The summit in Tanzania was a convergence of distinguished figures, uniting the leaders of both the East African Community and the Southern African Development Community.
Africa’s illuminated heads of state gathered, not just to exchange pleasantries, but to address the escalating calamity in the heart of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Their unified resolution was clear: military leaders would convene within a mere half-decade to chart the course for an instantaneous and unequivocal cessation of hostilities.
The backdrop of this continental assembly was the sunlit Tanzania, where it conclude over the weekend, pulling leaders from the eight-member East African Community (EAC) and the sixteen members strong Southern African Development Community (SADC).
Who could ignore the urgency of opening humanitarian corridors to aid in the evacuation of the deceased and injured? Yet, the crisis emanates from the volatile frontier, where the infamous M23, an armed faction allegedly supported by Rwanda, has seized mineral-abundant territories in eastern DRC—an act they vehemently disavow.
How swiftly they claimed Goma, North Kivu province’s pulse, only to advance into South Kivu. Alas, tranquility in these lands has proved elusive for decades.
Whispers broke through on Saturday that M23 was encroaching upon Kavumu, South Kivu, home to an airport pivotal for supplying Congolese soldiers. The air was charged as Kenya’s President William Ruto, EAC’s current helm, articulated in his speech, “We beseech all entities to honor the ceasefire. M23, lay down your advancements, and Congolese forces, halt the retaliations.”
The resurgence of M23 in 2021 has relegated peace summits in Angola and Kenya to mere whisperings of hope; ceasefires were always fleeting. The prospect of a regional conflagration looms as South Africa, Burundi, and Malawi extend military support to the beleaguered DRC.
Recollections of a United Nations report surface, painting a picture of Rwanda’s alleged involvement: 4,000 troops sowing disorder in the DRC, profiting from smuggling gold and coltan, a mineral essential in our ubiquitous electronics.
Yet, Rwanda’s narrative contradicts. They accuse the DRC of harboring the FDLR, an armed consortium of ethnic Hutus implicated in the 1994 genocide’s dark chapter.
Volker Turk, U.N. rights chief, forewarned on Friday, his voice solemn: “If inertia prevails, the gravest tribulations may obliterate the future of eastern DRC and beyond.” Stark numbers followed his grave assertions: nearly 3,000 souls extinguished and nearly 3,000 more bearing physical scars since January 26, when M23 took Goma.
He continued, ominous, “Our eyes are verifying horrifying allegations—rape, gang rape, and sexual slavery, each a cruel testament to human suffering.”
The narrative does not conclude here. With watchful eyes on Tanzania, the global community must reflect: how will Africa, with its profound challenges and inexhaustible resolve, navigate this crisis?
Source: Al Jazeera and news agencies
Edited By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring
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