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Rebels oppose "Mayi-Mayi" appointments

    NAIROBI
    The Goma faction of the rebel Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie (RCD) has harshly criticised Kinshasa's appointment of Lieutenant-General Sylvestre Lwecha as the new armed forces chief of staff, saying he is a Mayi-Mayi tribal militia leader who had to be disarmed, news agencies reported on Monday. The head of RCD-Goma's security department, Bizima Karaha, told the Associated Press (AP) that a letter voicing the objection had been sent to the Joint Military Commission (JMC) overseeing the Lusaka ceasefire accord. If Lwesha were not removed from the post, "We will carry on and disarm him," Karaha said. The group charged that newly-appointed navy commander Shabani Sikatende was also a Mayi-Mayi. Another RCD official told Rwanda News Agency that last Friday's appointment of Lwesha and Sikatende by President Laurent-Desire Kabila was an attempt to "legitimate them as heads of the armed forces so that the Joint Military Commission does not consider them to be part of renegade forces to be tracked down and neutralized" under the Lusaka accord.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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