09 11 11 SECURITY COUNCIL PRESS STATEMENT ON DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
The members of the
Security Council were briefed by Roger Meece, Special Representative of the
Secretary-General for the Democratic Republic of
the Congo, and Margot Wallström, Special Representative of
the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, on the situation in the
Democratic Republic of the
Congo.
The members of the
Security Council reiterated their call for credible and peaceful elections, for
which the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
bears the primary responsibility. They reiterated their strong concern over
reports of election-related violence in the country, and called upon all parties
to campaign peacefully.
The members of the
Security Council reminded all political leaders that they are responsible for
ensuring a peaceful process and called upon all stakeholders to exercise
restraint, support the work of the Commission électorale nationale indépendante
(CENI) and resolve their differences peacefully. They further urged all
candidates and their supporters to refrain from any provocation or recourse to
violence throughout the electoral process.
They further
stressed and supported the critical role played by the United Nations
Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
(MONUSCO) in providing technical and logistical assistance for the elections and
promoting dialogue, as set out by resolution 1991 (2011). They recalled their
request to be regularly and timely briefed on the significant events of the
electoral process and on MONUSCO’s support to the
process.
The members of the
Security Council expressed their determination to continue to closely follow the
situation in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, in particular the
security conditions on the ground and the efforts to successfully conclude the
electoral process.
The members of the
Security Council also reiterated their deep concern about the persistent high
levels of violence, especially sexual violence, and human rights violations and
abuses against civilians. They reiterated the urgent need for the swift
prosecution of all perpetrators of human rights violations and abuses, and urged
the Congolese authorities, with the support of MONUSCO, to implement the
appropriate responses to address this challenge. They commended MONUSCO for
continuing its efforts to implement its protection
strategy.
Notes from the Webcast
Report to the Security Council by
SRSG Ambassador Roger Meece
Elections
· Mr
Meece reaffirmed the determination of MONUSCO to peaceful, free
elections.
· 30
civilian aircraft have been acquired to distribute
materials
·
MONUSCO is providing technical assistance to the
CENI.
·
MONUSCO is promoting civil society activities.
· The
organizational and logistical aspects of the 28th November election
are great given the number of candidates and the size of the
country.
· 11
presidential candidates
· 18,000+
parliamentary candidates
· 63,865 polling
stations
· Only
12% of national assembly candidates are women. This is a troubling trend that
must be addressed.
· In
March 2012 Provincial elections will be held.
· There
will also be local elections in 2012, which were not held in 2006.
· The
voter registration system incorporates fingerprint and card
scans.
· Checks by 2
separate contractors of the registration database found less than 120,000
duplicate entries, well within the anticipated margin of error.
· This is in
contrast to those reported by the press and other reports.
·
Predictions of a process that cannot produce free and fair elections is simply
wrong.
·
Election kits for polling station, voting booths, training materials and related
supplies have arrived and most have been moved to the 15 hubs and the majority
to the 2,010 sub hubs.
· On
28th October, ballot boxes began
arriving.
·
Ballot papers are being printed in South Africa and the South African
government will transport the 3k tons of materials to the
hubs.
·
Recruitment and training of the 340,000 CENI agents needed is underway.
·
58,000 national observers are being trained.
· 600
accredited International observers are expected and many are already in
country.
·
Financial support given by the international community has fulfilled all the
financial needs at this time.
· 75% of the cost
of the election has been given by the government.
Security
issues
·
Election related tensions will increase as the date draws near, but Mr Meece
calls on all parties to ensure calm.
· On
28th October there was a killing of girl during demonstration by the
police.
· The officer
responsible was arrested and questioned.
·
Peaceful, lawful demonstrations must be allowed to gather in the pre-electoral
period.
· On
9th November a report by MONUSCO and UNHCHR will be released
detailing documented incidences of election violence and suppression of human
rights.
· The
governor in Eastern Kasai met with political
parties and they had a successful meeting to calm
tensions.
·
MONUSCO calls on all parties to sign the code of
conduct.
· 6
battalions of rapid reaction police have been trained and these units have
performed well.
· An additional
unit was trained by South
Africa for the purposes of candidate
protection.
· There is a
pressing need to non-lethal equipment for the police force.
· Of
$300 million needed for police training, only $500,000 has been received thus
far and this was from the US.
· Additional
donor funding for police training is urgently
needed.
Eastern
DRC
· While
there are ongoing activities in the East by rebel militia groups, these
activities don’t’ threaten elections. They do, however, pose a threat to
civilians.
· The
FARDC and MONUSCO have lost momentum in dealing with the
East.
· These have been
caused in part by gaps left by FARDC troop movement.
· There
is an urgent need for more helicopters.
· There
has been an emergence of several Congolese groups that have attained more
influence in the East.
· These
include the Mai Mai Yakutumba which has
gained ground.
· Grown
increasing bold in attacks
· MONUSCO is
working with FARDC to counter this group.
·
MONUSCO is working with community leaders to encourage calm and ease
tensions.
· Of
the foreign armed groups in DRC, the Rwandan FDLR shows signs of
weakness.
· There needs to
be strong military and DDRRR efforts to exploit
this.
· The
LRA’s intentions are unclear but MONUSCO will continue to protect civilians
against attacks.
Sexual and
Gender- based violence
· Of
major ongoing concern is gender based violence, including sexual assaults.
· Of the
documented cases of rape, ½ are attributed to armed
groups.
· The numbers are
vastly underreported.
· 40% of cases
documented can be associated with the armed forces, specifically those elements
that have been integrated.
· This trend
represents a significant problem and the integration model needs
review.
·
Reviewing the model is key to FARDC performance.
· Of
the 967 who escaped during the recent prison break, 25% were serving sentences
for sexual based crimes.
·
Congolese institutions are engaged in the battle against sexual and gender based
violence, but the topic needs more attention, both domestically and
internationally.
· A
recent study by British embassy in Kinshasa showed there were 653 prosecutions for
rape, but they receive little external assistance.
Judicial
Reform
·
Progress has been achieved in the fight against
impunity.
· IN 2011 through
the 31st August, there have 140 military trial prosecutions against
FARDC and police, as well 2 FDLR and 1 Mai Mai Yakatumba combatants.
· 111 convictions
for sexual violence.
· 141 convictions
for human rights violations.
·
MONUSCO is giving ongoing support to prosecutions.
·
Reports that North Kivu prosecution will go
ahead shortly against Lt Col Mayele (detained) and Mai
Mai Cheka
(in absentia)
Going
Forward
·
MOUNSCO remains engaged in building state capacity for long term stabilization
in DRC.
· The
STAREC program has paid out $240million in Eastern
DRC for infrastructure.
·
MONUSCO has moved forward to establish a peace consolidation program that could
be used in non-STAREC areas.
· There is hope
that it will be adopted as soon as possible.
·
Significant progress has been made, but MONSUCO and the SC can and must continue
to do more.
DRC
Representative
· The
DRC appreciates the report by Ambassador Meece and hopes that his
recommendations will be taken.
·
Regarding the developments in run up to elections, DRC hopes that the CENI will
rise to the challenge.
· The
representative affirms that relative to the ’05-’06 election period, the
electoral campaign is much more peaceful.
·
Recently two offices that supported the presidential majority were
burned.
· The
DRC is calling on the militant members of parties to act with
restraint.
· The
DRC is aware that elections are just a stage in shoring up the young
democracy.
· Must
fight against incitation to violence.
· In an attempt
to fight the incitement to violence, last Sunday the government cut the signal
for the media in Kinshasa to prevent incitement of
hatred.
It is
important for the SC to condemn the incitement to racial
hatred.