Morjane calls for pressure on Kabila

At a weekend meeting of the Political Committee, a year after its establishment to oversee implementation of the Lusaka process, the UN Special Representative for the DRC, Kamel Morjane, said none of the conditions sought for UN deployment had been met and MONUC had not had the opportunity to implement its mandate. “Unfortunately we see that ceasefire violations are numerous and the peace accord is not being honoured. Maybe our mission has not been a success,” Reuters news agency on Sunday quoted him as saying. “President Frederick Chiluba [of Zambia] is trying to arrange a summit, possibly before the UN meets to decide on whether to extend our mandate,” he told Reuters. MONUC’s mandate runs out on 31 August and UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan is due to submit his recommendations for the future on 24 August. Morjane called for African leaders to intensify the pressure on President Laurent-Desire Kabila to abide by the Lusaka accord, saying: “We consider as obstruction the decision taken by the Congo government not to allow UN troops in some areas. You cannot find a military officer who will agree to send soldiers to another country without arms. We cannot deploy troops under the conditions that the government is asking.”