Conflict in Congo
1. The current situation
2. What should be done
3. Crisis Group analysis
4. Congo online and in other media
A FARDC army soldier watches as civilians cross the front line with the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) forces north of the city of Goma in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo December 10, 2008. REUTERS/Peter Andrews (DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO)
updated 10 June 2010
In the eastern provinces of North and South Kivu:
Following violent fighting during the second half of 2008 between the Congolese armed forces (Forces armées de la République démocratique du Congo – FARDC) and the Congolese armed group known as the National People’s Congress (Congrès national du peuple – CNDP), Presidents Joseph Kabila (DRC) and Paul Kagame (Rwanda) found themselves under strong domestic and international pressure to put an end to the latest chapter of a long-lasting conflict in the Congolese Kivu provinces.
On 5 December 2008, the two heads of state took everybody by surprise when their respective governments jointly announced the launch of “Umoja Wetu” (Our Unity), a joint military operation against the Rwandan rebels of the Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda (FDLR – Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda), and the opening of direct negotiations between the CNDP and the Kinshasa government.
On 20 January 2009, the Rwandan army entered Congo and, in collaboration with the FARDC, neutralized the main elements of the CNDP who had been opposed to integrating their forces into the Congolese army. CNDP leader Laurent Nkunda was arrested by the Rwandan security forces in the night of 22-23 January, and replaced with another senior CNDP figure, Bosco Ntaganda, the subject of an ICC arrest warrant for war crimes since 2006. The coalition also launched a 35-day military offensive against the 6,500 strong FDLR in North Kivu.
The decisions taken by Presidents Kabila and Kagame to bring their two countries closer together represented a political shift that raised new hopes for regional stabilisation. The restoration of diplomatic relations, the relaunch of the Communauté économique des pays des Grands Lacs (CEPGL – Great Lakes Countries Economic Community), and the concrete implementation of the commitments made in the Nairobi Communiqué of 9 November 2007 - an agreement over a joint strategy for dismantling armed groups - laid the formal foundations for a new bilateral relationship.
However, this rapprochement was only made possible by a secret political deal under which the two heads of state agreed on the possibility of neutralising their respective enemies, Laurent Nkunda and the FDLR. The integration of the combatants of the former Congolese armed groups into the FARDC did not provide for establishing state authority over Eastern Congo, as the CNDP maintained a parallel administration and a military chain of command in large parts of North Kivu.
During Umoja Wetu, the FDLR avoided direct confrontation and dispersed in the Kivu forests. After 35 days, the results of the operation were much more modest than officially celebrated. The FDLR was only marginally and temporarily weakened in North Kivu and remained intact in South Kivu. Barely a month after the end of the operation, the rebels had regrouped and started to retaliate against civilians.
On 4 March 2009, Kinshasa launched a new anti-FDLR offensive, operation “Kimia II” (Quiet) that was to be conducted by the FARDC with logistical support from the UN peacekeeping force, MONUC. Kimia II ended on 31 December 2009 under heavy critics for causing civilian suffering, failure to neutralize FDLR and delaying long-awaited security sector reform (SSR). MONUC was criticized for failing to protect civilians from human rights violations committed by both FDLR and FARDC.
In fact, the military approach to neutralize the FDLR only led to modest achievements against the Rwandan rebellion, including increasing the disarmament rate of FDLR combatants. As a result of the two military offensives, MONUC reported that it had demobilized close to 2,000 Rwandan and Congolese FDLR combatants during the year 2009. On 17 November 2009 German police arrested two top FDLR political leaders, Ignace Murwanashyaka and Deputy Straton Musoni; both were part of an international FDLR support network that continues to operate.
Human Rights Watch recorded that 1,400 civilians were killed from January to September 2009, either by FDLR combatants or rogue FARDC units; 7,500 rapes, 9,000 burned buildings and 900,000 new IDPs reported in North and South Kivu due to the military offensives. FDLR has maintained majority of its combatants and ability to retaliate against civilians. In December 2009, a UN report concluded that Kimia II had failed to dismantle the organisation’s political and military structures on the ground in eastern DRC.
On 1 January 2010, “Amani Leo”, a third military operation was launched by FARDC still with MONUC logistical support, aiming to eradicate FDLR rebels within 3 months. Amani Leo puts strong emphasis on civilian protection, joint planning and conditionality of MONUC support linked to FARDC’s respect for human rights. Amani Leo was eventually extended to date as the FDLR command and control has still not been disrupted. As an unexpected result of MONUC’s conditionally policy, most recent military offensives have been conducted in North Kivu and South Kivu on a unilateral basis by the FARDC.
Inter-community tension in North Kivu has been fuelled by claims related to the return of Congolese refugees from Rwanda and Uganda. Indeed, following a meeting held on 15 - 17 February 2010 between Rwandan and Congolese authorities and UNHCR, preparations for the return of Tutsi refugees from Rwanda have been underway with the aim to begin repatriation before the end of 2010. Traditional, religious and military leaders of the Hunde and Nande communities are denouncing the return of up to 200,000 Tutsi refugees from Rwanda. A massive and rapid repatriation of refugees, as envisaged by the CNDP, would consolidate the control of Tutsi and Hutu communities over land under the aegis of units of the FARDC led by former CNDP officers.
In the north-western province of Equateur:
From October to November 2009, tribal violence occurred in Equateur province leading to the flight of up to 120,000 people to the Republic of Congo and the internal displacement of up to 40,000. On 18 November, a spokesperson from OCHA assessed that more than 100 civilians had been killed during the clashes between the Enyele and Munzaya tribes.
From late November to December 2009, Enyele rebels fought the Congolese security forces and started progressing towards the city of Gemena, nearly 250km further south of their initial position. The intervention of Congolese commando troops trained by Belgium derailed the offensive of the rebels. On 31 December 2009, the FARDC took total control of the town of Enyele, the rebels’ stronghold. MONUC reported that 157 “insurgents” and one Congolese soldier had been killed during the capture of the town of Enyele.
On 4 and 5 March 2010, Enyele rebels stormed Mbandaka, the capital of Equateur province, causing at least 21 casualties, including three MONUC staff. The FARDC and MONUC had to fight to recapture the city’s airport and take control of the situation. After the attack, the situation remained volatile and by late April, clashes were still being reported in the province. On 22 April, a local human rights NGO alleged that 49 civilians had been summarily executed by the Congolese army during the fighting in Mbandaka.
In the north-eastern Province Orientale:
Several armed groups are operating in Province Orientale but the most violent of them has been the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). A Ugandan rebellion created in 1987 by Joseph Kony, the LRA has been active in Province Orientale since at least 2005. Relocated in the Garamba National Park in north-eastern Congo during the Juba peace talks, the LRA has settled down in the Congolese districts of Haut- and Bas-Uélé till the Ugandan army launched Operation Lightning Thunder on 14 December 2008. This operation was supposed to end the LRA insurgency in a matter of weeks but it failed and the LRA splintered into small groups, some going to South Sudan and the Central African Republic, some others stayed in the districts of Haut- and Bas-Uélé. These groups are terrorizing the Congolese population and have probably massacred more than 1,000 people since the end of 2008.
Facing this threat, the local population organised self-defence groups and, thanks to logistical support from MONUC, the Congolese army launched Operation Rudia II in March 2009. Despite its official withdrawal, the Ugandan army has maintained intelligence units in this area and, on 3 November 2009, an operation against a 150-strong group near Faradje ended successfully with the surrender of Lt. Col. Charles Arop, a senior LRA commander. However, very little exchange of information between the Ugandan army, the Congolese forces and MONUC is limiting the ability of the three militaries to protect civilians in a coordinated manner and help each other track down LRA fighters. In addition, the Congolese soldiers are abusing civilians and misusing the logistical support provided by MONUC.
Discussion over International presence in the DRC before the 2011 general elections:
During the 2006 presidential campaign, President Kabila promised reconstruction of infrastructure and consolidation of democracy, but very little progress made since December 2006. The socio-economic situation has deteriorated in most of the country. Political pluralism has shrunk, with the opposition virtually excluded from governorships despite its performance in 2006 elections. Police instigated a brutal crackdown on the political-cultural movement Bundu dia Kongo in Bas-Congo in 2007. Free expression has been jeopordised by intimidation and a string of arbitrary arrests. On 2 June 2010, Floribert Chebeya, an eminent human rights defender and the director of Voix des Sans Voix, was found dead in Kinshasa one day after having been summoned to a meeting with General Numbi, head of the national police force.
The Congolese Constitution stipulates the implementation of major steps towards decentralisation before May 2010, as well as the holding of local election before end of 2011 and first-round presidential elections three months before Kabila’s current mandate ends on 6 December 2011. All institutional reforms and electoral preparations have to a large extent been delayed. Major concerns remain about the smooth implementation of the Congolese democratic roadmap, as agreed during the period of transition by the former belligerents.
On 4 March 2010, President Kabila demanded that MONUC begin its drawdown by 30 June 2010 (date of the 50th independence anniversary of DRC) and complete the withdrawal before summer 2011. In a 7 April report to the Security Council, UNSG Ban Ki-moon recommended the withdrawal of 2,000 troops by June 2010, and presented a three-year disengagement plan, with benchmarks related to progress on security in the east, security sector reform and institution building. On 28 May 2010, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) adopted Resolution 1925, renaming the mission in “United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo” (MONUSCO) to reflect a shift from peacekeeping toward stabilisation. The new 12-month mandate further concentrates the military force of the UN mission in the eastern provinces of the country. The UNSC expects to condition further withdrawal of blue helmets to a set of benchmarks and to regular review of the situation that will be conducted jointly with the Congolese authorities.
For a month by month report on the conflict in the Congo since September 2003, see Crisis Group's CrisisWatch database.
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While much attention has been rightly focused on the unacceptable levels of violence in the East, the DRC government and the international community should redouble their political commitments to building a functioning state for the whole DRC, recognising that the two endeavors are inextricably linked. An erosion of democratic space, stalled reforms in key areas and an inability to provide basic services, reduce violence and manage the conflict in eastern DRC are all serious risks to peace and stability.
In its most recent reports Congo: A Stalled Democratic Agenda, Africa Briefing N°73, 8 Apr 2010, Congo: A Comprehensive Strategy to Disarm the FDLR, Africa Report N°151, 9 July 2009, and Congo: Five Priorities for a Peacebuilding Strategy, Africa Report N°150, 11 May 2009, Crisis Group suggest a peacebuilding agenda focusing on the following priorities:
At the national level:
- Maintaining democratic rule by holding free and fair national elections on time;
- restoring rule of law and combat corruption, respecting constitutional freedoms;
- implementing decentralisation in accordance with the Constitution;
- and making meaningful progress on security sector reform and natural resource management.
- The Congolese regime should restrain from passing undemocratic changes to the Constitution.
Regarding the Kivu provinces:
- Implementing an effective anti-FDLR strategy including an agreement between Rwanda and the DRC on an end-state for the group;
- implementing the 23 March agreements between the DRC government and the Congolese armed groups including completely integrating the former combatants of the CNDP into the FARDC;
- ensuring safe and fair IDP and refugee returns and establishing mechanisms for peaceful resolution of conflicts and reconciliation;
- and improving local governance, supporting development of a regime combating illegal trade in weapons and minerals, and sustaining stabilization of regional relations.
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For more information on the background to the conflict in the Congo, see the DR Congo conflict history.
Crisis Group's most recent reporting on DRC
All of Crisis Group's reports and briefings on the Congo can be found here.
Crisis Group articles and opinion pieces
On 29 January 2009, Crisis Group released a Conflict Risk Alert related to the situation in DR Congo, click here to read it.
On 25 November 2008, Crisis Group submitted a memo to the UN Security Council on the situation in DR Congo, click here to read the full statement.
Crisis Group has produced "Congo Re-erupts", a multimedia presentation on the situation in North Kivu. Click here to view the presentation.
For a month by month report on the conflict in the Congo since September 2003, see Crisis Group's CrisisWatch Database.
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Relevant Websites
UN IRIN, Democratic Republic of Congo
Reuters AlertNet, Democratic Republic of Congo
International Committee of the Red Cross, Democratic Republic of Congo
International Rescue Committee, Democratic Republic of Congo
Médecins Sans Frontières, Democratic Republic of Congo
BBC Country Profile, Democratic Republic of Congo
New York Times, Congo Resources
Human Rights Watch, Democratic Republic of Congo
Amnesty International, Democratic Republic of Congo
Articles and Reports
Coghlan, B. et al., "Mortality in the Democratic Republic of Congo: An ongoing crisis", International Rescue Committee (January 2007)
Médecins Sans Frontires, "Ituri - Civilians still the first victims: Permanence of sexual violence and impact of military operations", October 2007.
Human Rights Watch, "Renewed Crisis in North Kivu", Volume 19, No. 17 (a), October 2007.
Watch video on Congo
The U.S. PBS program "Now" covered DR Congo in the 15 May show "Can the U.N. Keep the Peace?". The full video is available on their website.
The public TV newscast website Worldfocus has a range of frequently updated videos on DR Congo.
The Hub , an online media site for human rights, has an extensive collection of videos on DR Congo.
CBS news program 60 Minutes, "War Against Women: The Use Of Rape As A Weapon In Congo's Civil War", broadcast January 2008.
CNN's news program "The Killing Fields: Africa's Misery, the World's Shame" broadcast a report on the Congo in October 2006. Click here to watch the video.
ABC's news program Nightline broadcast a report on the Congo in November 2005, prepared with Crisis Group's assistance. Click here to watch the video.
"Democracy in the Rough" , is a PBS Wide Angle production filming on the ground as the Democratic Republic of Congo holds its first elections in 45 years – an election supported by more than $450 million from the United Nations.
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