Uganda: M23 rebels put AU on notice

By Timothy Sibasi, timothy.sabasi@alleastafrica.com

KAMPALA – The M23 Movement’s Directorate is pondering options on whether flying to arms would be another better option to have the African Union Peace and Security Council listen to their concerns.

The top brass of the M23 rebel movement operating clandestinely along the porous border points of Uganda, Rwanda and Congo are extremely bitter about the contents of the official Communiqué of the African Union’s Peace and Security Council of August 23rd, 2017 in regards to her country (DRC) elections and the M23 Movement’s ex-combatants cantoned in Rwanda and Uganda.

The initiative of the Peace and Security Council to relocate ex-combatants of the M23 Movement to a third country, claim in their first response to the AU Peace and Security Council as being dangerous to the effect that it compromises the peace process derived from the Declarations signed in Nairobi declarations for which it committed itself on December 12^th, 2013.

In an interview with the Chairman of the M23 Movement, Bertrand BISIMWA at the sideways of the capital Kampala revealed that, “the content of the AU Peace and Security, is an admission of failure by the African Union that it could no longer guarantee the implementation of the Nairobi declarations for which it committed itself on December 12^th, 2013”.

In their third response, the M23 Movement allege that the AU contents also contradicted the provisions of the Nairobi declarations more specially to points 2 and 6 of the Congolese government’s declaration on transitional security arrangements and repatriation.

The top hecklones of the defunct M23 Movement, say that the decision by the AU to relocate the M23 rebel ex-combatants is likely to Intensify the frustrations of ex-combatants and refugees who are now seeing the hopes of their proposed repatriation as gone with the wind;

BISIMWA says that “the AU perspective triggers of a risk of making Congolese refugees stateless in their right”.

BISIMWA adds that the move creates a movement of confusion and chaos in the likely to be concentrated camps hence revives the tendencies of an uncontrolled return to the country by the ex-combatants.

In regards to the seriousness of the African Union’s initiative the M23 Movement’s Directorate, has recommends an urgent meeting of all stakeholders to the Declarations of December 12th, 2013 (Congolese Government and M23 Movement) and the sponsors of the implementation of the Declarations (ICGRL, SADC, AU, UE and USA) in order to formally acknowledge the failure to implement the commitment undertaken in Nairobi on December 12th, 2013, in a way to denounce the approach of the African Union.

This in their view claim that will allow the stakeholders to officially discard their commitments and open the possibility to any other solution;

However, in regard to the pending elections in the DRC, the M23 Movement say at an appropriate time will be issuing out its statement detailing a packed of disappointment and disagreement with the African Union.