Prospects brighter at inter-Congolese dialogue

Prospects for the inter-Congolese dialogue in Sun City, South Africa, were looking brighter on Thursday, following a cease-fire announcement by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) government. In a communique, the government said it had ordered a "unilateral cease-fire" and ordered its troops to start pulling back to their initial positions. The communique blamed opposing Rwandan and rebel forces for a reopening of hostilities at Moliro near Lake Tanganyika from 22 February, and said DRC troops had driven them back several dozen kilometres.

The DRC government also suggested that it could reach a compromise regarding its opponents' demands for the list of opposition delegates at the dialogue to be revised. Foreign Minister Leonard She Okitundu said a group of 30 opposition delegates, who would be arriving from Kinshasa in the next 24 hours, would settle the problem.

The 30 opposition delegates, who call themselves the "genuine opposition", had refused to join in the dialogue unless they were given more say in the selection of the other members of their delegation, who were chosen by the Office for the Facilitator.

The two main rebel movements, the Mouvement pour la liberation du Congo (MLC), and the Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie (RCD), welcomed the concessions from Kinshasa.

MLC Secretary-General Olivier Kamitatu said they were "very pleased" with the cease-fire announcement which showed "that everyone is committed to this peace process". The MLC has so far boycotted the dialogue, in support of the unarmed opposition group's objections to the inclusion of members of their delegation. Kamitatu was optimistic that the problem could soon be solved. "There is no obstacle if the facilitator gives a good answer to the proposal of the genuine oppositionists," he said. "We hope we will be able to join the meeting within two days."

Azarias Ruberwa, secretary-general of the RCD, said the talks should resume "probably within the next 48 hours", AP reported.

Nana Rosine Ngangoue, a spokeswoman for the facilitator, Ketumile Masire, said that the talks should resume "shortly". "The negotiating positions... have moved on," AP quoted her as saying.

Other problems of representation still linger, however. The rebels and government are also haggling over 16 places allocated to a breakaway rebel movement, called RCD-ML, and over six places allocated to the Mayi-Mayi Congolese militia fighters.

Meanwhile, the UN Mission in DRC (known by its French acronym, MONUC), has given independent confirmaton of fighting between the RCD and government troops in the zone of Kamamba, south of Moba, on the west bank of Lake Tanganyika. Instructions have been given to MONUC military observers in the sector to proceed immediately with verification of the cease-fire and monitoring of the withdrawal of government troops, MONUC said in a statement issued on Thursday.

"Furthermore, MONUC urges RCD not to pursue FAC [Congolese armed forces] troops during this withdrawal so as to allow a safe return of the parties to their positions prior to the recent fighting."

In a letter on 26 February, the government of DRC requested the Security Council to station MONUC observers in Moliro, "to eliminate any pretext on the part of Rwanda and RCD-Goma" as the town was in a "disputed position".