A mini-summit chaired by Angolan President João Lourenço, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Friday, February 17, among others noted the presence of refugees in Rwanda and recommended their repatriation to DR Congo. This is one of the key resolutions of the summit that was attended by President Paul Kagame, alongside other East African Community (EAC) Heads of State. The directive comes at a time when Rwanda is home to over 76,000 Congolese refugees in Rwanda, some of whom have lived in refugee camps for over 25 years, according to the Ministry of Emergency Management. The situation has recently worsened as more DR Congo refugees continue to flee to Rwanda over fighting in eastern DR Congo, particularly between the M23 rebels and the government coalition, which includes armed militia such as the FDLR, which is responsible for the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi. For instance, data indicates that, by January 4, a total of 2,061 refugees fleeing the fighting in eastern DR Congo had crossed into Rwanda since November 13. ALSO READ: Rwanda and DR Congo are ‘one people’ — Congolese refugees ALSO READ: ‘We want justice’: Stories of DR Congo’s ‘tired' refugees Details of the repatriation process were not shared by time of publication. Equally important, the mini summit directed the withdrawal of all armed groups by March 30 from occupied areas as well as immediate ceasefire by all armed groups. ALSO READ: Luanda summit calls for FDLR disarmament, M23 withdrawal The summit also directed resettlement of internally displaced persons in the country that has experienced deteriorating security conditions especially in the east. According to the resolutions, the Heads of States also recommended the formation of a regional monitoring and evaluation mechanism to complement the expanded joint verification mechanism and adhoc verification mechanism.
