MONUC LAUNCHES MINEMBWE PEACE EFFORT IN WAKE OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 000887

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/26/2017
TAGS: MOPS PHUM PREF PGOV CG
SUBJECT: MONUC LAUNCHES MINEMBWE PEACE EFFORT IN WAKE OF
RENEWED FIGHTING

REF: KINSHASA 855

Classified By: PolCouns DBrown, reasons 1.4 b/d


1. (C) Summary. MONUC officials have launched a new
initiative in South Kivu's High Plateau region following a
week of renewed fighting between the Congolese military
(FARDC) and armed ethnic Banyamulenge dissident forces.
Their efforts have not produced a ceasefire, though the level
of fighting has subsided. Both sides in the skirmishes have
included ethnic Banyamulenge, a Congolese Tutsi subgroup.
Details are sketchy, but government forces appear to have the
much smaller dissident contingent on the run. The fighting
has raised humanitarian concerns and old fears of
intercommunity tensions. In MONUC's view, the continued
fighting in the area is heavily influenced by Banyamulenge
clan politics. End summary.


2. (C) A senior-level MONUC delegation arrived in Minembwe
July 23 to reach a peaceful settlement to a week of renewed
fighting between a Banyamulenge-led insurgent group and
government forces in the High and Middle Plateaus of South
Kivu. The delegation, led by MONUC South Kivu Brigade
Commander General Qamar Bajwa and Acting Political Affairs
Director Christian Manahl, also included FARDC Regional
Military Commander for South Kivu General Sylvain Tshikwej.
The group has met with the FARDC's Deputy Regional Military
Commander General Patrick Masunzu, the officer in charge of
the recent offensive, to discuss the possibility of finding a
negotiated solution rather than continuing hostilities. The
group has also been in telephone contact with the dissidents,
led by Major Michel Rukunda and Captain Venant Bisogo, who
have reportedly said they refuse to surrender or to integrate
into the national military. The delegation's mission was
still ongoing in Minembwe as of July 25, though without any
apparent resolution.


3. (C) Fighting in Congo's South Kivu province between the
FARDC and the dissident soldiers of the combined Moramvia-47
group flared up again during the week of July 15 on the High
Plateau in the area north of Minembwe and the Middle Plateau
in the area outside Uvira, following sporadic action and the
buildup of government forces the week before. Fighting is
continuing fitfully on both fronts, with the more numerous
FARDC forces apparently having gained the upper hand.


4. (C) MONUC, citing Congolese military (FARDC) sources,
told us July 17 that ethnic Banyamulenge fighters under the
command of Capt. Venant Bisogo had initially been in action
against FARDC troops some 30km outside Uvira, while others
commanded by Maj. Michel Rukunda had taken part 25 km
northwest of Minembwe. MONUC military officials report an
FARDC platoon in the High Plateau north of Minembwe was
allegedly attacked first by the dissidents July 16. FARDC
troops subsequently encircled the dissidents, who tried to
escape to positions in the mountains and forested areas
further north. Smaller skirmishes between both sides
followed throughout the week, with attacks taking place as
recently as July 21, but there have been no reports of
fighting in the past few days. FARDC officials claimed to
have captured the town of Moramvia, the site of Rukunda's
former headquarters about 75 km south of Uvira. The FARDC
claimed it has suffered four casualties and numerous injured
in the fighting; casualties among the dissidents remain
unknown.


5. (C) MONUC told us July 17 the recent fighting followed
the decision of 59 dissidents to join the FARDC integration
process during an early July mission to the area by Masunzu,
a fellow Munyamulenge allied with President Joseph Kabila. A
MONUC official said the fighters surrendered with their
leaders to Masunzu, who personally escorted senior officers
to Bukavu July 14 as a guarantee of their security. The
leader of the breakaway group, Commander Mukalai, broadcast
an appeal on the state network RTNC and MONUC's Radio Okapi
to try to convince the remaining dissidents to surrender.


6. (C) Both MONUC officials and Moise Nyarugabo, an RCD
senator close to the dissidents, estimated the combined
numbers of the Bisogo-Rukunda group at no more than 250-300.
The FARDC troops opposing them are much more numerous. A
MONUC political officer said July 24 that on the High Plateau
these include ethnic Banymulenge elements of the 112th
(non-integrated) Brigade and a battalion of multi-ethnic
troops of the 12th Integrated Brigade, and on the Middle
Plateau a special battalion formed from other Banyamulenge of

KINSHASA 00000887 002 OF 002


the 112th and local ethnic Bafulero Mayi-Mayi fighters.
MONUC believes the government troops now have the remaining
dissidents on the run. FARDC authorities reported elements
of the dissident groups have relocated to mountainous areas
south of Moramvia.


7. (C) The scale of the humanitarian impact remains unclear,
although several thousand civilians are believed to have
fled, perhaps in advance of the fighting. Unconfirmed
reports indicate an undetermined number of combatants killed
or wounded on both sides, but no certain civilian casualties.
A MONUC political officer said July 24 they believe both
forces are likely living off the land. MONUC and Nyarugabo
told us several villages have been burned and looted. It is
not clear whether government or dissident troops, or both,
were responsible.


8. (C) MONUC told us July 24 that members of the
Banyamulenge community whom its officials have met have
expressed support for FARDC action against the dissidents,
whom they blame for actions that have raised fears of abuse
and reprisals by other ethnic groups. However, both MONUC
and Nyarugabo related reports that an undetermined number of
Banyamulenge cattle, the source of much of the community's
wealth, had been stolen or killed during the fighting.
Whether government or dissident forces are to blame is
unknown. MONUC expressed concern that, regardless of who may
be responsible, the Banyamulenge community could take a
massive economic hit that could turn any government military
victory into a political defeat.


9. (C) Comment. The most recent fighting has been building
for a long time. It follows unsuccessful negotiations marked
by the dissidents' switch from brassage to mixage as their
preferred method of military integration, and the appointment
of Masunzu as deputy regional commander last month. MONUC
has concluded that much of the underlying tensions can be
traced to Banyamulenge clan politics. According to that
analysis, the 59 dissidents who surrendered were members of a
single clan who decided to throw in their lot with pro-Kabila
forces after growing dissatisfied with the clans who led the
RCD and dominate the core group of dissidents; the fighting
followed attempts by two other clans to defect as well.
However, any military solution will be hollow if more is not
doneto address the core suspicion and mistrust that have
existed for decades between the Banyamulenge and other
communities. End comment.
MEECE