Amnesty International Urges UN Reinforcements to Protect Civilians in Congo

Amnesty International
Press Release
For Immediate Release
Thursday, Nov. 6, 2008

Amnesty International Calls on African Summit Leaders to Press for UN Peacekeeping Reinforcements To Protect Civilians in Congo

(New York) — Amnesty International is calling on African and international leaders meeting Friday, November 7 in Nairobi, Kenya, to urgently press the United Nations Security Council to reinforce the UN peacekeeping force in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to better protect civilians.

“The situation in the DRC remains on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe,” the human rights organization said. “The priority is reinforcing the capacity of the UN’s peacekeeping force, MONUC, to protect civilians and to ensure people have access to humanitarian assistance. African leaders and the UN Security Council can help to achieve this.”

At least 250,000 civilians, most of them women and children, have been displaced by fighting that began in late October. Well over one million people are now displaced in the country, with some estimates as high as 1.6 million.

“The displaced civilians are in a desperate situation, without sufficient food, water, medical supplies or shelter,” said Amnesty International USA country specialist Tom Turner. “International humanitarian operations are only just restarting after the fighting and many of the displaced remain inaccessible and some humanitarian operations are suspended because of the fragile security situation.”

Amnesty International is asking the heads of states attending the international summit in Nairobi and the UN Security Council to:

• Reinforce MONUC peacekeeping contingents in North-Kivu province, ensuring that peacekeepers have the necessary troop numbers, intelligence-gathering, air-surveillance and other assets to ensure effective protection of civilians, to forestall possible armed group attacks against local communities, to safeguard humanitarian operations and to enforce the UN arms embargo on the DRC in line with MONUC’s mandate.
• Urge all parties to the conflict to ensure that humanitarian aid agencies are not hindered in their work to provide aid to displaced people, including those who are injured. Safe corridors for humanitarian aid must be opened throughout the province.
• Press the warring parties, especially the National Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP), as well as governments that have influence over them, especially Rwanda, to prevent more civilian casualties.
• Press the governments of the DRC and Rwanda to abide by the commitments made in the Nairobi joint communiqué in November 2007, particularly to end negative propaganda against each other and to refrain from providing support to armed groups, including the CNDP and the Rwandan Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).
• Assert that justice and an end to impunity has a central place in the search for durable peace in the Great Lakes Region, and that deliberate or indiscriminate attacks against civilians and peacekeepers carrying out their duty of protecting civilians is a war crime, punishable under international law.

The summit in Nairobi is being held under the aegis of the United Nations, with Secretary General Ban-ki Moon set to attend alongside the heads of state of Kenya, DRC, Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, and South Africa, as well as African Union officials. Representatives from the United States and the European Union may also take part.

Amnesty International is mobilizing its global membership to urge governments worldwide to take action to protect civilians in Congo.

Background
The humanitarian and human rights crisis in eastern DRC has deteriorated dramatically in the past month since the CNDP, under the command of renegade general Laurent Nkunda, launched a fresh offensive in October against government forces. In four days in late October the CNDP, which numbers possibly around 6,000 fighters, routed the national army, captured the major town of Rutshuru and moved near the city of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, before declaring a unilateral cease-fire on October 30.

Amnesty International’s most recent report, North Kivu: No end to war on women and children highlights the serious human rights violations and abuses committed by the parties to the conflict in the province. The report is available online at: http://www.amnesty.org/en/region/democratic-republic-congo

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