20 09 13 Reuters: Congo rules out amnesty for top M23 rebels

Talks
began in Uganda last week, after the army, backed by U.N. troops,
scored rare military successes in August, forcing M23 into
negotiations which could lead to the majority of rebels being
reintegrated into the army which they deserted in 2012.

"We
have a list of around 100 M23 commanders who will not be eligible for
amnesty or for reintegration into the national army," government
spokesman Lambert Mende told a news conference in the capital
Kinshasa.

Rebels
ineligible for any amnesty were those who had taken part in multiple
rebellions, were on international sanctions lists or had committed
war crimes and crimes against humanity, Mende told journalists.

"To
reintegrate these individuals would legitimate recourse to armed
violence and insurrection," Mende said. The rest of the
estimated 1,700 M23 rebels would be considered on a case by case
basis, he added.

M23's
reaction was muted. Spokesman Amani Kabashi said the government's
decision would not jeopardise the negotiations.

"The
dialogues will continue," Kabasha told Reuters by telephone from
M23's base in its heartland North Kivu province.

"We
don't even want to reintegrate. If the talks can bring security, then
we are all happy to do something else: farm, or teach, to help our
population," he said.

The
M23 insurgency is the latest incarnation of a Tutsi-dominated
rebellion that has repeatedly tried to integrate into the Congolese
army, only to withdraw. Its fighters deserted en masse 18 months ago,
accusing the government of reneging on a 2009 peace deal.

U.N.
investigators and the Congolese government have accused Rwanda of
sponsoring the rebellion, a charge Rwanda denies.

The
government stance against a blanket amnesty is supported by Mary
Robinson, U.N. special envoy to the region.

"We
believe that there should not be amnesty for those accused of having
committed serious crimes, nor should they be integrated in the armed
forces of the DRC," she said this month.