United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Kinshasa)
Fathya Waberi
6 May 2008
After the decision on 2 May 2008 by ARU's Territorial Administration to bring the Congolese border station of Ofo located inside the city of Aru to 300 m from the Ugandan station of Vura, that is 4 km farther, tensions suddenly went high between the Congolese and Ugandan authorities.
Consecutives meetings between the two sides on Saturday 3 and Monday 5 May failed to solve the issue. According to Mawa Enzoronzi, the Administrator of Aru, parties involved in the talks agreed only on the fact that each government must now handle this case. The Governor of Province Orientale is expected in Aru in mid-May for this matter.
On Monday 5 May, a delegation of the Ugandan Foreign Ministry, headed by a security official from the Ugandan President's Office, arrived at the Vura station to hold a meeting with Aru's territorial and military authorities. Later on the two groups went to the site where the new barrier has been placed by the Congolese. However, as he said, Aru's Territory Administrator did not accept the Ugandans' request to visit River Ofo "located inside Congo, 800 m from the barrier (...) and which some people want to consider as a natural border."
Last Saturday, the Ugandan side revealed that they had not been consulted about this "dislodging" and that they wished for everyone to wait for the decision of the Joint Verification Commission of borders which had met lately in Bunia and Entebbe. As to Aru's Territory Administrator, the displacement of the border on 2 May simply corresponds to an expansion of the Congolese territory: "When you want to enter your home, you don't ask your neighbor's permission. The Congolese must quit their territory."
Mr. Enzoronzi added that the decision had already been taken by the transitional government but became effective on that date, and that his only aim was to have a better control over the commercial movements at that border, which greatly impact the revenues in Ituri.
As of now, and "in order not to provoke our Ugandan neighbors more," authorities of Aru decided to keep equipments in the new station guarded by six policemen but not to install the Customs Service yet. MONUC is monitoring the situation. According to information received and what has been noted by Milobs and the Civilian Police, calm prevails on that site. Nevertheless, the Ugandan army is said to have deployed about twenty of its elements to that border.
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