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8207th Security Council Meeting: Situation in Democratic Republic of Congo
The Security Council turned its attention this morning to the humanitarian aspects of the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with a rural women’s rights activist and an Episcopalian clergyman warning the international community of dire consequences if it failed to help to turn the tide on a conflict that had raged in the centre of Africa for two decades.
The meeting came ahead of a Council decision later this month on renewing the mandate of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), and of an international high‑level meeting in Geneva in April to rally more funding for humanitarian relief efforts.
“Today I speak as a rural woman”, displaced and affected by conflict, said Jeanine Bandu Bahati, Coordinator of the Encadrement des Femmes Indigènes et des Ménages Vulnérables, an organization that promoted peace, gender and development. She described the situation in her country as catastrophic and chaotic, with women and girls — especially in the east — confronted by massacres, permanent displacement, rape, kidnappings, human trafficking, house‑burning and a proliferation of foreign and local armed groups, among other things.
“This is a time bomb,” she said, recalling the story of a 54‑year‑old displaced mother of nine children — including one who had been kidnapped and raped — who herself had been wounded by gunfire in the fields. With less than $1 a day, it was impossible to live or even eat, plunging people into hopelessness and prompting some young people to join armed groups, she said. Women’s political participation was weak, yet women were courageous and competent, she added, pressing the Council to support them and their children. “Women of the DRC want to be considered,” she said, “and want you to respond to their cry of alarm and distress.”
Donatien Nshole, Secretary‑General of the Episcopal National Conference of Congo, said the humanitarian situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was so bad that people were wondering if it resonated anymore with the United Nations and the wider international community. Given the dramatic humanitarian situation, it was essential for the Organization to get more involved and to put pressure on the Government to hold elections. Church leaders were convinced that only credible elections would give the people a legitimate Government that could tackle the country’s multifaceted challenges, he said, demanding full implementation of the 31 December 2016 political agreement between the Government of President Joseph Kabila and the opposition, known as the New Year’s Eve agreement, and a stronger mandate for MONUSCO.
Mark Lowcock, Under‑Secretary‑General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, recounted his visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo last week with the Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Netherlands, during which he said he met a 35‑year‑old displaced mother of seven children living under a sheet of plastic in a congested and unsanitary camp. She was among 4.5 million people currently displaced in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where humanitarian needs had doubled over the last year, he said.
“Without a halt to the violence and a successful political transition, these numbers will all increase,” he said, emphasizing the need for urgent action, with the United Nations and its humanitarian partners aiming this year to reach 10.5 million people, compared with more than 4.2 million last year. Underfunding was the single largest impediment to the humanitarian response. This year’s appeal was for $1.7 billion, nearly four times the amount secured last year, he said, drawing attention to the first‑ever high‑level humanitarian conference on the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Geneva on 13 April.
In the ensuing discussion, several Council members said a key to ending two decades of conflict and humanitarian catastrophe lay in full implementation of the New Year’s Eve agreement, followed by a smooth transition of power. Under that agreement, elections should have taken place by the end of 2017, but combined presidential, legislative and municipal elections were now due to occur on 23 December 2018.
Equatorial Guinea’s delegate said peace, security and development in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was a priority for his country during its Council membership. Resolving the situation would be complicated if the humanitarian situation remained devastating, he said, calling on the international community to continue to finance the work of humanitarian organizations. He also stressed the need to neutralize armed groups and for the international community to help the Congolese along the path they freely chose, with full respect for their country’s sovereignty.
The representative of Ethiopia said the humanitarian emergency in the Democratic Republic of the Congo could not be seen in isolation from the political and security situation. Strongly supporting calls for mobilizing more resources to save lives, he said it was imperative to implement the 31 December 2016 agreement in order to address the country’s political impasse in a consensual, inclusive manner and set up peaceful, free, fair and credible elections. He also called for better coordination and support of regional initiatives, as well as those of the African Union, to support the electoral process.
The Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development said his country’s taxpayers had extended hundreds of millions of dollars in response to the humanitarian crisis. However, prospects for change were being undermined by an inhumane and authoritarian Government, he said, emphasizing that the status quo was not working and that the Kabila Government must demonstrate concrete and measurable action. He went on to warn that the United States would reconsider its assistance if elections in the current calendar year were subject to further delay.
The representative of the Democratic Republic of the Congo spoke in place of his country’s Minister of Solidarity and Humanitarian Action, who would be in New York later in the day. He said his Government was working to find solutions and that any contribution from the international community would be welcome. He expressed appreciation for the recent visit to his country by the Humanitarian Affairs Coordinator and the Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Netherlands, adding, however, that his Government considered as “excessive” a proposed review of the application of humanitarian assistance. He also emphasized his Government’s determination to eradicate armed groups; otherwise it would be almost impossible to end the humanitarian crisis.
Also speaking today were representatives of France, China, Kuwait, Poland, Russian Federation, Peru, Kazakhstan, Sweden, Côte d’Ivoire, United Kingdom, Bolivia and the Netherlands.
The meeting began at 10:08 a.m. and ended at 12:17 p.m.
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