Masire hails Kabila’s peace moves

The facilitator of the inter-Congolese dialogue, Ketumile Masire, has welcomed DRC President Joseph Kabila’s announcement that he accepts the mediation role of the former Botswana president. In a statement, received by IRIN on Friday, Masire said “this most welcome news reflects President Kabila’s determination to work for peace in the DRC”. Kabila made the announcement at a regional summit in the Zambian capital, Lusaka, on Thursday which was meant to bring together all the signatories of the Lusaka peace accord. Rwanda, however, was absent due to its perception that Zambia was no longer neutral in the process. Masire said he hoped the other parties to the conflict would match Kabila’s “courageous gesture”. “President Kabila has stated that he will soon invite me to Kinshasa,” Masire added. “My team and I stand ready to honour this invitation. We have the utmost confidence that this re-reestablishment of contact will help revive the peace process that has been stalled for too long now.” Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel also hailed the outcome of the Lusaka summit, saying there had been “concrete signs of an opening up”. In a statement, he said this should be “encouraged and supported”. He also believed that Kabila was “moving towards peace and reconciliation”, as indicated by his acceptance of Masire. He reiterated Belgium’s support for all moves aimed at restoring peace to the Great Lakes region. Thursday’s meeting - which brought together the rebel groups and Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia, Zambia and Uganda - called for the “full and speedy deployment of military observers and related personnel to the DRC”, according to the final communique. In the communique, the sides recommitted themselves to the Lusaka accord, the Kampala disengagement plan and Harare sub-plans for the disengagement and redeployment of forces. The participants also agreed on the date of 26 February for the deployment of more UN observers. Diplomatic activity is now underway to persuade Rwanda to rejoin the process.