Troop contribution a sign of regional leadership

South Africa's willingness to commit 1,500 troops to the UN Observer Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was a validation of its regional leadership role, an analyst told IRIN. Professor John Stremlau, of the Department of International Affairs at South Africa's University of the Witwatersrand, said the country was "paying its dues" and the troop contribution was a continuation of the leadership role it played in brokering the July peace agreement between Rwanda and the DRC. South African Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Aziz Pahad told the national assembly on Wednesday that an extra 1,500 troops would soon be sent to the DRC. South Africa already has 200 troops in the country as part of the UN observer mission known as MONUC. Pahad said the troops would be sent under a UN Security Council mandate, and would include an infantry battalion, a mobile mine detection unit, a field engineering unit, and aircraft and helicopters, the South African Press Association reported. It was vital for South Africa to help entrench peace and stability after four-years of conflict in the DRC, he said. Pahad said the United Nations was keen to have the troops in place before December, and South Africa would have a "major involvement". The proposed deployment follows the peace pact between the DRC and Rwanda aimed at ending the regional conflict that has claimed 2.5 million lives. In return for the withdrawal of Rwandan forces, the peace agreement provides for the rounding up, disarming and repatriation of tens of thousands of Rwandan Hutu rebels. The July peace agreement stated that it was the responsibility of the DRC government to track down and disarm the rebels, including the Interahamwe militia and former Rwandan army (ex-FAR) fighters responsible for the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. MONUC, "acting together with all relevant UN agencies, should be requested to immediately set up processes to repatriate all Rwandese, ex-FAR and Interahamwe to Rwanda, including those in Kamina, in coordination with the governments of Rwanda and the DRC", the agreement said. The governments of the DRC and Rwanda would provide South Africa and the UN Secretary-General "with all the information in their possession relating to these armed groups". South Africa's troop contribution to MONUC was therefore "appropriate given its role in the July deal", Stremlau said. "The DRC peace process is an essential part of Africa's development ... therefore, South Africa is putting their boots where their mouth is," he said. The troop contribution was especially significant because "South Africa's military is not awash with able-bodied troops that can be deployed. That South Africa is willing to commit troops is a validation of its regional leadership role," Stremlau noted. For full text of the peace agreement