DR of Congo: UN keeps up efforts to revive peace talks over war-ravaged Bunia

In the midst of the calm that has settled over the north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the United Nations is pressing ahead with diplomatic and humanitarian efforts in and around the town of Bunia – trying to revive peace talks between rival ethnic factions and delivering basic services to desperate people forced from their homes by the fighting.

According to a UN spokesperson in New York, no fighting was reported in Bunia today, although the situation remains unstable. The UN Organization Mission in the DRC (MONUC) continues its efforts to re-start negotiations between the different militia groups that have been locked in a deadly battle for control of the town, which lies in the DRC’s gold- and mineral-rich Ituri province. “No progress has been reported yet,” Hua Jiang said at a press briefing.

At the diplomatic level, in the DRC capital of Kinshasa, UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Marie Guéhenno is meeting again with President Joseph Kabila to underline the importance of restraint by all sides in Ituri, the spokesperson said.

Despite tightened security at camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Bunia, continuing incidents of theft and ongoing human rights violations remain a major concern, according to Ms. Jiang. “It was also reported that a 12-year-old girl was raped in front of her family,” she added.

In the meantime, general humanitarian activity continues, with efforts to provide humanitarian services to IDPs in the localities surrounding Bunia. Ms. Jiang said that the Uruguayan battalion, numbering some 720 troops and acting under a peacekeeping mandate, has provided humanitarian help, working closely with humanitarian actors, as well as protected the lives of thousands of IDPs on the UN premises.