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Kabila Preaches Peace, Congo Rebels Sceptical
The main rebel movement in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Saturday criticized new President Joseph Kabila's maiden speech to the nation, casting doubt on his promise to work for peace in the country.
The 29-year-old Kabila was installed on Friday, succeeding his assassinated father, Laurent Kabila, as Congolese leader.
After the inauguration, Kabila addressed the nation for the first time since he was nominated as head of state by the government on January 17, the day after his father was shot.
He called for unity and reconciliation and pledged to revive a peace deal to end the war in Congo's east and north which has sucked in half a dozen foreign armies.
However, the Rwandan-backed Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD) noted that Kabila had also called for an "immediate and unconditional withdrawal" by "foreign aggressors", contrary to peace agreements that envisage a series of steps by both sides before foreign troops pull out.
"His speech takes us a step backwards from the Lusaka accord which stands as the only framework through which peace and stability can be restored in Congo and the sub-region," RCD Secretary-General Azarias Rubwera told Reuters.
Fighting in the former Zaire has raged on despite a peace deal signed in the Zambian capital Lusaka in 1999.
"Our country is going through one of the most painful crises in its history, but I think that together we will overcome it because our enemies have not succeeded in breaking the essential + our courage," Kabila said in his recorded speech, broadcast on state television.
MBEKI POSTPONEMENT
South African President Thabo Mbeki has to have met Kabila in Kinshasa on Tuesday, but postponed the visit. A spokeswoman for the presidency said on Saturday that Mbeki would not be able to get back in time from the World Economic Business meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
Mbeki, probably the region's most influential leader, has played an active role behind the scenes in the search for an end to the war, in which Zimbabwe, Angola and Namibia are helping the government fight rebels backed by Uganda and Rwanda.
The spokeswoman said the meeting was not cancelled and that Mbeki and Kabila would meet as soon as possible.
"He is giving the young Kabila an opportunity to make good on his promise in his inaugural address Saturday to work for peace in the region," said Jakkie Potgieter, an analyst at the South African Institute for Strategic Studies.
Kinshasa's allies have sent reinforcements to Congo since Laurent Kabila's assassination, but are also pressing for a deal to end the 30-month-old war, echoing calls by Western countries and the United Nations for the peace process to be revived.
Kabila called in his address for "the peaceful resolution of differences and fruitful cooperation and unity in order to pursue the reconstruction of the country".
KABILA "HIT THE RIGHT BUTTONS"
One Western diplomat said of Kabila's speech: "It hit all the right buttons. The peace accords, democracy, an opening for business and reconciliation."
Ordinary Congolese, ground down by economic hardship which has been aggravated by the war, broadly welcomed the speech, too, but they wanted to see action as well as words.
"We are behind him if what he is saying is the truth, but we want concrete actions," said Serge Kitutu, a real estate agent in the capital Kinshasa.
A taxi driver named Pierre said he was sceptical.
"His father also made big promises and look where we are now. I don't believe anything yet," he said.
Laurent Kabila was viewed as an obstacle to peace because of his calls for the Lusaka agreement to be reworked and his unwillingness to meet UN conditions for the deployment of peacekeepers.
Joseph Kabila said he would cooperate directly with the UN observer mission in Congo to ensure the deployment of more than 5,000 peacekeepers as soon as possible.
Namibian President Sam Nujoma said France was prepared to contribute troops to the UN force, according to a report from the state-owned Zambia News Agency after Nujoma met Zambian President Frederick Chiluba, who has been mediating in the war.
Chiluba told reporters that he was consulting with regional leaders on holding an urgent summit. He gave no date.
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