Practical plans to get the Southern African Development Community’s (Sadc) regional force, including more than 800 South Africans, to safety in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) remain elusive.
The worsening conflict is making it difficult to repatriate the bodies of 14 soldiers killed in battle against M23 rebels, and the question remains who will negotiate with the rebel movement to release the troops.
According to sources in the DRC, soldiers from the Rwandan Defence Force are in control of the airport and the airspace is closed to air traffic.
The South Africans at the airport are allowed to hold on to their weapons but have been warned to use them only against looters, who have stripped the airport facilities of everything useful.
Soldiers and families have been asking in vain when their loved ones will return and those who have lost family members cannot plan their funerals.
There is no access to Goma airport and the SA Air Force lacks any serviceable helicopters or transport aircraft to assist. Not one of the other Sadc countries has offered assistance to execute evacuations, except one of its poorest member states, Madagascar, which pledged to provide medical support to the wounded and displaced.
Analysts agree that the past week has not only been the lowest point in Sadc’s ability to intervene in regional conflicts, but also the most embarrassing in the recent history of regional military interventions.
The attacks on and killing of the UN’s Monusco peacekeepers, who aided Sadc’s DRC mission SAMIDRC in Goma, were halted only when the troops raised a white flag.
According to one retired army general: “M23 has reached its military and political objective by doing just that. SAMIDRC and Monusco were supposed to prevent that but they were failed by the military and regional planners who expected the soldiers to achieve miracles without the necessary equipment and air support.
“The regional force therefore has no reason to remain in the DRC. Let Sadc, the DRC government and Rwanda as the de facto supporter of M23 sort out the issue, which was a political one in the first place.
“Our troops under impossible conditions did what they could with what they have. Bring them home for urgent rest and debriefing. If needed, replace them in agreement with the warring parties, with fresh legs, a properly constituted and mandated plan and a fixed time frame when to withdraw.”
SA soldiers are confined to bases with no access to the internet and only limited airtime on M23-provided satellite phones, which are monitored.
They are at the mercy of the rebel movement.
Military analysts said negotiations with the M23 may eventually secure the safe return of SA soldiers, but billions of rand in equipment in the DRC would have to be abandoned for rebels and looters to pilfer.
The SA National Defence Force will not only have to face the consequences of losing fighting soldiers of its already depleted forces, but also the loss of its main battle equipment. It will take decades to rebuild its military stature and restore its reputation in Africa, according to analysts.
Rwanda, which is under increasing pressure from its largest foreign aid donors over the DRC conflict, has escalated accusations against the joint peacekeeping mission and the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR). It alleges their objectives go beyond defeating the M23 rebels to include attacking Rwanda.
The latest accusation, outlined in a statement by Rwanda’s foreign affairs ministry on Sunday, is likely to escalate tensions in Goma where 770 people have reportedly been killed.
Diplomatic fallout
The SAMIDRC comprises military contingents from Malawi, SA and Tanzania. The surge in fighting and the deaths of the 14 soldiers have led to a diplomatic fallout between SA and Rwanda, straining relations between the two countries even further. President Cyril Ramaphosa has previously emphasised that “SA’s military presence in the eastern DRC is not a declaration of war against any country or state”.
In a statement after the Sadc extraordinary meeting in Harare, Zimbabwe, on Friday focused on the surge in hostilities, Rwanda said it had received new information on the situation in Goma, which includes “documentary evidence of attack preparations, planned together with the foreign forces fighting in eastern DRC, including the FDLR, indicate that combat objectives were not limited to defeating M23, but also attacking Rwanda”.
The allegations have not been corroborated by other countries or regional organisations.
The M23 rebels in eastern DRC are backed by 4,000 troops from neighbouring Rwanda, according to UN experts. Though Rwanda has denied supporting the rebel group, government spokesperson Yolande Makolo conceded in an interview with Radio 702 last week the M23 rebels and Rwanda have commonalities and “understand what they are fighting for”.
The DRC conflict has taken a devastating toll and accusations are being made.
UN officials and countries including the US claim Rwanda is stoking the conflict by sending thousands of troops and heavy artillery into the eastern DRC to support the rebel group. And international pressure is growing for it to withdraw its troops and to halt its support of M23.
The UN, France, Germany and the UK have noted their disapproval of the Rwanda’s actions and Belgium has asked the EU to reconsider its relations with Rwanda.
UK foreign secretary David Lammy, meanwhile, has warned that Rwanda risks losing $1bn of global aid for its “attack your neighbour”.
Sadc heads of state in Harare accused Rwanda of direct involvement in the conflict as members of the Rwandan Defence Force had allegedly attacked SAMIDRC members and “the civilian population in various areas of North Kivu”.
The summit resolved to dispatch defence ministers, chiefs of defence and troop of countries to ensure soldiers are safe in the DRC. The delegations also will be responsible for the repatriation of the deceased soldiers from SA, Malawi and Tanzania.
A joint summit with the East African Community has been planned to discuss the security situation in the DRC.
University of Johannesburg international law expert Hennie Strydom has said SA operates as part of a multinational force, which makes it difficult to determine its successes.
“SA’s role and strategic objectives are determined by the mandate given to the multinational force. Main security concerns are a potential spillover of the conflict and a humanitarian crisis linked to large numbers of refugees seeking refuge in other countries,” Strydom said.
“The DRC conflict poses a serious threat to peace and security in the Great Lakes region and beyond.”
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