- Title: DR CONGO: Ban calls for closer Congo-U.N. collaboration
- Date: 1st March 2009
- Summary: KISANGANI, DR CONGO (FEBRUARY 28, 2009) (REUTERS) TWO LINES OF POLICEMEN WAITING FOR ARRIVAL OF U.N. SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI MOON AT AIRPORT ALAN DOSS, SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE OF SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE U.N. IN DR CONGO, HEAD OF MONUC AND LOCAL LITTLE GIRL WITH FLOWERS WAITING FOR ARRIVAL U.N. PLANE STOPS NEAR TERMINAL - UN LOGO ON PLANE BAN KI MOON COMING DOWN STAIRS FROM PLANE AND GREETING ALAN DOSS BAN KI MOON AND WIFE YOO SOON - TAEK RECEIVING FLOWERS FROM CONGOLESE LITTLE GIRL, BAN KI MOON SAYS IN FRENCH: MERCI BEAUCOUP (THANK YOU VERY MUCH)
- Embargoed: 16th March 2009 12:00
- Keywords:
- Topics: International Relations
- Reuters ID: LVA2IZP7QOAKCAS9XJ3L9AMHP6V4
- Story Text: United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon calls for increased collaboration between Congo and the U.N. peacekeeping mission there, which is under fire for failing to do its job.
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrived in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Saturday (February 28) where he was greeted by Alan Doss, U.N. special representative to the DR Congo.
The 17,000-strong mission, the U.N.'s largest, known as MONUC, helped usher Congo to landmark 2006 elections and has been credited with stabilising much of the vast central African nation following a brutal 1998-2003 war.
But it has been largely sidelined in recent months as Congo's President Joseph Kabila has allowed Ugandan and Rwandan troops into his country to hunt rebels who continue to roam across swathes of Congo's mineral-rich north and east.
"I am encouraged by the achievement that came thus far through joint operations of FARDC and Rwandan forces in addressing all these illegal armed groups to bring peace and stability in this region," Ban told journalists after meeting Congo's president on Saturday.
During the peace process, the U.N. was heavily involved in negotiations between factions and organising elections while its peacekeepers often fought alongside Congo's fledgling army.
The peacekeepers remain stretched across a nation the size of Western Europe and are struggling to find 3,000 reinforcements approved by the Security Council months ago.
Kabila also kept the mission in the dark over the joint operations, leaving them to contain the fallout, which aid workers say has seen over 1,000 civilians killed in reprisals.
Ban rejected recent criticism from rights groups and humanitarians, who accuse MONUC of not doing enough to fulfil its mandate to protect Congolese civilians.
"Monuc is committed to helping extend state authority and establish the rule of law which are the only guarantee of peace and security in the region," he said, adding that U.N. forces had saved tens of thousands of the civilian population during the fighting.
Rwanda completed a pullout of thousands of its soldiers from the troubled border province of North Kivu on Thursday after more than a month of operations with Congo's army against the Hutu Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).
Uganda's army, which is hunting Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army rebels in the remote northeast, will miss a Feb. 28 deadline to pull out.
The joint operations have been politically sensitive but all three Great Lakes neighbours, former enemies during the five-year conflict, have deemed the operations a success.
But the rapid withdrawal of foreign troops has raised fears that the rebels will retake positions and attack villagers despite the U.N. and government's efforts to maintain pressure by launching operations in new zones. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: Footage contains identifiable children: users must ensure that they comply with local laws and regulations governing the publishing of this material.
