Nothing is normally expected from the so-called UN Group of Experts and their periodic reports on the situation in the eastern DR Congo. They always bring regurgitated, unsubstantiated narratives that look more keen to pin Rwanda than offer practical solutions to insecurity challenges in the neighbouring country. Most importantly, these reports labour to sanitise the inefficiencies of both the UN and the Congolese government. ALSO READ Rape as an instrument: FDLR’s weapon of choice However, they took it a notch higher this time round, when in their latest report, they accused M23 of “exploiting the genocide narrative and creating a dangerous fertile ground for fear mongering, hateful discourse and violent reprisals, including killings, against the above-mentioned communities by those who opposed the M23. This is the lowest this group has probably sunk. They also accuse Rwandan authorities of the same, again claiming that this could trigger widespread ethnic violence. It is ironic that in the same report, they accuse the government of DR Congo of working with FDLR – a sanctioned terrorist group founded by genocidaires after fleeing Rwanda – which has continued to wreak havoc in the neighbouring country, where they target citizens of Tutsi descent. However, the most surprising thing is that they mention this alliance in passing, as if it is a marriage made in heaven. Millions of members of this community have lived in constant suffering for close to three decades. Hundreds of thousands of them have lived as refugees in neighbouring countries including Rwanda for decades, but members of the Group of Experts are happy to reduce their plight to fear mongering. Since last year, the renewed call for extermination of this community – which government officials have openly called foreigners – has been a matter of public record. ALSO READ: How many foreign forces are in DR Congo? Social and mainstream media outlets have been awash with stories of lynching of members of the same community without any sort of reproach but the UN is without any sort of shame reducing all this to fear mongering by M23! The report turns a blind eye to the sporadic killings of innocent civilians in areas that were vacated by M23 in respect of a region-led peace initiative which Kinshasa has completely refused to honour. Such reports only paint a grim picture on the prospect of peace in eastern DR Congo, especially at a time when reports point to continued regrouping of government forces and their allies – including FDLR and mercenaries from Europe – to launch major attacks against M23. This only reinforces the case that the solution to Congo’s problems will come from elsewhere but certainly not the UN, which has for over two decades maintained its most expensive peacekeeping operation with nothing to show for it.
