Last week a delegation of the European Parliament’s subcommittee on security and defence led by its chair Anna Fotyga (ECR, PL) visited Goma and Mugunga refugee camp in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The delegation met with the regional governor, EU and UN officials, as well as civil society representatives to support the renewal of MONUSCO mandate and the implementation of political agreement to conduct general elections later this year.
MEPs welcomed the encouraging progress made in the registration for the planned general elections. They underlined the need for the full implementation of the 31 December 2016 agreement with a view to holding the elections later this year. The delegation agreed that the delayed elections have caused the country to suffer growing insecurity and there is a clear link between a rise in local tensions and national politics.
The members of delegation noted the renewed mandate of MONUSCO and reminded the need for its full and effective implementation. They welcomed that the issue of undeclared caveats of troop- and police-contributing countries will be addressed, enabling MONUSCO to better implement its entire mandate. The delegation strongly condemns all signs of violence and killing of two UN experts from the Group of Experts and urges the DRC authorities to fully investigate these crimes and bring perpetrators to justice.
During their various exchanges MEPs were reminded of the degradation of the political and of the security situation in the DRC. They regretted the absence of good governance across the country and were extremely concerned by the criminal exploitation of natural resources and by the perspective of a further downward slide of the DRC into a mere Kleptocracy.
„Over the coming months we must ensure that the political agreement on the power transition is fully implemented and that human rights are protected. The extension of MONUSCO’s mandate also sends a clear message over the commitment to tackling armed groups who continue to cause pain and suffering to vulnerable civilians. We will closely follow the review of their mandate in September which should show how effective it has been ” – said Anna Fotyga.
