief interlude from 1960 to 1961 when
Patrice
Lumumba's movement was running the show, the country was a colony. Then after 1961
it was
run by Western clients who again used harsh repression to exploit Congo's vast mineral
resources. And the story isn't much different now except that Kabila was in a position to
once
again put forward Lumumba's line. He was identified with that line among the Congolese
population and amongst Western leaders which would explain why some hated him. And
in the
Western press and especially the Anglo-American press, it explains the fact that
Namibia, Angola
and Zimbabwe, all these states that had fought white apartheid regimes, all these
revolutionary
states that went to the support of Kabila have been demonized for supporting him
whereas the
story of Uganda and Rwanda [which invaded Congo] has been minimized when in fact
the
invading forces of Uganda and Rwanda have essentially plundered Eastern Congo.
Indeed this is how they have managed to develop in the last few years and meet their
obligations
under International Monetary Fund [IMF] and World Bank guidelines: by plundering
Eastern
Congo. Actually Entebbe [Uganda] and Kigali [Rwanda] are crawling with arms
merchants and
Western prospectors seeking to cash in on mineral resources which are being extracted
from
Congo. Meanwhile these two regimes - especially Uganda - are being held up as models
of
African neoliberal development - when in reality it is all based on the plunder of Eastern
Congo.
(2)
Jared That pays their IMF tribute.
DB Pretty much. And a great deal has been made of the fact that
Zimbabwean
companies, which support Kabila against the Rwanda-Uganda invasion, have been
given rights to
work the diamond mines. The point is the Zimbabwean companies were given those
rights through
the Congolese government. Mr. Kabila is after all an actual Head of State. Whereas the
Ugandans
and Rwandans and their American backers and American firms that are profiting
immensely from
the plunder of the region don't have any authorization to do that from Kinshasa, which is
the
capital of the Congo. It is a situation similar to Sierra Leone, where the Western media
demonizes
those whom they oppose for exploiting the mineral resources. But if the situation
changes and the
West comes in they will seize and exploit those resources ruthlessly. So the real
question is who is
going to possess them? That is the big issue in Eastern Congo.
In 1960, when Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba put forward his call for independent
development
in Congo, Belgium, backed by the United States, launched a separatist movement in
Katanga
Province. The separatist army was mainly white mercenaries. In response, Lumumba
called on the
UN to defend Congo's sovereignty. But when the UN did get involved, the Western
troops tried to
influence the situation on the ground. During the chaos that followed, Patrice Lumumba
was
assassinated by Mobutu, backed by Belgian and US secret services. So the whole
history of
Congo for the past 120 years has been so tragic. The Congolese people, except for brief
periods,
have faced either constant exploitation or war and when they have tried to forge an
independent
path they have faced the fiercest external aggression. …
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