The Democratic Republic of Congo representatives at the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) have boycotted a retreat of the members of the regional body that is being held in Kampala, Uganda, according to the Daily Monitor. MP Stephen Odongo, a Ugandan representative in the EALA, said their Congolese counterparts were concerned about their security while in Kampala. They are said to have avoided entering Rwanda for the committee sessions of EALA on the same grounds. ALSO READ: Address root causes of DR Congo crisis – Germany Members of the regional body were Monday evening hosted to a dinner by the Speaker of the Ugandan Parliament Anita Among at her residence in Kampala where she committed to have the Speakers of the respective parliaments in the region develop standards to be observed by EALA members. “Let us have a meeting as Speakers and agree on what should be done by our members who are in the community,” Among said. Caution Speaking about the boycott, Among cautioned members against involvement in matters that do not concern them. “Don’t enter into wars that do not concern you,” she said. Among’s remark was prompted by Odongo when he raised concern about the boycott and called upon her to give assurance to the legislators about the state of security in Uganda. “As the number three in the country, we would wish that you make a very strong statement of the state of our security to inspire confidence in our colleagues who are not here with us that this country is safe and we are here for regional integration,” Odongo had appealed. ALSO READ: Rwandan envoy puts UN on spot over DR Congo alliance with FDLR EALA Speaker Joseph Ntakirutimana said he was shocked when he received the communication from the Congolese representatives that they would not attend the committee sessions both in Kigali and Kampala. M23 rebels DR Congo last year severed relations with Rwanda as the former accused Kigali of providing material support to the M23 rebels who have captured swathes of territory around North Kivu province. Rwanda has denied the allegations and accused the DR Congo army (FARDC) of supporting the FDLR, a genocidal militia responsible for the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi. ALSO READ: DR Congo crisis: UN re-echoes possible Genocide in Kivu A leaked report from the United Nations Group of Experts on DR Congo says the country’s armed forces (FARDC) have been cooperating with armed groups, such as the FDLR, in the war against the M23 rebels, in North Kivu. However, the relations between Kampala and Kinshasa appear to have been warm, signified by the signed Status of Forces Agreement which has allowed the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) to hunt down the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebel group in the jungles of eastern DR Congo.
