“Solution in sight” - Security Council mission

The UN Security Council mission to the Great Lakes region issued a statement Monday at the end of its visit to the DRC before leaving for the Zambian capital, Lusaka, which said that “for the first time since the outbreak of the conflict a solution seems to be in sight in the DRC”, and underlined the “urgency of taking advantage of this window of opportunity”. The statement fully supported the Lusaka ceasefire agreement, and called on all parties to respect it - particularly the Congolese Liberation Front (CLF), which has not yet withdrawn its troops.

It underscored the importance of an economic revival as a vital component of a return to peace, and hailed as an important step the planned reopening of the Congo river to commercial traffic. It called for an end to the “pillage of the natural resources of the DRC”, and urged cooperation by all the parties with a UN panel investigating relevant allegations. The mission also urged full respect for human rights by all parties, warning that those guilty of violations would be held accountable.
The mission plans to recommend that human rights observers be included in all UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC) contingents.

During a press conference before leaving Kinshasa, Ambassador Jean-David Levitte of France, the delegation’s leader, announced the creation of funding for 40 small development projects in areas where the MONUC has a presence. The delegation arrived in Zambia on Monday, where they are meeting with the Political Committee of the Lusaka Accords to examine in depth the future of the DRC peace process.