Masire concerned about non-withdrawal

The OAU-appointed facilitator of the inter-Congolese dialogue, Ketumile Masire, has expressed concern over reports that some of the allied forces in the country are not pulling back from their positions, the South African news agency (SAPA) reported. It quoted him as telling journalists in Cape Town that he was otherwise optimistic about the prospects for lasting peace in the DRC. “It is giving great concern, the fact that the allies seem not to be pulling back,” he said on Wednesday. “I say they ‘seem’ not to be pulling back because I’m not fully briefed on the status of withdrawals of all parties. And if that does not happen it might even encourage those who have withdrawn to re-invade the country.” Masire was speaking after a series of consultations with all parties involved in the conflict, preparatory to formal multi-party talks, SAPA said. He said he would go to Kinshasa for the last of these meetings, then report back to the presidents of all Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries, and to Rwanda and Uganda.