In the face of the political crisis and armed conflicts, Jean-Pierre Lacroix advocates dialogue

Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations in charge of peacekeeping operations, ended the mission that began last Sunday in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Friday 18 December. He discussed the current political crisis with Congolese political actors and visited the eastern part of the country to assess security and humanitarian situations.

With our special correspondent in Goma, Patient Ligodi

At the political level, Jean-Pierre Lacroix called on his Congolese speakers for calm and restraint. To Félix Tshisekedi, whom he met on 15 December, he expressed the wish to see the institutional crisis that led to the end of the coalition between Cap pour le changer for the current President of the Republic and the Front commun pour le Congo de Joseph Kabilaà adjusted as quickly as possible.

The Democratic Republic of Congo cannot afford “a serious institutional crisis”, MILUSCO chief Leila Zerrougui had declared earlier this month before the Security Council.

At the security and humanitarian level, Jean-Pierre Lacroix went to Pinga in the northern province of Kivu and to Roe in the province of Ituri. As he explains, “it is a choice dictated by the fact that these are areas where there have been collisions, actions by armed groups, displaced persons and significant economic damage”.

For him, it is imperative to address the root causes of these armed conflicts. “We must try to renew the dialogue between societies, between those who collide, even if it is difficult, so really look at the issue of plundering economic resources,” he said. These are areas that have absolutely impressive wealth. How can we ensure a lasting end to this phenomenon? “He also insisted that the country’s authority be restored to areas characterized by violence.

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