Armed groups hinder peaceful polls in DR Congo

Among the great challenges to be overcome for the good conduct of the forthcoming elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) is the issue of security in the east of the Central African country, according to the head of the Congolese Institute for Strategic and Environmental Studies, Come Loma Djesa. Come Loma said here on Sunday that the security situation in eastern DR Congo remains unstable due to the presence of many armed groups such as the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), the different Mai Mai groups (Sheka, Yakutumba Gedeo, Hume.) and the ADF Nalu rebels in North Kivu, South Kivu, Maniema and Katanga provinces. "These groups survive on exploitation of minerals found in the east of DR Congo. In some other localities, these armed groups receive taxes and control earnings from gold, coltan and other minerals in this region," said Mbusa Pengela, a member of the South Kivu civil society. He said the civil society groups in North Kivu and South Kivu provinces believe that the presence of these armed groups in the east of the country constitutes an obstacle to holding peaceful, free and fair elections in the country. "These groups are capable of destroying electoral materials to ensure that elections are not held in regions they control. They will do everything to ensure that they do not lose the privileges they currently enjoy, which include illegal exploitation and looting of the wealth in the east of the country," he added. The Congolese Institute for Strategic and Environmental Studies also raised the issue of the upsurge of trafficking of arms in that part of DR Congo, something which, according to Pengela, "risks derailing the good conduct of the Nov. 28 elections in this region." Since 2009, the DR Congo Armed Forces (FARDC) launched the operation "Amani Leo" (in Kiswahili "Peace Today") which was aimed at neutralizing all the negative forces that cause insecurity in eastern DR Congo. However, this military operation which is supported by the UN Mission for Stabilization of Congo (MONUSCO) has not succeeded in restoring peace and neutralizing the rebel groups. "The FDLR and the Mai Mai rebels are not ready to see elections being organized in zones which are under their control," a South Kivu provincial deputy who did not wish to be named said. THE THREAT OF THE LRA In Orientale province, insecurity is created by the Ugandan rebel group, the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), which continues to commit serious crimes against the civilian population in the region. The civil society groups in Orientale province have indicated that the LRA rebels have continued to commit crimes against humanity such as the abduction of children, rape and murder in villages in eastern DR Congo and Uganda. Their head Joseph Kony, who is being sought by the International Criminal Court (ICC), has not been found until today. FARDC sources have indicated that Kony is hidden in regions situated between DR Congo, Uganda and South Sudan. In October, the U.S. State Department sent 100 American soldiers to help regional armies to fight against the LRA. "The Barack Obama government has decided to make the fight against LRA its priority together with the armies of countries which are concerned by the activities of this rebel movement," said a senior FARDC official. Many observers have also indicated that the presence of LRA rebels in the east of DR Congo could also be an obstacle to the organization of peaceful elections. A number of the observers have affirmed that only a joint and permanent force between FARDC and MONUSCO could guarantee elections in that part of DR Congo. "The success of these elections and neutralization of these rebel groups will certainly be a significant step in the process of pacification of the Democratic Republic of Congo," said Come Loma of the Congolese Institute for Strategic and Environmental Studies.