STAND CHAPTER RETREATSSPRING 2009

Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo

Conflict Overview

• Over 5.4 million dead since 1998 – deadliest conflict since WWII

• More than 1.5 million displaced in the east

• Targeting of civilians by multiple armed groups

• Rape as a weapon of war

Country and People

• Third largest country in Africa

• People and land have been exploited for the country’s abundant natural resources since colonial times

• History of fighting over land rights between Congolese and Rwandan/Burundian ethnic groups in the east

Colonial Period and Post-Independence

• 1880: King Leopold II of Belgium rules “Congo Free State”

• 1960: Belgian Congo gains independence

• January 1965: Joseph-Desire Mobutu takes power in a coup

• 1970s – 1990s: Tensions escalate between Hutu, Tutsi, Congolese ethnic groups over land rights and resources

Ripples of Genocide: 1994-1998

• 1994: Rwandan genocide, 1.3 million refugees flood into eastern DRC

• 1996: Rwanda invades Congo, marking beginning of the First Congo War

• May 1997: Rwanda-backed rebels install Laurent Kabila as president

• August 1998: Rebels backed by Rwanda and Uganda rise up against Kabila. Zimbabwe, Namibia, and Angola send troops to support him. Beginning of Second Congo War

Transition to Peace?: 2001-2006

• January 2001: Joseph Kabila is assassinated and replaced by his son, Laurent Kabila

• 2002-2003: DRC signs peace agreements with Uganda, Rwanda, and rebels, creates transitional government

• 2003: Last foreign troops leave DRC, marking end of the Second Congo War. Over 3 million are killed.

• 2006: Laurent Kabila wins elections

From Post-Conflict to Conflict: 2006-2008

• 2006: Tutsi rebels led by General Laurent Nkunda clash with army in North Kivu province.

• December 2006: Nkunda and Kabila arrange for integration of Nkunda’s forces into DRC army

• August 2007: Reintegration collapses

• January 2008: Ceasefire agreement signed between DRC government and rebel groups, including Nkunda

DRC Today – Key Players

• Congolese army (FARDC): composed of poorly trained, frequently unpaid soldiers, and responsible for widespread human rights violations. Accused of collaboration with the FDLR, in violation of international agreements signed by the Congolese government.

• CNDP: indiscriminately kills, rapes, and severely injures scores of non-combatant civilians. Claims to defend eastern DRC’s Tutsi population from FDLR threat. Led by Laurent Nkunda until his arrest in January ’09. CNDP faction led by Bosco Ntaganda recently signed ceasefire agreement with DRC.

• FDLR: composed of former Rwandan Hutu militiamen and Interahamwe génocidaires

• MONUC: largest UN peacekeeping operation to date, with over 18,000 troops in the theater

DRC Today – 2008 in Review

• January 2008: Goma Agreement signed and violated days later• August 2008: Violent clashes erupt in the Kivus between FARDC

and CNDP• October 29, 2008: CNDP advances on Goma, North Kivu.

Government troops begin to loot and attack civilians in the wake of the fighting. Thousands are displaced.

• November 2008: UN Security Council authorizes 3,000 additional troops for MONUC

• December 2008: UN Group of Experts report reveals illegal exploitation of mineral resources and Rwandan support for CNDP

• December 24, 2008: The LRA, Ugandan rebels led by Joseph Kony, begin massacres against Congolese civilians in Ituri and Orientale provinces

• January 17, 2009: Rwandan troops enter DRC as part of joint mission to track down FDLR

• January 23, 2009: General Laurent Nkunda arrested