UN responds to HRW criticism over Kisangani massacre

The United Nations envoy to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has responded to criticism by Human Rights Watch (HRW) to the effect that the UN Mission in the DRC, known as MONUC, may have failed to carry out its mandate to protect civilians "under imminent threat of physical violence" during fighting in the northeastern city of Kisangani in mid-May.

In a report released on Tuesday, HRW noted that MONUC had more than 1,000 soldiers in Kisangani at the time, who "were clearly aware of the killings".

"MONUC did what it could at the time," Ambassador Amos Namanga Ngongi told a news conference on Wednesday in the DRC capital, Kinshasa. However, it was not until 14 June that that the UN issued resolution 1417, which clarified the mission's responsibilities in such a situation.

"It is difficult to convince people that MONUC was not in a position to intervene in Kisangani, but that's the reality," he said. "It is the member countries of the United Nations who create organisations such as MONUC, and assign it a mandate. MONUC was not created to ensure the security of the population. It is the Security Council that must be asked to change MONUC's mandate. I have personally presented this problem to the Security Council."

"Moreover, [MONUC] military personnel did not have the necessary equipment at the time to deal with the situation," Ngongi added. "Today, everyone sees armoured vehicles in the city and says that MONUC is well equipped to intervene. But these armoured vehicles did not arrive until 11 June."

He went on to note that MONUC "did not completely abandon the population", in that it had provided refuge in a MONUC compound to seven individuals who said they feared for their lives.

HRW did, however, commend the detailed investigation into the Kisangani events by MONUC and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, which resulted in an accurate record of the abuses. The Security Council in July issued a strong call for accountability for the killings.

"We welcome the UN Security Council's call for accountability in Kisangani," said Suliman Baldo, a senior researcher in HRW's Africa Division. "But the Security Council needs to provide MONUC with the means to protect civilians within areas of their deployment, and to increase the number of human rights officers attached to the mission."