DRC

Congo ministers resign as election debate heats up

NEWS STORY

Source: Reuters

By Aaron Ross

Kinshasa, 18 September 2015 - Two ministers resigned from Democratic Republic of Congo's government on Friday, raising pressure on President Joseph Kabila to name a new cabinet ahead of elections next year that are causing rising political tension.

Kabila has ruled the vast central African nation for 14 years but is barred from standing again. His spokesman says he will respect the constitution but critics say he is using violence and manipulating laws to prolong his rule or engineer a third term.

Civil service minister Jean-Claude Kibala and land affairs minister Bolengetenge Balela quit their posts after refusing to sign a loyalty pledge to Kabila's majority coalition, Florent Mulumba, national executive secretary of the Social Movement for Renewal, told Reuters.

The Movement is one of seven parties whose leaders were expelled from the Presidential Majority coalition this week for signing a letter demanding that Kabila relinquish power when his term expires.

Four pro-democracy activists were sentenced on Friday to six months in prison in the eastern city of Goma for inciting disobedience in a verdict that human rights groups say is part of the pre-election crackdown.

The activists from Struggle for Change (Lucha) were arrested as they encouraged residents to protest the detention of fellow activists by whistling and banging pots and pans.

Defense lawyer Matthieu Mugisho vowed to appeal and said the court found them guilty of inciting disobedience to public authorities and also gave them 12-month suspended sentences.

In the worst violence this year, at least 40 people were killed in anti-government protests in January and a wave of arrests followed. The government said the arrests were an attempt to maintain order and were not politically motivated.

The council of ministers also proposed the designation by Kabila of special commissioners to provisionally govern 21 new provinces created in July, a move critics have said would be an unconstitutional power grab.

Four Congolese pro-democracy activists sentenced to prison

NEWS STORY

Source: Reuters Africa

Kinshasa, 18 September 2015 - Four pro-democracy activists were sentenced on Friday to six months in prison in Democratic Republic of Congo for inciting disobedience, part of a crackdown before upcoming elections, lawyers in the case and human rights groups said.

President Joseph Kabila is prohibited by the constitution from running at elections next year to extend his 14 years in office but critics accuse him of trying to hang onto power. A spokesman for Kabila says he will respect the constitution.

The activists from Struggle for Change (Lucha) were arrested in Democratic Republic of Congo's eastern city of Goma in April as they encouraged residents to protest the detention of fellow activists by whistling and banging pots and pans.

Defense lawyer Matthieu Mugisho said the court found his clients guilty of inciting disobedience to public authorities and they were also handed 12-month suspended sentences. Mugisho said the verdict would be appealed within 10 days.

"The condemnation of our comrades is further proof that in (Congo) there is not justice," Lucha tweeted from its official account.

Another Lucha member is standing trial in the capital Kinshasa on charges of plotting against Kabila after he was arrested at a workshop in March intended to encourage youth participation in politics.

The government said the meeting was organized by "instructors in insurrection" and has denied any political meddling in the judicial process.

The United Nations warned last week that rights violations are escalating in Congo ahead of a 13-month election cycle meant to begin next month and culminate in a presidential election next November.

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RWANDA

Rwanda to Host International Peace Day

NEWS STORY

Source: Kigali Times Press

By Dan Ngabonziza

20 September 2015 - Rwanda will on Monday [21 September] free doves into the sky as a symbol of peace as the capital Kigali hosts the International peace day celebrations under the theme; ‘Partnerships for Peace – Dignity for all.’

In 1994, Rwanda was brought onto its knees following a genocide against ethnic Tutsi that claimed a million lives in just a hundred days; but the world looked on as such mayhem took place.

For the past 21 years after the genocide, the country has reunited, built peace and contributed to peacekeeping missions around the world.

“This country will never be the same again,” President Paul Kagame said during the 21st commemoration of the genocide.

Bishop Rucyahana President of the National Reconciliation Commission told KT Press; “It’s a day for peace, but again a day of recognizing those exceptional individuals who sacrificed themselves to put Rwandan where it is today.”

The national unity and reconciliation commission says Rwanda was selected to host the day because of its unmatched level in restoring peace and security, 21 years after a devastating genocide.

Rwanda maintains over 4500 uniformed men and women in different peacekeeping missions around the world.

Ban Ki Moon the United Nations Secretary General, in honour of this day, calls for ceasefire and peace across conflict-stricken countries.

“I call on all warring parties to lay down their weapons and observe a global ceasefire. To them I say: stop the killings and the destruction, and create space for lasting peace,” Moon said.

Bishop Rucyahana noted; “We are celebrating International peace day with a lot of excitement. In Rwanda, we have peace because we worked for it.”

A couple of activities have been organised, including a parliamentary session of 300 youth discussing their role in peace building.

Later in the day, a ‘Peace One Day Youth Celebration’ will bring together 2,500 participants at Petit Stade Amahoro in Kigali, as well as a Peace Village that will feature exhibitions by partners in peace-building, according to Johnson Mugaga, executive secretary of the national reconciliation commission.

Also, international artistes are expected to grace the celebrations including; Nigeria’s Ice Prince, Maurice Kirya and Lillian Mbabazi from Uganda, Mafikizolo from South Africa; Alikiba and Wangechi from Tanzania and Kenya, among others.

FDLR Commander Drops Guns, Returns Home In Rwanda

NEWS STORY

Source: Kigali Times Press

18 September 2015 - A commander of the Rwandan rebels in DRCongo has this Friday surrendered and repatriated with his family to Rwanda to start a new life.

Lieutenant Colonel Nibabaza a.k.a Mambo Gerald aged 47 was head of G1 in the administration of Democratic Front for Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR-FOCA). He was directly attached to Sylvestre Mudacumura the FDLR leader wanted by International Criminal Court for the militia’s crimes against humanity.

The fighter left his base at Walikale in Democratic Republic of Congo and crossed to Rwanda through the Rubavu border post. He was accompanied by his wife Sergeant Jacqueline Nyirakamana and other seven combatants and four dependants.

The rebel commander and his fellow fighters told Kigali Today journalist in Rubavu district that they chose to repatriate after realising it was their best option.

“We are leading a sorry life in the forest; stealing, disputing over food with Congolese regular soldiers…while we have always learnt that our fellow Rwandans are happily building this country,” Sergeant Nyirakamana said adding FDLR has no organised combatants.

The former rebel was born in Ngororero district, Western Province

Sgt. Nyirakamana left Rwanda in 1998 during the infiltration (abacengezi) war and got married to Mambo in 2000 who introduced her into FDLR. She served under the rebel group’s intelligence section. She could sneak into Rwanda in 2010 and return to rebel bases in DRC and occasionally convinced her husband to repatriate.

“My call to repatriate was resisted for long. Time has come now,” she said.

Jean Sayinzoga, the chairman of Rwanda Demobilization and Reintegration Commission (RDRC) told KT Press, “We provide to every ex-combatants with important skills, then pocket money to support their feeding before they get their own harvest.”

Sayinzoga said, since 1997, over 11,000 ex-members of FDLR repatriated and are leading a decent life among the community.

After reaching the country, the combatants headed to Mutobo demobilisation camp located in Musanze district.

In Mutobo, combatants spend 3 months learning basic skills that allow them start a new life.

Meanwhile, their children will be hosted by relatives.

Of recent, another senior officer identified as Major Noah also repatriated to Rwanda. He was in charge of outreach program in FDLR.

The U.S. National Counterterrorism Center listed FDLR-FOCA as a terror organization responsible for acts of terrorism that have killed hundreds of civilians in Eastern Congo since 2009.

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BURUNDI

Economic failure is the backdrop to the Burundi crisis

NEWS ANALYSIS

Source: http://www.enca.com/africa/economic-failure-backdrop-burundi-crisis

By Jean-Benoit Falisse

18 September 2015 - Burundi may have slipped off the world’s attention, but the crisis that erupted in May when President Pierre Nkurunziza announced that he would seek a third term is far from being resolved.

Most commentators have, rightfully so, discussed the political aspects of the crisis. This includes whether Nkurunziza’s third mandate is constitutional and the lack of coherence of the political opposition. They also discussed the alarming political violence and mounting tension with Rwanda.

Often overlooked is the economy, which is central to understanding the backdrop to the most severe crisis Burundi has had since the end of the 1993-2005 civil war. While acknowledging the crucial political dimension of the crisis, this article focuses on the economic situation and its consequences.

Hungriest nation on earth

With a GDP per capita of US$267, the country’s 10.16 million people are among the poorest in the world. Burundi ranked 180 out of 186 in the last Human Development Index.

89% of the active population depends on farming a territory as densely populated as Belgium. Coffee, once the proud main export of Burundi, was controversially privatised in 2008 and has been declining for 20 years. Tea and cotton, the other traditional exports, are also in poor shape.

The country has few mineral resources. It has been expecting a lot, so far in vain, from a potentially important nickel deposit. The hopes in gold, which is artisanally mined and had become Burundi’s first export by 2012, collapsed with the recent crash of international prices. Part of Burundian gold has also reportedly been smuggled from the DR Congo.

The apparently decent 4% to 4.5% growth of Burundi’s GDP in the past years is dwarfed by a population growth above 3%. The number of mouths to feed keeps growing very fast and the GDP per capita has not grown by more than 1.5% in the best of the past years.

Even before the crisis, reports indicated that the living conditions were deteriorating for most people. Burundi was, and still is, the hungriest nation on earth. With the political crisis, things have deteriorated even further.

When violent unrests exploded in Bujumbura, the city was paralysed for months. It concentrates 70% of the economic activity of the country.

Trade with regional and local markets was heavily disrupted and is still not back to normal as security forces control displacements of people in and out the capital city. The government recently estimated that the insurrection cost at least US$ 32.7 million in material damage.

At least 190,000 people have left the country since April, and among them investors, business people, and part of the middle class. Most of them still have not returned.

The Burundian diaspora, mostly from Canada, the US, France, and Belgium, are a habitual and most-welcomed source of cash in the summer. But they did not spent their holidays on the beaches of Bujumbura this year.

Perhaps more important for the economy, Western donors are in the process of cutting their support to Burundi, whose budget relies 49% on aid.

The government already had to use its own money to organise the elections, reportedly diverting funds earmarked for malaria and education. And it seems clear that the 2015 budget is now totally offtrack. Hypothetical fresh support from Russia or China is unlikely to be enough to balance the budget. Inflation only rose by a bit less than a percentage point since May. But official tax revenues for May-August are about 30% lower than expected, and 23% less than last year.

Pressure points

Nkurunziza, who was controversially re-elected in August, is now facing an economic crisis that could destabilise him in at least three different ways:

First, the first long-serving Hutu president has built his popularity on generous social policies including the abolition of healthcare user fees for children below five and pregnant women, free primary education, and a national fertiliser subsidy program. These social services depend on foreign and are now in grave danger.

Second, if the reported current disruption of wage payment continues, Nkurunziza may alienate a small but influential middle-class of civil servants as well as the police and military still mostly loyal to him.

Third, benefits from politically appointed positions are becoming potentially less interesting as the economy contracts. This makes it harder to buy off loyalty and opponents, and potentially exacerbates corruption, which is already a key reason for discontent with the regime.

Nkurunziza’s current strategy, in a fashion not dissimilar to his predecessor president Pierre Buyoya, is to blame the insurgents and Western countries for the economic difficulties. This may reinforce him, but probably only for a short while.

In the meantime, B