Corneille Nangaa, the leader of Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC/M23) movement, on Friday, June 13, held talks with Bintou Keita, Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations and Head of the UN Mission in DR Congo (MONUSCO). According a post on X, Keita declared that she came to Goma, the rebel held capital of North Kivu Province, “in a spirit of listening” and exchanging. ALSO READ: AFC/M23 leader Corneille Nangaa states four reasons why his movement is fighting Tshisekedi govt “This visit comes at a critical time, in a context of ongoing tensions, and just days before my briefing before the United Nations Security Council,” she said, as per MONUSCO’s post on X. https://x.com/MONUSCO/status/1933579828432982389 This was the first meeting between Keita and AFC/M23 leaders ever since the rebel movement took control of Goma and other key cities in eastern DR Congo early this year. It happened a day after the last SADC troops started leaving eastern DR Congo as part of a phased withdrawal that began in April with the transportation of equipment and logistical assets, through Rwanda. ALSO READ: DR Congo: Exiting SADC troops pass through Rwanda Keita also highlighted that with the facilitation of the Red Cross, the Congolese government, the AFC/M23 and MONUSCO, 1,359 elements of the Congolese army (FARDC) and the national police were transferred from Goma to Kinshasa. She reiterated MONUSCO’s support for initiatives aimed at restoring peace. “MONUSCO also remains ready to provide the necessary support for all ongoing peace initiatives.” Nangaa has outlined four main reasons why his group is fighting to topple the Congolese government, attributing the crisis in eastern DR Congo to the collapse of state institutions in what he described as a failed state. ALSO READ: Trump advisor discusses peace deal with Kagame, Tshisekedi In the past few years, a vast Congolese army coalition backed by Western countries including Belgium and comprising the Rwandan genocidal militia, FDLR, and Burundian forces as well as SADC forces worsened the security situation in eastern DR Congo. FDLR is a DR Congo-backed militia formed by remnants of the perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. Kinshasa has relentlessly tried to drag neighbouring Rwanda into the conflict and war in its east, alleging that Kigali supports Nangaa’s bulging alliance. ALSO READ: Why genocide ideology doesn’t dissolve three decades after dispersion of genocidaires The AFC/M23 is fighting for governance that supports basic human rights, secures all Congolese citizens, and addresses the root causes of conflict. The rebellion has vowed to uproot tribalism, nepotism, corruption, and the genocide ideology spread by FDLR, among other vices, widespread in DR Congo. ALSO READ: Peace in DR Congo will only come when Kinshasa addresses FDLR threat – former US Assistant Secretary of State Numerous efforts have been made at regional and international levels to resolve the crisis but are yet to produce meaningful results.
