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Congo-Kinshasa: Monuc Radio Monitoring - 23 October 2007


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United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Kinshasa)

PRESS RELEASE
23 October 2007
Posted to the web 23 October 2007

Marie Aimee Lalao

VOA of 22/10/2007 at 19:30 GMT

DRC: Temporary calm after weekend clashes

Tension remains high in North Kivu, in eastern DRC, after violent clashes during the weekend, which opposed the Maï Mai associated with the Rwandan rebels (FDLR) and the dissidents of Laurent Nkunda, and on the one hand, and the dissidents of Nkunda and the FARDC on the other.

The UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC) gives an important military support to the Congolese army to try to pressure these militias to stop fighting amongst themselves, and so that they stop challenging the Congolese army", explained Sylvie Van Den Wildenberg, MONUC spokesperson in Goma.

The idea is to encourage these armed groups to seize the supplementary deadline granted by president Kabila and the government Congolese to deposit weapons and to integrate into the Congolese army, or to return to civilian life, explained the spokesperson.

On Monday, Congolese president Joseph Kabila started his official visit to the United States in the state of Arizona. From a diplomatic source, Kabila will discuss an agricultural development project. He will be received at the White House by the American president Bush. One of the topics that will be discussed is certainly the security situation, especially in eastern DRC.

RFI of 23/10/07 at 5:30 GMT

Germain Katanga's process: First audience of verification

Germain Katanga, former warlord of the FRPI militia, appeared this Monday before the judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Germain Katanga does not feel comfortable, entering the court with head lowered. He claimed that he doesn't understand French very well and they had to look for two interpreters for him: one for lingala (the most spoken language in the DRC) and one for Swahili.

In fact the audience was meant for the ICC judges to inform Mr. Katanga of his charges. He is accused of massacres, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

RFI of 23/10/07 at 6h00 GMT

Rape as a weapon of war in eastern DRC

Thousands of women are humiliated and raped, and many are subjected to slavery and sexual violence.

A gynecologist explained:

"It began since 1999. Women from three to 65 years of age have been raped.

Last year, they were around 3,600 women raped, and this number remained the same for this year. In the villages, where fighting is going on, there are dreadful cases.

Women are taken hostage and remain a long time in the forest. They were raped. Sometimes, they received some bullets in the vagina and they come out with a vagina completely very destroyed.

Panzi Hospital is a specialized hospital for woman suffering from fistula. When they succeed in returning, they come to the hospital. There are girls who cannot return anymore to the school. They suffer."

RFI of 23/10/07 at 6h00 GMT

President Kabila is in the United States since yesterday. On Friday 26 October he is going to meet President Bush.

Bush will certainly ask him about the agreement between the DRC and China.

President Kabila won't fail to ask him to exercise more pressure on Nkunda and Kagamé.

BBC of 23/10/07 at 1:46 GMT

Congo warlord appears before the ICC

Congolese warlord Germain Katanga has appeared before the International Criminal Court in the Hague - only the second suspect to do so.

Mr Katanga is accused of murder, sexual enslavement and forcing children to fight as soldiers in the Ituri region of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The Forces for Patriotic Resistance (FRPI) leader is the second Congolese warlord to be sent to The Hague. Thomas Lubanga was flown there in 2006, accused of recruiting child soldiers.

Relevant Links

Central Africa
Conflict, Peace and Security
Congo-Kinshasa
International Organizations and Africa
Press and Media

War crimes charges:

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