Kelvin Jakachira
Defence chiefs from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community (EAC) are in agreement that the mandate of the SADC mission in the eastern DR Congo (SAMIDRC) is in dilemma and untenable.
The defence chiefs and nominated representatives from 13 countries from the two regional economic communities met in Nairobi, Kenya last Friday and agreed that any short, medium, and long-term steps to resolving the eastern DR Congo conflict are dependent on successful political engagement.
They also agreed that the political engagement should address the root causes of the conflict.
EAC member countries, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan and Uganda, were represented at the Nairobi meeting. EAC member states DR Congo and Tanzania double-hatted as SADC delegates at the Nairobi meeting. Tanzania together with South Africa and Malawi contributed troops to SAMIDRC. Other SADC member countries that attended the meeting are Angola, Malawi, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
This conclusion reached at the Nairobi meeting forms part of an eight-page report emanating from a joint EAC and SADC defence technical experts meeting which was called for during the EAC/SADC Dar es Salaam meeting on the eastern DR Congo on 14 February.
Recommendations from the meeting call for direct communication and engagement, which tops the list. It is followed by establishing an up to 16-strong technical assessment team to evaluate security, the humanitarian situation and critical infrastructure including airports.
The SAMIDRC was deployed in December 2023 to shore up the Congolese army against the M23 rebels which are fighting for the protection of the Congolese Tutsi population which is facing a genocide at the hands of the genocidal militia group, FDLR, a host of armed militia groups known as Wazalendo.
But the SADC mission in the eastern DRC failed after the M23 seized territory including Goma, the capital of the North Kivu and also Bukavu, the South Kivu provincial capital.
The South African Defence Forces contingent which led the SAMIDRC surrendered and have now successfully negotiated the repatriation of its injured soldiers from Goma.
About 129 wounded South African troops including two pregnant soldiers have been repatriated through Rwanda following negotiations.
The bodies of fourteen of its soldiers that were killed as they defended Goma and Sake were repatriated last week.
There are reports suggesting that 65 injured soldiers from Tanzania and Malawi have also been repatriated.
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South African soldiers are now consigned to their bases in Goma and Sake which are guided by the M23.
South African opposition leader Julius Malema is reported as telling a church feast in Johannesburg that: “For them to go to the toilet, they must get permission from M23. For them to get water, they must ask M23.”
Defence and security experts are calling on South Africa to negotiate and withdraw its troops from the eastern DR Congo saying the SADC mission has failed.
Malawi announced it was withdrawing its soldiers from the eastern DR Congo following the fall of Goma to the M23 rebels.
