Border reopening pegged to deployment of Congolese army

Leaders of the Central African Republic (CAR) and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have agreed on the reopening of the common border between the two countries upon the deployment of Congolese troops along the northwest frontier of the DRC, a CAR official said on Thursday. "The two heads of state have agreed to reopen the border as soon as regular DRC forces are deployed to replace the former MLC [Mouvement de liberation du Congo] rebels who committed atrocities in the CAR under the former administration," Zarambaud Assingambi, the minister in charge of the government’s secretariat, said on state-owned Radio Centrafrique when he read the 30 January report of a cabinet meeting. He said that CAR leader Francois Bozize and Congolese President Joseph Kabila met in late January in Brazzaville, capital of the Republic of Congo, during a summit of the Economic Community of Central African States and discussed the border issue. Zarambaud said commercial links between the two countries would resume with the border's reopening. The CAR government closed its border in July 2003 after reports of possible destabilisation from DRC. At that time, the CAR was preparing for its national reconciliation forum, which was held in the capital, Bangui, from 15 September to 27 October 2003. Since then, no traffic has been authorised between Bangui and Zongo, the DRC town on the other bank of River Oubangui. A delegation of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the African Development Bank, which ended its two-week financial assessment mission in the CAR on Sunday, recommended the reopening of the border. "The reopening of the border - whose closure encourages smuggling - would stimulate the CAR’s exports and imports and would be advantageous to consumers," the delegation said in memorandum to the CAR government. Before the border's closure, DRC farmers would transport produce such as cassava, sweet potatoes and charcoal to Bangui, for sale. Since the closure, the prices of these commodities have risen sharply. Suspicions between the CAR government and the former Congolese rebel movement, the MLC, which controlled the northwestern part of the DRC bordering the CAR, have not ceased. Incidents involving CAR boats and former MLC fighters have been reported on the River Oubangui. The suspicion resulted from the MLC's support of former President Ange-Felix Patasse from October 2002, during a civil war that pitted rebels loyal to Bozize against government troops. Bozize overthrew Patasse on 15 March 2003, forcing the MLC fighters to cross the Oubangui for home.