EU exerts its influence to prevent return to violence

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana will attempt next week (11 September) to shepherd the Democratic Republic of Congo away from yet another descent into violence and chaos.

Solana’s decision to visit the African country, between talks on Iran’s nuclear programme, a meeting in Helsinki on relations with Asia and the United Nations’ general assembly in New York, is itself a sign of the seriousness with which the high representative is viewing the ongoing election process in Congo.

Since a violent stand-off between troops loyal to the incumbent president Joseph Kabila and the militia of first-round runner-up Jean-Pierre Bemba on 21-22 August, the situation has been tense, particularly in the capital Kinshasa.

The EU’s special envoy to the region, Aldo Ajello, says that while relative calm pervades, it is illusory.

"The situation on the ground is theoretically calm, it looks like business as usual. In reality there is a lot of fear," he said.

"There is a serious worry about the economic situation, which has deteriorated dramatically. There have been price rises, which have a terrible impact on ordinary people."

Speaking in Brussels on Monday (4 September), before heading to Washington and the African region, Ajello said it was necessary to exert "immense pressure" on all the parties to ensure that the "disaster" of 20-21 August was not repeated.

As a first step the EU is insisting that Kabila and Bemba meet in person.

Ajello said it was important that the meeting between the two took place and that it sent a message to the citizens of Congo that there would be no repeat of the August clashes. The meeting must also allow the government to restart its work, he added.

But Bemba has said that he is concerned that the meeting would provide an opportunity for Kabila’s presidential guard to kill him.

In order to allow the meeting to take place the ambassadors of 15 countries including Belgium, the UK and France will be present in an adjacent room. There will also be assurances that, whoever loses the second round, the opposition leader will have certain "privileges" and "immunity", as Ajello put it.

The EU is also asking for both men to agree to a code of conduct for the forthcoming electoral campaign, to stem some of the anti-European language which marked the first round and which was blamed for some clashes with EU peacekeepers.

Ajello said that EU troops waiting in neighbouring Gabon should be on alert for the final run-off between Bemba and Kabila, scheduled for the end of October.

The clashes between Kabila and Bemba’s forces have only served to underline how little has been achieved towards ensuring that Congo has only one army under one command.

According to Ajello there was no doubt that the process had, until now, "been very badly managed".

But on Tuesday (5 September) EU ambassadors agreed that an EU team already distributed throughout Congo’s defence establishment would now take control of international efforts to reform the Congolese army.

Their task will not be an easy one. Ajello admitted that the process of integrating fighters from militia into the army had been "extremely limited".

"The situation of the army is catastrophic. It has such a high level of corruption that it becomes very difficult for people to accept a mechanism that would clear up the system and reduce profit margins," he said.

• Development Commissioner Louis Michel this week announced an extra €16 million for the elections in Congo, bringing the EU’s contribution to the elections to €165m.

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana will attempt next week (11 September) to shepherd the Democratic Republic of Congo away from yet another descent into violence and chaos.