UN envoy sounds alarm over violence in eastern DRC

UNITED NATIONS, March 29 (Xinhua) -- The top UN envoy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Bintou Keita, on Tuesday sounded the alarm over the increase in violence in the eastern part of the country.

The security situation in eastern DRC has deteriorated in the past three months, causing massive civilian casualties and displacements, particularly as a result of bloody reprisals by the Allied Democratic Forces against civilian populations in North Kivu and Ituri provinces, she told the Security Council in a briefing.

The past three months have also seen an alarming increase in rebel activities by the March 23 Movement in North Kivu. On Monday, elements of the rebel group conducted horrific attacks targeting civilians in localities near Rutshuru. Fighting also broke out in the three-border area around Rwanda, the DRC and Uganda, near the town of Bunagana, said Keita, who is the UN secretary-general's special representative and head of the UN peacekeeping mission in the DRC, known by its French acronym as MONUSCO.

In total, MONUSCO documented nearly 2,300 civilian deaths in the eastern part of the DRC in the first three months of this year, she said.

As a result of the deteriorating security situation and violence against civilians, the need for humanitarian assistance in eastern DRC has increased. Restricted access and incidents against humanitarian workers continue to hamper the response. In the past three months, four aid workers have been killed, another injured, and six abducted, she said.

"I must sound the alarm here about the marked erosion of protection of the civilian status of internally displaced persons sites and frequent attacks on medical services and other civilian infrastructure. I, therefore, take this opportunity to remind all parties to the conflict of their legal and moral imperative to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid."

Without a combination of approaches targeting both the causes and the symptoms of the conflict, the resources of MONUSCO and those of the Congolese army will remain insufficient in the face of such a security deterioration, she said.

Keita reiterated her call for the implementation by the DRC government of comprehensive political strategies, including measures and reforms that address the deep-seated and structural causes of these conflicts, in order to achieve stabilization and lasting peace.

The start of national consultations on transitional justice is a step in the right direction. Progress in the fight against the illegal exploitation and trade of natural resources, in the reform of the security sector to improve its performance and efficiency, and in the increase in the means dedicated to the fight against impunity for criminals, traffickers and accomplices of armed groups are key elements, she said.

Keita welcomed the opening of the new parliamentary session on March 15 and the inclusion in its agenda of essential bills and proposals, including those on the revision of the electoral law.

The strategic importance of the revision of the electoral law for the stability of the country cannot be underestimated. It is a key moment for a large part of the political class and civil society, which is expecting concrete measures to restore confidence in the management of the electoral process, she said.