NGO calls for peace in Pool go unheeded

Ever since the 2 April eruption of hostilities in the Pool region of the Republic of Congo (ROC) between government forces and rebel "Ninja" militias, repeated calls from national NGOs for dialogue to bring about a peaceful resolution to the conflict have gone unheeded. Most recently, the Association pour les Droits de l'Homme et l'Univers Carceral (ADHUC), decrying widespread violations of human rights and massive displacements in Pool, called on the international community, human rights organisations and French politicians to urge ROC President Denis Sassou-Nguesso to enter into talks with the Ninja leader, the Rev Frederic Bitsangou, alias Pasteur Ntoumi, to resolve the crisis. "It is heartbreaking that Congo is about to celebrate its 42nd year of independence as so many of our brothers and sisters are struggling in forests," said Loamba Moke, the head of ADHUC. According to the Observatoire Congolais des Droits de l'Homme (OCDH), the crisis in Pool cannot be resolved without entering into an all-inclusive dialogue which addresses issues left unresolved from previous civil conflict. Following the 14 June attack on a government military base in the capital, Brazzaville, an ad hoc think-tank calling itself "Telema sursaut citoyen" circulated a petition to gather a thousand signatures from across the country to urge the government to end the fighting in Pool by peaceful means. A coalition of NGOs calling itself "Generation Pierre Oba" (after the ROC Minister of the Interior) urged Sassou-Nguesso to seek an immediate cessation of hostilities in Pool and the implementation of the ceasefire accords signed in November 1999. "These are our brothers who have taken to the forest because they somehow feel they have been wronged. To enter into genuine dialogue with them, we must avoid dismissing them as terrorists - or risk losing all chances for a peaceful resolution," Elvis Tsalissan, secretary-general of Generation Pierre Oba, told IRIN. Tsalissan noted that his group had been holding meetings with representatives of Ntoumi as part of ongoing efforts to negotiate a peaceful resolution. While a negotiated settlement to hostilities remains elusive, fighting continues to plague Pool, most recently when Ninjas attacked a freight train in Kinkembo, 120 km west of Brazzaville. Two government military officers were killed and two others injured. Passenger train services, suspended since a prior attack on 4 April, had been scheduled to resume on 1 August. However, with this latest attack, they have been suspended indefinitely.