nomad9

it is obvious, that establishing security, stability and peace in the dr congo would be a strategic goal to settle many fightings between different interest groups in the neighboring countries. as such it is important to analyze and target the key players who could jeopardize this center of gravity.
read an analysis on the countries' problem and the key players involved that could bring both, peace or war.

What is the two countries' problem?

It all stems from the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.
Some of the militias responsible for killing some 800,000 ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus fled across the border to DR Congo.
Rwanda wants the Congolese to stop these Interahamwe militias launching attacks on Rwanda from DR Congo's territory and has twice sent its own troops in to do the job themselves.
In 1997, this ended up with Rwandan-backed rebels toppling the Congolese leader Mobutu Sese Seko.
A year later, they tried to replace their former ally and new leader, Laurent Kabila, accusing him of now backing the remnants of the Interahamwe force.
But this time, they were blocked by troops from Angola, Zimbabwe and Namibia and a four-year stand-off ensued.
The United Nations accused senior political and military officials from Rwanda, Uganda and Zimbabwe of using their intervention in DR Congo as a cover to loot its huge mineral wealth - especially diamonds.
What complicates matters further is that there are many different militia groups - in the east - each claiming to be a self-defence group for their community - but whose real aim is often to extract money for warlords who control them.

What about the peace deal?

All of the countries and rebel groups involved in the DR Congo war agreed to stop fighting and a power-sharing government was set up.
This seemed to be going fairly well until June 2004, when a commander from the former Rwandan-backed RCD rebel group captured the Congolese border town of Bukavu.
General Laurent Nkunda said he was trying to stop a "genocide" of the Banyamulenge - a group of Congolese Tutsis.
After a week, Gen Nkunda withdrew and the UN said there was no evidence to support his claims of genocide.
But thousands of Banyamulenge fled, fearing reprisals when the army retook control.
Confidential UN documents seen by the BBC say that Gen Nkunda is Rwanda's military chief in DR Congo, through whom they control much of the area.
Now, there is fighting north of Bukavu, around Goma, where the RCD was always based.
This time, the Congolese government says that Rwandan troops have crossed the border and are clashing with the DR Congo army.
Rwanda has denied this but has repeatedly threatened to send its troops into DR Congo, unless the Interahamwe are disarmed - this was part of the deal under which Rwanda withdrew its troops from Congolese territory.
Some say the fighting is again between the former RCD rebels and the army, they were supposed to have joined.

So are there Rwandan troops in DR Congo?

Many people believe they are there but the UN says it does not have conclusive proof.
The Banyamulenge speak Kinyarwanda, the same language as in Rwanda but some of the "rebels" involved in the fighting in North Kivu do not speak any Congolese languages, leading to suspicions they are Rwandan troops.
The border is very long and porous and covered in jungle, so it is easy for small numbers of people to slip across.

Is the peace deal unravelling?

The RCD still has a vice-president and other ministers in the unity government.
But most of the east in unstable, especially the provinces of Ituri and North and South Kivu.
Rwanda's role is key. If it invades again, there is likely to be a real escalation in fighting, if not, peace could be restored.
President Kabila has accused the Rwandans of trying to keep control of eastern DR Congo, in order to loot its mineral resources.
But the Rwandans say they are just scapegoats for Congolese squabbles.

What are the UN peacekeepers doing?

That is the question being asked all over DR Congo.
Some 5,000 extra UN troops are being sent to the east, in addition to the 10,000 already in DR Congo.
But they say that they did not have the military capacity or the mandate to resist the rebel advance.
But many Congolese say they just did not want to risk getting involved and after Bukavu was captured, they vented their anger on UN targets across the country.

How did the war end?

All sides got tired of fighting and it became obvious that no-one could secure a military victory.
Western donors and South Africa also put pressure on those involved to end the war.
Britain threatened to reduce aid to Rwanda and Uganda unless they withdrew their forces and stopped backing local proxies.
South Africa hosted months of talks between the various Congolese groups and separate negotiations between the foreign governments involved, which finally culminated in this agreement to share power and organise multi-party elections.
Under the deal, elections are due next year but in such a vast country which is not linked by roads or railways, that seemed optimistic - even before the latest fighting.

Why is peace in DR Congo important?

DR Congo has always experienced either conflict or dictatorship since independence from Belgium in 1960.
Apart from for the 50 million Congolese, peace in DR Congo would also brighten prospects for the whole of central and southern Africa.
The Congolese war is closely tied to conflicts in Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda.
There were hopes that peace could spread to those countries from DR Congo - but that could also apply to the fighting.

wie nun auf vielen internet-seiten und zeitungsüberschriften zu lesen ist, hat das oberste gericht die militärtribunale gegen die gefangenen in guantanamo für unzulässig befunden, und dass diese gegen die genfer konvention verstossen dürften. es hat auch noch weitere ausführungen gemacht, die auf dem ersten blick all diejenigen wieder auf den plan bringen dürfte, dass die us-amerikanische regierung die menschenrechte mit den füssen bzw. stacheldraht peinigt, und manch andere sehen die wiederherstellung der rechtsstaatlichkeit in den usa wieder im aufwand bzw. restauriert. manch ein kommentator fabuliert auch darüber, wie insbesondere der erzkonservative us-gerichtshof sich so vehement gegen die politik des us-amerikanischen präsidenten stellt.
wie alles im leben kommt es auf die aussagen zwischen den zeilen an. und es hilft kein fabulieren oder träumen, wenn man sich nicht das gerichtsurteil vornimmt. man kann sich auf den standpunkt stellen, dass dies ein zeichen ist, und dass aus zeichen manchmal wunder geschehen. dem sind mehrere punkte entgegen zu halten:
1.) der us-gerichtshof ist konservativ, und es stellt sich die rhetorische frage, warum die wichtigsten richter vom us-präsidenten selbst auserwählt wurden?
2.) liest man das gerichtsurteil in aufmerksamer weise, ohne juristische veranlagung, so ist nirgends zu lesen, dass die bisherigen gefangenen nun freigelassen würden;
3.) das urteil sagt auch, dass es bislang keinen vom kongress bewilligten akt gibt, diese unzulässigen militärtribunale zuzulassen. da diese aussage frei von zeitlich-räumlichen begrenzungen ist, ist dies als ein wink an die us-administration zu verstehen, den kongress nun endlich dazu zu bringen, einem solchen akt zuzustimmen. und dies hat der kongress auch vor.
desweiteren empfehle ich ebenfalls sich unter dem folgenden link des us-obersten gerichtshofs, urteil R-86 vom 29/06/06, Hamdan vs. Rumsfeld, (http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/05slipopinion.html) das ganze mal zu gemüte zu führen.

this short comment is about the results of the us-supreme court's ruling on the tribunals for the detainees of guantanamo. basically, my opinion is that the court didn't really help restoring the principles of the geneva convention nor the rule of law. it might be opposed to the us-administration's technical proceedings of installing those tribunals, but it didn't really question the viability of the tribunals. moreover, the judgement doesn't say anything about freeing the detainees or handing them over to martial courts. furthermore it doesn't give nor state a timeline on how should be proceeded with the detainees. i suggest not only to read several articles in the current news, but also to really take a look at the judgement itself, which i underlined in the para above. in the end: the supreme court never opposed itself against the current administration.

edited and commented by jose pascal da rocha, josepascal.darocha@proconsensus.org

A chronology of key events:

1200s - Rise of Kongo empire, centred in modern northern Angola and including extreme western Congo and territories round lakes Kisale and Upemba in central Katanga (now Shaba).

1482 - Portuguese navigator Diogo Cao becomes the first European to visit the Congo; Portuguese set up ties with the king of Kongo.

16th-17th centuries - British, Dutch, Portuguese and French merchants engage in slave trade through Kongo intermediaries.

1870s - Belgian King Leopold II sets up a private venture to colonise Kongo.

1874-77 - British explorer Henry Stanley navigates Congo river to the Atlantic Ocean.

Belgian colonisation

1879-87 - Leopold commissions Stanley to establish the king's authority in the Congo basin.

1884-85 - European powers at the Conference of Berlin recognise Leopold's claim to the Congo basin.

1885 - Leopold announces the establishment of the Congo Free State, headed by himself.

1891-92 - Belgians conquer Katanga.

1892-94 - Eastern Congo wrested from the control of East African Arab and Swahili-speaking traders.

1908 - Belgian state annexes Congo amid protests over killings and atrocities carried out on a mass scale by Leopold's agents. Millions of Congolese are said to have been killed or worked to death during Leopold's control of the territory.

1955 - Belgian Professor Antoin van Bilsen publishes a "30-Year Plan" for granting the Congo increased self-government.

1959 - Belgium begins to lose control over events in the Congo following serious nationalist riots in Leopoldville (now Kinshasa).

Post-independence turmoil

1960 June - Congo becomes independent with Patrice Lumumba as prime minister and Joseph Kasavubu as president.

1960 July - Congolese army mutinies; Moise Tshombe declares Katanga independent; Belgian troops sent in ostensibly to protect Belgian citizens and mining interests; UN Security Council votes to send in troops to help establish order, but the troops are not allowed to intervene in internal affairs.

1960 September - Kasavubu dismisses Lumumba as prime minister.

1960 December - Lumumba arrested.

1961 February - Lumumba murdered, reportedly with US and Belgian complicity.

1961 August - UN troops begin disarming Katangese soldiers.

1963 - Tshombe agrees to end Katanga's secession.

1964 - President Kasavubu appoints Tshombe prime minister.

Mobutu years

1965 - Kasavubu and Tshombe ousted in a coup led by Joseph Mobutu.

1971 - Joseph Mobutu renames the country Zaire and himself Mobutu Sese Seko; also Katanga becomes Shaba and the river Congo becomes the river Zaire.

1973-74 - Mobutu nationalises many foreign-owned firms and forces European investors out of the country.

1977 - Mobutu invites foreign investors back, without much success; French, Belgian and Moroccan troops help repulse attack on Katanga by Angolan-based rebels.

1989 - Zaire defaults on loans from Belgium, resulting in a cancellation of development programmes and increased deterioration of the economy.

1990 - Mobutu agrees to end the ban on multiparty politics and appoints a transitional government, but retains substantial powers.

1991 - Following riots in Kinshasa by unpaid soldiers, Mobutu agrees to a coalition government with opposition leaders, but retains control of the security apparatus and important ministries.

1993 - Rival pro- and anti-Mobutu governments created.

1994 - Mobutu agrees to the appointment of Kengo Wa Dondo, an advocate of austerity and free-market reforms, as prime minister.

1996-97 - Tutsi rebels capture much of eastern Zaire while Mobutu is abroad for medical treatment.

Aftermath of Mobutu

1997 May - Tutsi and other anti-Mobutu rebels, aided principally by Rwanda, capture the capital, Kinshasa; Zaire is renamed the Democratic Republic of Congo; Laurent-Desire Kabila installed as president.

1998 August - Rebels backed by Rwanda and Uganda rise up against Kabila and advance on Kinshasa. Zimbabwe, Namibia send troops to repel them. Angolan troops also side with Kabila. The rebels take control of much of the east of DR Congo.

1999 - Rifts emerge between Congolese Liberation Movement (MLC) rebels supported by Uganda and Rally for Congolese Democracy (RCD) rebels backed by Rwanda.

Lusaka peace accord signed

1999 July - The six African countries involved in the war sign a ceasefire accord in Lusaka. The following month the MLC and RCD rebel groups sign the accord.

2000 - UN Security Council authorises a 5,500-strong UN force to monitor the ceasefire but fighting continues between rebels and government forces, and between Rwandan and Ugandan forces.

2001 January - President Laurent Kabila is shot dead by a bodyguard. Joseph Kabila succeeds his father.

2001 February - Kabila meets Rwandan President Paul Kagame in Washington. Rwanda, Uganda and the rebels agree to a UN pull-out plan. Uganda, Rwanda begin pulling troops back from the frontline.

2001 May - US refugee agency says the war has killed 2.5 million people, directly or indirectly, since August 1998. Later, a UN panel says the warring parties are deliberately prolonging the conflict to plunder gold, diamonds, timber and coltan, used in the making of mobile phones.

2002 January - Eruption of Mount Nyiragongo devastates much of the city of Goma.

Search for peace

2002 April - Peace talks in South Africa: Kinshasa signs a power-sharing deal with Ugandan-backed rebels, under which the MLC leader would be premier. Rwandan-backed RCD rebels reject the deal.

2002 July - Presidents of DR Congo and Rwanda sign a peace deal under which Rwanda will withdraw troops from the east and DR Congo will disarm and arrest Rwandan Hutu gunmen blamed for the killing of the Tutsi minority in Rwanda's 1994 genocide.

2002 September - Presidents of DR Congo and Uganda sign peace accord under which Ugandan troops will leave DR Congo.

2004: Boost for DR Congo peace force

2002 September/October - Uganda, Rwanda say they have withdrawn most of their forces from the east. UN-sponsored power-sharing talks begin in South Africa.

2002 December - Peace deal signed in South Africa between Kinshasa government and main rebel groups. Under the deal rebels and opposition members are to be given portfolios in an interim government.

Interim government

2003 April - President Kabila signs a transitional constitution, under which an interim government will rule pending elections.

2003 May - Last Ugandan troops leave eastern DR Congo.

2003 June - French soldiers arrive in Bunia, spearheading a UN-mandated rapid-reaction force.

2003 August - Interim parliament inaugurated.

2004 March - Gunmen attack military bases in Kinshasa in an apparent coup attempt.

2004 June - Reported coup attempt by rebel guards is said to have been neutralised.

2004 December - Fighting in the east between the Congolese army and renegade soldiers from a former pro-Rwanda rebel group. Rwanda denies being behind the mutiny.

2005 March - UN peacekeepers say they have killed more then 50 militia members in an offensive, days after nine Bangladeshi soldiers serving with the UN are killed in the north-east.

New constitution

2005 May - New constitution, with text agreed by former warring factions, is adopted by parliament.

Post-war charter underpins hopes for a stable future

2005 September - Uganda warns that its troops may re-enter DR Congo after a group of Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army rebels enter via Sudan.

2005 November - A first wave of soldiers from the former Zairean army returns after almost eight years of exile in the neighbouring Republic of Congo.

2005 December - Voters back a new constitution, already approved by parliament, paving the way for elections in 2006.

International Court of Justice rules that Uganda must compensate DR Congo for rights abuses and the plundering of resources in the five years up to 2003.

2006 February - New constitution comes into force; new national flag is adopted.

edited and compiled by jose pascal da rocha, intercommadvisor@mac.com
to discover more on dr congo, please also visit: www.bbc.uk.com

as the first electoral campaign since the independence from belgium in 1961, it is worth taking a look at a country that has been ravaged and suffering from multiple party claims and fights in its step to what western societies might call democracy. backed up by the international community and a eu-battle group, elections are on their way - not without problems.
here is a minute briefing on the country's profile.

A vast country with immense economic resources, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) has been at the centre of what could be termed Africa's world war.
This has left it in the grip of a humanitarian crisis.

The five-year conflict pitted government forces, supported by Angola, Namibia and Zimbabwe, against rebels backed by Uganda and Rwanda. Despite a peace deal and the formation of a transitional government in 2003, the threat of civil war remains.

OVERVIEW

The war claimed an estimated three million lives, either as a direct result of fighting or because of disease and malnutrition. It has been called possibly the worst emergency to unfold in Africa in recent decades.

AT A GLANCE
DR Congo is striving to recover from a five-year war; three million died, mostly through starvation, disease
Former rebels joined a power-sharing government
Eastern regions are still plagued by militia violence
General elections are planned for 2006
DR Congo hosts the UN's largest peacekeeping mission
The war had an economic as well as a political side. Fighting was fuelled by the country's vast mineral wealth, with all sides taking advantage of the anarchy to plunder natural resources.
The history of DR Congo has been one of civil war and corruption. After independence in 1960, the country immediately faced an army mutiny and an attempt at secession by its mineral-rich province of Katanga.
A year later, its prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, was seized and killed by troops loyal to army chief Joseph Mobutu.
In 1965 Mobutu seized power, later renaming the country Zaire and himself Mobutu Sese Seko. He turned Zaire into a springboard for operations against Soviet-backed Angola and thereby ensured US backing. But he also made Zaire synonymous with corruption.

Gold rush: DR Congo's mineral wealth fuelled the fighting
After the Cold War, Zaire ceased to be of interest to the US. Thus, when in 1997 neighbouring Rwanda invaded it to flush out extremist Hutu militias, it gave a boost to the anti-Mobutu rebels, who quickly captured the capital, Kinshasa, installed Laurent Kabila as president and renamed the country DR Congo.

Nonetheless, DR Congo's troubles continued. A rift between Kabila and his former allies sparked a new rebellion, backed by Rwanda and Uganda. Angola, Namibia and Zimbabwe took Kabila's side, turning the country into a vast battleground.

Despite coup attempts and sporadic violence a fragile peace has held since the formal end of the war. But the Kinshasa government has no control over large parts of the country and tension remains high in the east.
Moreover, the lot of DR Congo's citizens is little improved. The Crisis Group, a Brussels-based think-tank, said in 2005 that 1,000 people were dying every day from war-related causes, including disease, hunger and violence.

FACTS
Population: 56 million (UN, 2005)
Capital: Kinshasa
Area: 2.34 million sq km (905,354 sq miles)
Major languages: French, Lingala, Kiswahili, Kikongo, Tshiluba
Major religions: Christianity, Islam
Life expectancy: 42 years (men), 44 years (women) (UN)
Monetary unit: 1 Congolese franc = 100 centimes
Main exports: Diamonds, copper, coffee, cobalt, crude oil
GNI per capita: US $110 (World Bank, 2006)
Internet domain: .cd
International dialling code: +243

LEADERS
President: Joseph Kabila

Joseph Kabila heads an interim government, formed in June 2003, which includes members of former rebel groups, opposition politicans and Kabila loyalists.

Planned general elections - the first since independence from Belgium in 1960 - have been delayed and are expected to take place in July 2006. Mr Kabila will run as an independent candidate; there are more than 30 presidential hopefuls.

Joseph Kabila inherited a nation riven by civil war
Joseph Kabila was barely 30 and a political novice when he took office in January 2001 following the murder of his father, Laurent.
He surprised diplomats and observers by declaring that he wanted to seek a peaceful end to his country's civil war and to introduce a multi-party democracy.
For many Congolese Joseph Kabila was an unknown quantity. Unlike his father, he was perceived to be shy, unassuming and quietly-spoken.
Mr Kabila fought in his father's rebel army during the military campaign that brought him to power. He went on to serve in the army as major-general and chief of staff, and headed the government forces in the fight against former rebel allies.
Joseph Kabila is the eldest of 10 children fathered by Laurent Kabila. He spent much of his early life in East Africa, where his dissident father lived in exile. He received military training in Rwanda and Uganda.

Former rebels and opposition:

DR Congo's largest former rebel groups are the Rally for Congolese Democracy (RCD) and the Movement for the Liberation of Congo (MLC). The RCD was backed by Rwanda while Uganda supported the MLC.

Under a peace deal signed in December 2002 both groups each received seven ministries in an interim government.

There are many other rebel groups, usually ethnically-linked and with fluid allegiances.

A government ruling in 2001 allowed conventional political parties to operate.

MEDIA
The Congolese media operate against a backdrop of political power struggles and violent unrest.

Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders says media workers face arrest, threats and violence. Reporters exposing corruption are at particular risk.

Nonetheless, the press has been able to criticise government bodies, and some publications serve as mouthpieces for opposition parties.

There are several daily newspapers and many more sporadic publications. In addition, there are dozens of private TV stations and more than 100 private radio stations, some of which broadcast news.

Church radio networks are growing, but the state-controlled broadcasting network reaches the largest numbers of citizens.

The UN Mission in DR Congo (Monuc) and a Swiss-based organisation, Fondation Hirondelle, launched Radio Okapi in 2002. The network's mostly-Congolese staff broadcast news, music and information about Monuc activities. It aimed to promote dialogue across the political divide.

The BBC is available on FM in Kinshasa; listeners in the city can hear Radio France Internationale broadcasts from neighbouring Brazzaville.

The press

Le Potentiel - daily
La Reference Plus - daily
L'Avenir - daily
Le Soft - weekly
Le Palmares - daily
L'Observateur - daily
Elima - evening daily
Boyoma - daily
Mjumbe - daily
Television

Radio-Television Nationale Congolaise (RTNC) - state-controlled terrestrial and satellite TV
Television Congolaise - government commercial station run by RTNC
Antenne A - private, commercial
Canal Z - commercial
Canal Kin - private
Raga TV - private
Tropicana TV - private
Radiotelevision Kin Malebo (RTKM) - private
Radio

La Voix du Congo - state-controlled, operated by RTNC, broadcasting in French, Swahili, Lingala, Tshiluba and Kikongo
Radio Okapi - UN-backed politically-independent network, on FM and shortwave
Raga FM - private
Top Congo FM - private
News agencies

Agence Congolaise de Presse (ACP) - state-controlled

edited and compiled by jose pascal da rocha, intercommadvisor@mac.com