DR Congo: M23 The comedians of the Congo ?

Chimp Reports ( Uganda ) reports

M23 Warn DRC Army

In what appears as the latest escalation of tensions in Eastern Congo, the rebel M23 Movement has given the DRC government an ultimatum of 48 hours to vacate their strategic stronghold Southern town of Kanyamahoro, Chimp Corps reports.

                                                                   Abandi addressing in Kampala on Tuesday

By Giles Muhame & Badru Afunadula 15/10/2013 18:01:00

Located about 30 kilometers from the Provincial town of Goma, the area was seized at around 2am Tuesday in a surprise DRC army (FARDC) offensive.

I am astonished that M23 were surprised by this attack. The only surprise has been the amount of time it has taken FARDC ( The DR Congo Army ) to go back on the offensive.

In a press conference held at Silver Springs Hotel in Kampala on Tuesday evening, the leader of M23 peace delegation to Kampala, Rene Abandi, said the attack was “totally unacceptable” and a “crime against peace.”

You have to hand it to M23, when it comes to batshit crazy there are not many who do it quite as well. M23 have rebelled against a legitimate internationally recognised government, they have committed acts of war against that government and seem to think that despite all this they are some how immune to retaliation. I would have thought it might have dawned on even the dimmest of them that there is no way out for them now other than unconditional surrender.  

He added: “We have stopped direct contact with the government of DRC on this issue. We shall from now onwards be passing our messages through the facilitator of the peace talks (Uganda Defence Minister Crispus Kiyonga).”

I must say I am starting to feel a bit sorry for Minister Kiyonga. He seems to be a reasonably competent sensible man, he must know that the peace talks are a farce and I am sure that there are many other issues he would rather focus on other than this circus in Kampala.

The eyebrow-raising statement is likely to raises fears of a possible military confrontation between the rebels and the DRC army with its allied forces..

What ? I think that we might be looking at the aftermath of the latest confrontation between M23 and FARDC. This conflict will not stop until M23 have been destroyed. That should be very clear to all the actors involved. If M23 wish to play the ostrich so be it.

  

Abandi said Kamahoro, which is not very far from the frontline, was the last M23 stronghold in the Southern region.

Asked whether the rebel Movement responded to the attack, Abandi observed: “The military wing of M23 received orders not to retaliate to the ground attack.

That is actually a bit of a surprise I would have thought M23 would have been in a position to have a fight over this. There have been rumours of reinforcement from Rwanda for some time now. It may be that M23 are in worse shape than was thought. One lives in hope.

“We still believe in the peaceful resolution of the conflict in Eastern Congo.”

This situation is beyond a peaceful resolution that involves anything other than surrender with the M23 leadership joining Bosco Nataganda at the ICC.

Abandi further said the attack underscored DRC’s “barbaric attitude” at a time when “we had started building trust” in the peace process.

That has to be one of the most unintentionally funny as well as stupid statements that M23 has made in some time.

He further blasted the string of NGOs in Goma and other parts of DRC for “peddling falsehoods to tarnish the image of the M23,” adding the organizations serve the interests of their sponsors.

That is actually true. It is in everyone's interests ( other than Rwanda and M23's obviously ) that M23 is neutralised and that the people of the eastern DR Congo can get back to living normal lives without the threat of murder, rape and the other myriad of crimes against humanity that M23 and Rwanda have perpetuated on the population of the region.

Pressed to explain how the rebel Movement would deal with future attacks by DRC, Abandi answered: “We shall defend ourselves. We cannot allow them to continue attacking us and putting the safety of civilians at risk. We shall be obliged to respond.”

In which case they will die and while that will be no great loss it would be better for all if M23 found some small tenuous grip on reality, the risk to the civilian population is real. 

Responding to a question from a journalist on why M23 shot at the UN chopper on October 12, Abandi apologized for the incident but quickly attributed the blame to the international body which “continuously allows FARDC to use their planes for espionage activities and dropping DRC soldiers near M23 territory.”

What a load of shit. Abandi seems to have forgotten the expanded mandate of the MONUSCO Intervention ( Africa ) Brigade.

He said one of the planes that recently violated the M23 territory’s airspace was carrying President Joseph Kabila’s spy chiefs.

Abandi also revealed that FARDC and UN were mixing their emblems on planes, giving the rebel group difficulty in distinguishing the DRC forces from humanitarian elements.

M23 have never allowed humanitarian concerns to affect their activities to date so this is ringing a little hollow.

UPDATE

Democratic Republic of Congo rebel group M23 has announced suspension of talks with the Congolese government over the next 48 hours following an attack on its positions in the east of the country.

Rene Abandi, head of the M23 delegation at the Ugandan mediated talks in Kampala, told reporters on Tuesday that Congolese government forces and a Rwandan rebel group attacked M23 positions at Kamahoro, about 20 km from the North Kivu provincial capital Goma, killing one combatant and injuring two others.

"From this [moment], we have stopped direct contact [with the government side]. We shall not talk through the mediation until they withdraw from that position. We shall not continue to talk and fight at the same time," Mr Abandi said.

"We require the government to withdraw from that position (Kamahoro) within 48 hours. We think it's our right to have clarification whether the government wants dialogue or war."

Mr Abandi warned that the M23 would respond accordingly should the Congolese troops fail to withdraw from Kamahoro within the given deadline.

"If they continue to attack us, we don't have any other choice but to defend our position. For sure we shall act, we shall be obliged to respond to protect ourselves and the population. We can't just leave our people to be killed," he said.

Mr Abandi repeated his group's earlier calls for North Kivu province to be declared a disaster zone in order to attract international assistance. (Xinhua)

DR Congo: Flying a ( false ? ) flag in Kampala

Voice of America reports

DRC Hopeful Peace Talks with Rebels Ends Next Week

DRC Foreign Minister Raymond Tshibanda (L) and M23 Spokesman Rene Abandi discuss the situation, at DRC peace talks in Kampala, Uganda, Sept. 17. (VOA/A. Hall)

An official of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) says peace talks between the government and the M23 rebel group in neighboring Uganda’s capital, Kampala could be concluded next week.

Information Minister Lambert Mende also expressed hope that the conclusion of the talks could pave way for peace, stability and the protection of lives and property in the restive parts of the North Kivu province.

“We are coming to an end because the facilitator the Uganda Minister for Defense [Crispus Kiyonga] has delivered a keynote on which we are going to give our remarks very soon and probably we can finish everything maybe next week,” said Mende. “I think a lot of things that we have said and the facilitator has taken into account, so I think we are approaching a solution.”

I some how doubt it very much.

Talks between the Congolese government and the rebels resumed after heads of state in Africa’s Great Lakes region demanded a resumption of the negotiations.

The African leaders, who recently met in Kampala to find ways of ending the conflict, demanded the talks begin within three days and end within 14 days.    

Some observers say the ongoing talks have flouted the regional leaders’ directive to end within the two-week window. But, Mende disagreed.

“It didn’t work [and] we didn’t end the talks within two weeks. But, if we end next week it won’t destroy the work and it will not be a bad thing,” he said.

I suspect that finishing next week or in 6 weeks will make no difference. There is absolutely no point in these talks. 

Some of the victims of the M23 rebel insurgency in the restive North Kivu provinces are hopeful that a solution could be reached at the peace talks to ensure peace in the area.

The DRC and the United Nations have accused Uganda and Rwanda of supporting armed groups that often fight the Congolese national army. But both Uganda and Rwanda have denied the accusation.

To be fair Uganda seems to have at best an indifferent attitude to the fate of the M23 rebels. 
 
“You know that this rebellion is not a Congolese one,” said Mende. “It was masterminded by Rwanda. So, if Rwanda wants to cooperate with its own commitment, we think that we shall end this sickness of our region.”

Rwanda I am sure is reinforcing M23 in anyway it can. If Rwanda was to stand down the troops it has massing on the Congolese border and disown M23 then maybe we could take the peace talks seriously but that is not going to happen.
         
Mend says the government in Kinshasa is pleased with the peacekeeping wok by the United Nations intervention brigade in the country.

I don't doubt it and the International Brigade ( Africa Brigade ) will have more work to do before this situation reaches its conclusion.
 
“We are satisfied by the effort that is being made by these international forces for one or two months now. We think that a good job will be done as soon as this M23 had decided to disarm, itself we shall see the situation of the FDLR [Hutu rebel group] who are destroying our country and threatening their country and other national armed groups,” said Mende. “We shall disarm all of them and we hope that the job will be done.”

I just can't see M23 disarming, that said the FDLR need bring to heel fast. The effective elimination of the FDLR ( These are the scum behind the Rwandan genocide ) is as high as a priority as M23. Removing them removes the Rwandan justification for interfering in the DR Congo.

DR Congo: The deluded

All Africa reports

Uganda: Congo Talks to Discuss Amnesty for M23

                                                            

THE resumed peace talks between the DR Congo government and rebels of M23 have come up with an agenda to discuss the possibility of amnesty and transformation of M23, as well as setting up an independent commission of inquiry.

I would have thought that it would be fairly difficult to allow an amnesty for crimes against humanity.

The talks will also discuss integration, demobilisation, and reconciliation, governance and social economic reforms, possible release of prisoners, return and resettlement of refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), as well as the return of expropriated properties.

Why ? Seriously what possible interest does the DR Congo have in discussing this with M23. They have M23 by the balls the Kinshasa delegation should be making it very clear that the only subject up for discussion is the formal instrument of M23's surender. Even that is fairly simple, the word they are looking for is unconditional.

Dr. Kiyonga this afternoon opened the plenary session for the peace talks between M23 and the DRC government at Speke Resort Munyonyo. The resumption of the talks comes after the emergency meeting of regional Heads of State and leaders following renewed fighting in eastern DR Congo.

Kiyonga told the two sides to aim to conclude discussions in line with the Heads of States' assigned deadline of two weeks.

Kiyonga said, "We have been in the dialogue since 9th December last year. We have been here for quite some time and as a consequence there is growing concern that it is time the dialogue concluded business."

That is hilarious. There has been virtually no dialogue M23 have put up their proposals here. Jason Stearns at Congo Siasa blogs 

" The real reason the talks are on hold is probably because of the imminent arrival of the Intervention Brigade. The Kinshasa government believes that this brigade will solve the M23 problem, and has been bolstered by the UN Security Council resolution calling for the rebels to disband. But while the advance Tanzanian party for the brigade has arrived in Goma, the South African and Malawian troops are still dragging their feet. While for Malawi the delay is logistical, the South Africans appear to be dragging their feet in part because they didn't receive the command of MONUSCO's troops, as they had wanted."

What has changed ? The M23 problem is now a problem for M23 and not the the Congolese government. There is very little to talk about.

Kiyonga said that since the closure of the Heads of State emergency summit, consultations have been ongoing behind closed doors involving him as facilitator and the two sides.

"My reading as the facilitator is that the government and M23 are still interested and committed to the talks," he added.

He is deluded. I suspect that suits the Congolese government though.

He said that despite the slow start, significant progress has been made with the two delegations having reviewed the status of implementation of the peace agreement that was signed on 23rd March 2009 between the Kinshasa government and the then CNDP rebel group.

He said the review of progress of the 2009 agreement led to a proposed draft agreement that has since been consolidated into a draft document containing the views of the two sides.

Great. No really I mean it.

DR Congo: M23 waiting for some Museveni magic in Kampala.

New Vision ( Uganda ) reports

No direct talks yet in Congo peace bid

(Left-right) M23 delegates Rogers Lumbala, Rene Abandi and Kambasu Ngeve clearing the credentials before the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region at Speke resort Munyonyo, Kampala. PHOTO/Tony Rujuta

KAMPALA - Mediators in peace talks between Democratic Republic of Congo's government and M23 rebels admitted Friday the sides were yet to negotiate face-to-face, but insisted that progress was still being made.

"Since Tuesday the mediator has been holding separate consultations with the respective delegations," Uganda's defence spokesman Paddy Ankunda told AFP.

Uganda's defence minister, Crispus Kiyonga, is chairing the talks at a lakeside resort near the capital Kampala.

It sounds to me like Kinshasa is doing exactly what I expected them to do which is paying lip service to the negotiations. I hope that they preparing a fatal punch for delivery to M23 over the border in the Congo. These negotiations are a pointless waste of time.

Talks restarted Tuesday after they stalled in May, following an ultimatum that regional leaders issued after a recent upsurge in fighting in the resource-rich east of DR Congo.

Congolese troops backed by a special United Nations force launched a fresh assault against the M23 army mutineers late last month.

"The two sides don't talk to each other directly, they communicate through the mediator," M23 delegation leader Rene Abandi said.

Hilarious. Crispus Kiyonga must be bored out of his mind.

Ugandan defence spokesman Ankunda added that the mediator "prefers to hold separate consultations with each group because that way consensus is built".

"Progress has been made and we hope next week they (parties and the mediator) will issue a joint communique on what they have so far achieved," he said.

I think he would probably do better if just told the truth. There is absolutely no dividend for the DR Congo for these negotiations to conclude with anything less than an unconditional M23 surrender and that is not going to happen in Kampala.

The M23 was founded by former Tutsi rebels who were incorporated into the Congolese army under a 2009 peace deal.

Complaining the deal was never fully implemented, they mutinied in April 2012, turning their guns on their former comrades and launching the latest rebellion to ravage DR Congo's mineral-rich and conflict-prone east.

The UN and various rights groups have accused the M23 of atrocities including rape and murder in a conflict that has caused tens of thousands of refugees to flee.

Hundreds of thousands. The devastation M23 has inflicted on the Eastern DR Congo is massive. Alex Engwete blogs. 

And  M23 claim they only got left three small demands to the DRC government: 1) Disarm the FDLR; 2) Allow thousands of people claiming to be Congolese refugees in Rwanda to return en masse to the Congo (with thousands of their cows); and, last and not least, 3) Set up a buffer zone between the FARDC and the territory occupied by M23!

No sovereign government could entertain the last demand. It amounts to a demand for secession but there is no justification for it. A few hundred rebels want bring a the  population of Eastern DR  Congo under their control, the agenda obviously being the balkanisation of the region and the installation of either a new state under Rwandan hegemony or alternatively a merger into the current state of Rwanda.

The UN also accuses Rwanda of backing the M23, a charge the country has adamantly denied.

The rebels for their part have accused the Congolese army of joining forces against them with the Hutu FDLR, or Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, which is also active in eastern DR Congo where its members fled in the wake of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

Let the Congolese army ( FARDC ) and the MONUSCO Intervention Brigade ( African Brigade ) deal with M23 and then the FDLR clowns. The people of the Eastern DR Congo want neither of them.

Uganda: Good news. No coups this week.

The Daily Monitor ( Uganda ) reports takes the piss

UPDF cannot topple the government

By Muniini K. Mulera

Dear Tingasiga:
President Yoweri K. Museveni and Dr. Crispus Kiyonga, his defense minister, have reportedly expressed fear that the army may overthrow the government to “refocus the country’s future” if the “confusion in parliament persists.”

I blogged on this a couple of days ago and fairly much reached the conclusion it was never going to happen. I just wish I had been this funny.

I have very good news for the president and his defense minister. The UPDF is a professional army that cannot be bothered by the annoying aspects of democracy. Therefore it cannot overthrow the government.

Professionalising the UPDF was the main reason why the president very reluctantly sought his second and last elected term in 2001.

The top agenda item in his 2001 re-election manifesto was to “consolidate the building of a professional army.” 
By 2006, he was ready to launch his re-election campaign to his third and last term. Top on the new agenda for 2006 was “consolidating the building of a professional army.”

Hilarious but as my last blog points out Museveni seems to keep running for president. This take is brilliant though.

Fast-forward to 2011, and the president very, very reluctantly accepted the demand of the people that he must continue to rule them.
To do so, he sought re-election to his fourth and last term with a 241-page manifesto in which he confidently informed us on page 5 that “the earlier years of military coups, armed groups, human rights abuses, a failing state etc have (sic) now history.” 
Gen. Museveni pointed out on page 24 that the peace and security that Ugandans were enjoying was “irreversible” “because of the maintenance of high professional standards by the security organisations.”

“The way forward” would include the maintenance of these high professional standards and investment in “defense diplomacy” that would contribute to peaceful resolution of conflicts internally, regionally and internationally.

Museveni is starting to look like a bit of an idiot at this point.

Happily, the president also had a lot to say about the state of democracy in Uganda. On page 17 of the 2011 manifesto, he said the NRM was “committed to promoting democracy and good governance first as a core value, but also as a sine qua non for national transformation.” 

The NRM was therefore diligently working for, among other things, “existence of constitutional democracy where there is a separation of powers between Executive, Legislature and Judiciary.” Implied in that statement was that Parliament would be left to do its thing, without interference from Rwakitura.

I am assuming, of course, that Gen. Museveni was the author of his election manifestos; that he read them and that he meant what he said. In case the manifestos were mpewo (hot air) or kiwani (fake), then the president and his minister are right. 

The military could overthrow the government, though such statements by the president and his defense minister are tantamount to treason or, at least, incitement to violence. We fully expect Gen. Kale Kayihura’s boys to show up to quiz Museveni and Kiyonga about their statements.

Ouch, hoist by his own manifesto no less.

Yet Ugandans need not despair, for we have very good news for you as well. A military coup would not change anything. It would not affect your lives one bit. How so, you ask?

The newly installed military regime would be made up of Gen. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni (president and commander-in-chief), his son Brigadier Muhoozi Kainerugaba (Commander of the Special Forces Command), Maj. Gen. Kale Kaihura (Inspector General of Police), Gen. Aronda Nyakeirima (Chief of Defence Forces) and Maj. Gen. Fred Mugisha (Joint Chief of Staff).

These are the men that matter in Uganda, the most important of them being Brig. Kainerugaba who would continue to be assisted by Col. Sabiiti Mzei and Maj. Don Nabaasa in his task of keeping his father in power.

I am laughing to hard to sip my coffee.

To give the regime a semblance of civilian participation, the vice president would be Edward Ssekandi, with Amama Mbabazi as prime minister and Crispus Kiyonga as minister of defense.

So there would be no change, though any similarity to the current regime would be purely coincidental.

I end on another happy note. As Barack Obama takes his second oath as president of the United States today, we remember the declaration that he made in his inaugural address on January 20, 2009: 
“To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history, but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.” 
Although Obama embarks on his last term, with a most confused and troublesome legislature, there is no worry that the US army might step in to refocus America’s future. 
Meanwhile, the Ugandan president continues to dress up MPs in military attire at compulsory Kyankwanzi retreats, reminiscent of Marshall Idi Amin’s treatment of his civilian ministers. He threatens to overthrow his own regime. He is clearly on the wrong side of history.

The strange thing is why he brought up the whole subject.

DR Congo: Heinous crimes all round

The Daily Monitor reports

Kabila government insists M23 committed terrible crimes

MUNYONYO

The Congolese Government delegation yesterday hit back at the M23 rebels, accusing them of committing “heinous” crimes in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo aimed at a peaceful resolution of the conflict during talks in Kampala.

The Congolese Foreign Affairs Minister said the rebels were guilty of, among other crimes murder, rape, torture and looting. The rebel delegation, which boycotted an earlier session on Monday for the government response, listened quietly as Mr Raymond Tshibanda read out what he called a “litany” of human rights violations committed by the rebels. He said the rebels were working closely with and were still being led by individuals indicted and wanted by the International Criminal Court for human rights violations, pointing particularly to General Bosco Ntaganda and Col. Sultan Makenga.

“M23 is an armed group which participated in a mutiny,” Mr Tshibanda said, “majority of their leaders are young people who have already committed heinous crimes, majority are former leaders of the NCDP,” he added.

He said both Kinshasa and international agencies had evidence to pin the M23 on murder, looting, recruitment of child soldiers among other charges. On the opening day of the talks, the leader of the M23 delegation, in a statement had accused Kinshasa of among others discriminating against Kinyarwanda speaking Congolese nationals in the east of the country and denying the region services.

Mr Francios Ruchogoza also accused the government of corruption and other violations.
The government delegation which was apparently taken by surprise on Sunday demanded an opportunity to respond to the accusations but on Monday, the day that had been set for the response the rebel delegation refused to attend the session, forcing a postponement to yesterday.

While the M23 did not respond to the statement in conference room, Mr Ruchogoza dismissed the accusations in comments to journalists outside after the talks closed. He said the leaders of M23 for both the political and military wing were well known. Bishop Jean Marrie-Runiga heads the political wing, he said.

The chief facilitator for the dialogue, Uganda’s Defence Minister, Dr Crispus Kiyonga, said he was keen to see the negotiations progress to agenda setting and ground rules as soon as possible.

“I would like to reiterate, what the leaders of both delegations have already reiterated and emphasized to me that we are here to find peace for our people in the Democratic Republic of Congo, so that they can go home, they can have services,” he said. “That is the position that has been reiterated by leaders of both delegations. I will keep in touch with both delegations so that we can agree on the agenda,” he added.

cmwanguhya@ug.nationmedia.com

Just for the record it occures to me that it might be an idea to point out the scale of the armed groups killing civilians in the DR Congo.

FARDC - DR Congo armed forces.
FNL - Burundian rebels
FRONABU aka FPM - more...

Burundian rebels
ADF - Ugandan rebels ( Muslim fundimentalists ).
Al Shabaab - Somalie Islamic fundimentalists.
M23 - DR Congo rebles ( backed by Uganda and Rwanda )
UPDF - Ugandan armed forces
RDF - Rwandan armed forces.
CNDP - Congolese rebels thought to be defunct and succeded by M23
FDLR - Rwandan rebels ( thought to be backed by FARDC and DR Congo government.
Mia Mia - Local war lords as far as I can see quite a few of them supporting who ever offers the best profit opportunities robbing and killing civilians.

DR Congo: M23 try the bat shit crazy play

New Vision reports

Congo M23 rebels boycott peace talks

By Raymond Baguma
KAMPALA - The M23 rebel delegation on Monday failed to turn up for the ongoing dialogue at Speke Resort Munyonyo.

                                                Speke Resort Munyonyo

A special session had been convened to enable Congolese foreign affairs minister Raymond Tshibanda respond to M23’s allegations against the Congolese government of Joseph Kabila.
Not a lot of good faith present. That is important in negotiations.
The talks between the Congolese government and M23 opened on Sunday amidst tension with the rebels’ executive secretary, François Ruchogoza, accusing Kabila’s government of ignoring the problems facing eastern Congo and the social exclusion of some people in the region.

“The security situation in the eastern part of our country is partly explained by the central government’s refusal to recognise that there are internal problems that must be diagnosed and treated in depth. It is also the expression of a visible consequence of poor governance characterised by the lack of visionary leadership,” Rucogoza had said.

In response, minister Tshibanda protested and said the dialogue would only continue after the DRC government delegation responded to the accusations made by the rebels.

The bad faith is at a level that I suspect a solution may well have to be imposed on them. We are still at the agenda setting stage for the real talks in Goma so I would think the risks are not to high at this stage.  

On Monday, Uganda’s defence minister Dr. Crispus Kiyonga, who is the chief facilitator of the dialogue, said he had called the meeting guided by the principle of the right of reply to enable the DRC delegation to respond.

Kiyonga said he had informed M23 who were expected to attend the special session.

However, he later received a message from the rebels, saying their delegation would not attend. Also, the session’s starting time was extended to enable the rebels to be present.

Kiyonga said: “I personally rang the M23 leader and appealed to him to turn up for the meeting. But the M23 leader said he was under instructions not to attend this particular meeting.” Kiyonga, however, said the rebel delegation was still in Kampala.

I wonder who issued that instruction ? Kilgali's ?


The Congolese government delegation asked Kiyonga to avail another time today and prevail upon the M23 delegation to attend the session.

I suspect they have made their point.

DR Congo: Predictable in some ways

" In a world with no systems, with chaos, everything becomes a guerilla struggle, and this predictability is not there. And it becomes almost impossible to save lives, educate kids, develop economies, whatever. "

Bill Clinton

The Daily Monitor ( Uganda ) reports

DRC threatens to cancel talks

Talks between the M23 rebels and the Kinshasa government started on a bad note in Kampala yesterday, with the Congolese government threatening to pull out of the negotiations.

The trouble started when the secretary general of the rebels, Mr Francois Tuyihimbaze Rucogoza, who is heading the delegation, accused the DRC government of tribalism, xenophobia and killing Kinyarwanda-speaking government soldiers.

Good to see things off to such a positive start.

“M23 is a Congolese movement but we are called foreigners because there are some Kinyarwanda-speaking leaders. The current president (Kabila), has signed several agreements but he has not implemented any. We want the regional leaders to establish a mechanism to follow up whether this agreement will be implemented,” Mr Rucogoza said.

It is hard to see how regional leaders will be able to do so with out Kinshasa's authority. 

Accusations
Mr Rucogoza also accused the Kinshasa government of corruption and failing to improve the living conditions of people in eastern DR Congo.

Congolese Minister Raymond Tshibanda, who had given his remarks before Mr Rucogoza, asked Uganda’s Defence minister Crispus Kiyonga, who is mediating the talks, to respond to the accusations, saying the M23 were using the platform to “taint the image” of his government.

“It’s unacceptable for people who have AK7 as their legitimacy to taint the image of those elected by the people Congo. We request to be given the same opportunity to respond or else we will not continue with these negotiations,” Mr Tshibanda said.

So we appear to have agreement on both sides to withdraw from negotiations.

He had calmly presented his speech and promised that they were open to talks. But he said the DRC government would not allow rights abuses and sovereignty in their territory.

Dr Kiyonga promised to give equal opportunity to both parties but adjourned the meeting to today. He said the meeting was to set ground rules before holding more talks in Goma.

Good fucking luck with that Dr Kiyonga.

Chaka Mchaka in Rwenzori Uganda. Sounds awful.

Get informed on what is going on in the Rwenzori region   blog, blogs

A total of 350 students of Kisinga Vocational Secondary school in Kisinga sub-county in Kasese district were on Monday passed out as young cadres after undergoing military training commonly known as Chaka Mchaka for two weeks.

The pass out at Kisinga playground was presided over by Defense Minister Dr. Crispus Kiyonga who urged the students to use the acquired skills to analyze situations and intervene in situations that may lead the country into danger.

They could start by examining the corruption that is rife under the Museveni regime that is already leading the country into danger. 

Dr. Kiyonga said that the reason why the NRM government takes cadres through Chaka Mchaka is to avail more Ugandans with management skills where by the cadres can help in conflict resolution in the community.

I am guessing he means simple things like human rights violations. Like the ones the Ugandan government is about to inflict on gay members of the Ugandan community

He said that nationals who complete Chaka Mchaka are able to defend themselves and the territory adding that with such groups in place, there is no enemy who shall ever defeat the government of Uganda giving an example of the ADF insurgence where civilians participated to flash it out.

“There is no enemy that can defeat the government of Uganda because the trained cadres in the country have showed their potential to working hand in hand with the UPDF as seen from the ADF experience when the people of Kasese got guns and wiped rebels off.

So effectively a militia with the role of suppressing internal descent by it's very existence and eliminating any outward expression of that descent by force of arms if necessary. I assume that the state will use these  forces as a substitute for the military that can be better deployed earning remittances for Uganda by operating in African hot spots on behalf of the UN. See Lesley on Africa " Playing chicken with the UN, Uganda threatens to withdraw from peacekeeping operations " 

So these cadre trainings are not a joke as other people think but for the purpose of building the spirit of patriotism among the Ugandans who have the country at heart”. Dr. Kiyonga said.

Dr. Kiyonga said that the current Uganda needs to be stable for transformation and development, lamenting that most of the fifty years of independence have been under conflict.

I am not so sure that turning your citizens into para militaries is the way forward with regard to reducing conflict.

The Resident District Commissioner Lt. Milton Odongo urged the cadres to be agents of good change by mobilizing more people to support the NRM government and its development programs.

Lt. Odongo asked the cadres not to use the military skills and tricks attained at the training by making a U-turn and fight the government.

“We have not trained you to use the attained military skills to turn against the government and fight it. But you are being commissioned as agents of good change in the communities where you come from”. Lt. Odongo said.

That is a risk that could possibly happen. If you are prepared to exercise repression over your population whilst at the same time giving them the skills to fight oppression you could well be playing with fire. The issues Africa seems unable to come to terms with is the youth of the African population ( average age 29 ) and the inevitable globalization of the world happening at an ever increasing pace. Add to this the ever increasing influence of the African diaspora along with forecast population growth it seems to me that there will have to at some point be a conflict between the Africa of Defence minister Kiyonga and the new Africa.

Ms. Salima Biira the course leader while presenting the young patriots report said that they have learn a lot of things that including handling a fire arm, military drills, the political history of Uganda, the role of the army and police, the NRM manifesto and information  management.

The chief guest handed over gifts and certificates to best candidates Bernard Thembo and Salima Biira (Discipline), Denis Kule and Lakeri Biira (drills), Pascal Kiiza and Janet Ithungu (target range), Landas Muhindo and Neverles Kabugho (gun stripping and assembling).

I have no doubt that this is an attempt to influence the population through patriotism but the most effective way to build a stable society is to create a strong middle class with a real interest in the success of their society. You don't achieve that through corruption. 

The two week cadre course attracted several dignitaries to present papers including Rwenzururu King Charles Wesley Mumbere and Kasese district chairman Lt. Col. Mawa Muhindo.

The young cadres also had a lecture on the performance of the National Agricultural Advisory Services by the district NAADS coordinator Ms. Annet Biira.

Maj. Jonathan Ochom who has been the chief instructor at the training said that the students were enthusiastic and determined to finish their course.

Yes well I must admit I would be desperate to finish any course that involved military style drills and military style discipline. That probably isn't a fair comparison though.

Nearly the same number of students however did not participate in the Chaka Mchaka in what the government officials suspect they should have been ill advised by members of the opposition because Kisinga sub-county is a staunch area for Forum for Democratic Change.

Interesting that there is politicisation even at this level.

DR Congo: The AU Force announced

New Vision reports

Ten countries for DRC peacekeeping - Kiyonga

By John Nzinjah

A total of 10 countries in the Great Lakes region have resolved to form a joint force of 4,000 troops to contain the insurgency in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Defence Minister Dr. Crispus Kiyonga has confirmed.

"The countries to contribute to the force include Angola, Namibia, Congo Brazzaville, South Sudan, Rwanda, Tanzania, Kenya, Zambia, Uganda, Burundi and the DRC itself," Kiyonga said.

That is a hell of an unwieldy force make up. Tanzania is going to have fun commanding the force. Interesting Rwanda and Uganda are committing troops. What has happened to Zimbabwe ? They are usually up for pillaging opportunities.
He said this while officiating at the passing out of 350 youths at the end of a two-week military and patriotism course at Kisinga Vocational Secondary School in Kisinga sub-county Kasese district on Monday.

Will blog about that separately.
He said the force would operate under the command of Tanzania. 

The current insurgency in the eastern DRC broke out in April this year when the M23 rebels mutinied and deserted from the country's army causing over 500,000 people to flee from their homes in the ensuing unrest.

Addressing himself to the youthful cadres, the minister warned them against supporting elements that may want to change government by the use of force.

How ironic.
He advised them to be supportive of ideas which are pro Pan-Africanism and regional integration for faster economic and social development of the African people.

He urged them to use the skills and knowledge they had acquired during the military and patriotism course to ensure that corruption is routed out the country.

Kiyonga said that among the ten reasons the NRA/M waged a bush war was to fight corruption that existed in the former governments.