UN News Spokesperson for the United Nations Secretary-General Stephane Dujarric expressed the UN’s appreciation for the pivotal and continuous efforts of the State of Qatar that led to the signing of the Doha Framework for Peace Agreement between the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the Congo River Alliance (M23 Movement) on November 15, adding that this agreement sets out guiding principles towards achieving lasting peace.
This came as the UN welcomed the agreement reached with the support of the State of Qatar, the United States of America, the African Union and the Republic of Togo, in addition to regional and international partners in this regard. The spokesperson stressed that the UN urges all parties to continue negotiations in good faith in order to ensure that these commitments are translated into tangible progress on the ground. Dujarric added that the UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) is committed to working alongside the Congolese people and Congolese authorities to support efforts to achieve lasting peace.
Activists from Amnesty International and the Congolese citizen movement Lucha gathered on Thursday November 20th in front of the European institutions.
Ben Kamuntu, spokesperson for Lucha, called on the EU to stop “looking the other way”. “We are here to call on the European Commission and the ministers meeting today. Their inaction is killing people in Congo,” he said
“Congo’s salvation will not be decided in Doha or Washington,” he said. “The Congolese must sit down at the table, and the EU must put pressure on President Félix Tshisekedi to open a genuine national dialogue.”
The protest in Brussels comes as European Foreign ministers meet ahead of an EU-African Union summit scheduled for 24 and 25 November in Luanda, Angola.
The organisations denounce European inaction amid continued violence in the provinces of North Kivu and Ituri: attacks on civilians, extrajudicial executions, widespread sexual violence, population displacement and repeated violations of civil liberties.
In its latest report, Amnesty highlighted the scale of unlawful killings, sexual violence and forced displacement – affecting more than 7 million people – as well as the resurgence of the M23, ADF and Codeco.
He says the EU has levers at its disposal: strengthening targeted sanctions against those responsible for war crimes, particularly the leaders of the M23 armed group; increasing humanitarian aid; and supporting inclusive political dialogue.
While the Doha Peace Frame work is an opportunity to achieving a lasting peace in the region, there is a lot of work ahead to get there.