EAC-SADC joint summit should deliver practical results for DRC crisis
By Ben Oduor
There has been too much finger pointing over eastern Democratic Republic of Congo Crisis. And while all these happens, the lives of civilians have been put on the line, claiming hundred of lives on its trail.
The World Health Organization said on Monday that at least 900 bodies were recovered from the streets of Goma as of last Friday following five days of fighting in which the M23 rebels took control of the city.
The WHO cited nearly 2,900 injuries in the fighting. The UN and Congo’s government had earlier put the provisional death toll at 773.
The M23 rebels, which UN experts claim are backed by some 4,000 troops from neighbouring Rwanda, far more than in 2012 when they first captured Goma, have laid siege and claimed large territory of eastern DRC, including the key city of Goma. They are the most potent of the more than 100 armed groups vying for control in Congo’s mineral-rich east, which holds vast deposits critical to much of the world’s technology.
M23 fighters and Rwandan soldiers have made substantial gains in the eastern DRC, taking the major city of Goma last week, and have vowed to march across the vast country to the capital Kinshasa.
In response, Tshisekedi has promised a “vigorous” military retaliation and urged the international community to impose sanctions on Rwanda.
As all these go on, massive casualties is being reported, even as the presidents of Rwanda (Paul Kagame) and that of DRC (Felix Tshisekedi), both of who are members of the EAC, trade accusations. Now, the finger pointing has dran attention to the region, where the Presidents of Rwanda and his South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa now seem to be locked up in a tussle.
The deep-rooted differences, which have threatened cohesion in the blocs, especially the East African Community (EAC), where DRC also joined, now seem to be taking a different twist.
To quell tensions and mitigate the DRC conflict, the two key African regional blocs of EAC and SADC have agreed to meet in Tanzania this weekend, under the gracious host of President Samia Suluhu.
The two-day summit aims to find a common solution to the violent clashes between M23 rebels and the Congolese army.
The summit will be preceded by a ministerial meeting on Friday before heads of state convene on Saturday to deliberate on the crisis.
Since most of the heads of state of both regional blocs have reportedly confirmed attendance, including those at loggerheads, the summit should serve to address the real issues exacerbating the DRC conflict and prioritize a solution.