Security situation in easter DRC continues to deteriorate: UN official

The UN Security Council holds a meeting on the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) at the UN headquarters in New York, on June 26, 2023. The security situation in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has continued to deteriorate over the past three months despite a lull in armed clashes between the March 23 Movement (M23) and government forces in North Kivu province, said Martha Pobee, UN assistant secretary-general for Africa, on Monday. (Manuel Elias/UN Photo/Handout via Xinhua)

UNITED NATIONS, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The security situation in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has continued to deteriorate over the past three months despite a lull in armed clashes between the March 23 Movement (M23) and government forces in North Kivu province, said Martha Pobee, UN assistant secretary-general for Africa, on Monday.

Thus far, the cease-fire between the M23 rebel group and government forces has relatively held and contributed to some security gains. However, the withdrawal of M23 from the occupied areas has been piecemeal, tactical and political. The M23 still controls a large part of the Masisi and Rutshuru territories as well as the movement of people and goods in those areas, she told the Security Council.

Moreover, the M23's offensive repositioning in recent weeks has raised fears that hostilities could flare up again at any moment. The M23 continues to create insecurity, reportedly killing at least 47 civilians in North Kivu over the recent period, she said.

Pobee welcomed the continued efforts of regional leaders to persuade the concerned parties to implement the decisions of the Luanda roadmap and the Nairobi process, and reiterated the readiness of the UN peacekeeping mission in the DRC, known as MONUSCO, to assist the Congolese authorities with the pre-cantonment and disarmament of the M23.

Last week, MONUSCO and the Congolese authorities undertook a reconnaissance mission at the Rumangabo base to assess the conditions for the pre-cantonment of the M23. For these efforts to bear fruit, it is urgent that the M23 withdraw completely from the occupied territories, lay down their arms unconditionally and join the demobilization, disarmament, community recovery and stabilization program, she said.

The relative security gains in North Kivu are unfortunately fragile and overshadowed by the deteriorating situation in neighboring Ituri province, said Pobee.

Ituri has suffered from the security vacuum created by the government forces' redeployment to North Kivu. Over 600 people were killed by armed groups in the past three months. The Cooperative for the Development of the Congo (CODECO), Zaire militia, and the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) are the main perpetrators of these atrocities, she said.

A particularly heinous example was the CODECO militia attack on the Lala site for internally displaced persons in mid-May. More than 40 displaced people were killed and 800 shelters were burnt, she noted.

Despite the joint operations of the armed forces of the DRC and Uganda, the ADF has extended its area of influence to an unprecedented level and remains a serious threat to the security and stability of the DRC, she said.

"At the same time, the persistent activities of armed groups in South Kivu for the control of mining sites, in particular Mai-Mai militias, reminds us that it is imperative to resolve the root causes of the conflict in eastern DRC for peace to be restored," said Pobee. "We urge all armed groups to cease hostilities and call for a redeployment of national security forces, particularly in Ituri, to restore state authority in this area. The population, especially the most vulnerable, cannot remain without the protection of the Congolese state. The consequences of this absence are deeply worrying."

Pobee expressed deep concern about the growing number of women and girls who have been subjected to gender-based violence and sexual exploitation, noting that gender-based violence has increased by 23 percent nationwide, and by 73 percent in North Kivu province alone, compared with the same period last year.

These violations are linked to the proliferation of armed groups in areas where displaced people are hosted, and to frequent breaches of the civilian and humanitarian character of these displacement sites. Furthermore, the surge in sexual violence against children has also increased and is particularly horrifying, she said.

A significant scale-up of services to prevent and respond to sexual violence in and around displacement sites as well as to ensure better access to food, water and safe sanitation facilities is urgently required, she said, calling on the Congolese authorities to take stronger action, including the provision of additional sites to assist and protect displaced people, and better security in the sites, and in the fight against impunity.

In addition to the security and humanitarian challenges in eastern DRC, pockets of instability have resurfaced in the western and southern parts of the country, said Pobee.

Violence has persisted in the provinces of Mai-Ndombe, Kwilu and Kwango, and spread to Maluku in the province of Kinshasa, leaving at least 67 people dead in the last three months. Tensions and violence have also been reported in other places, she said. "We urge the authorities to hold the perpetrators of violence to account and to take measures to strengthen social cohesion to preserve the gains made toward stability in these areas."

Martha Pobee (Front), UN assistant secretary-general for Africa, speaks at a Security Council meeting on the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) at the UN headquarters in New York, on June 26, 2023. The security situation in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has continued to deteriorate over the past three months despite a lull in armed clashes between the March 23 Movement (M23) and government forces in North Kivu province, said Martha Pobee, UN assistant secretary-general for Africa, on Monday. (Manuel Elias/UN Photo/Handout via Xinhua)