Hungry for Truth, Peace and Justice

Great Lakes: Advocacy for the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region

By European Network for Central Africa (EURAC)
Relief Web Documents
March 31, 2009

The International Conference on the Great Lakes Region: A regional approach on security, stability and development Memorandum for the Czech Presidency of the EU
Brussels, 31 March 2009 - EurAc, the network of European NGOs for Central Africa, has always taken the position that any sustainable solution to the problems of Rwanda, Burundi or the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) must be based on a regional approach. The states in the sub-region are in a very complex regional process with divisions and conflicts at national level taking on a cross-border dimension. These three countries each have a complex internal situation and a violent recent past where differences have become polarised and interconnected with those of neighbouring countries. At the end of the Cold War this situation degenerated into an avalanche of killing and destruction in the 1990s, resulting in large scale organised violence.

The idea of an International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) was born in the mid-1990s as a result of the effects of the Rwanda genocide on the wider region. The Conference was eventually established in 2003 by the UN in collaboration with the African Union (AU) with the aim of formulating a regional approach to resolve the conflicts and instability in each of the countries. The Conference includes eleven member states , of which eight have experienced or are still involved in internal armed conflicts with international repercussions. At the present time there are processes in place to consolidate peace in all these countries.

The objective of the ICGLRL is to « initiate a process within which the leaders of the countries of the Great Lakes region will try to come to a common agreement on a number of principles – good neighbourly relations, stability, peace, development etc. – and will specify and implement a number of action programmes with a view to ending the cycle of conflict and leading the region towards lasting peace, stability, security, democracy and development. »?

Since its creation, the ICGLRL, bringing together the leaders of eleven countries who support the same principles, has brought about several key developments, notably the signature of the Declaration of Dar-es-Salaam (2004) and the Nairobi Pact (2006).

Before the conferences

The ICGLR went through a long preparation period, with complex consultation processes in which the different participating bodies (especially youth, women and civil society groups) drew up their terms of reference as a basis for discussion at the two heads of state meetings. Several EurAc member associations, through their partners in the region, supported this process. However, bureaucracy and politicization caused discouraging delay and prevented meaningful participation by civil society.

Declaration of Dar-es-Salaam

In November 2004 the Summit of Heads of State in Tanzania lead to the signature of the declaration of Dar-es-Salaam. This was the first official result of the ICGLR process. In this declaration the heads of state confirmed their political will to resolve the conflicts in the Great Lakes region. They also laid down four priority lines of action: (1) peace and security, (2) democracy and good governance, (3) economic development and regional integration and (4) humanitarian and social matters. The Declaration also provided for the creation of a special fund for reconstruction and development in the Great Lakes region.

Dar-es-Salaam showed a strong commitment to peace in the region. Unfortunately the events that followed illustrated the gap between official commitments and action on the ground, notably Rwanda's involvement in fighting in Kanyabayonga less than a month later, and its support to the Congrès National pour la defense du People (CNDP) faction, both in the DRC, as described in the final report of the UN group of experts on the Congo.

Nairobi Pact

The Declaration of Dar-es-Salaam established the framework for the ICGLR's second big event, the Summit of Heads of State in Nairobi (Kenya) where a Pact on security, stability and development in the Great Lakes region was signed on 15 December 2006. The Pact came into effect on 21 June 2008, after its ratification by 8 out of the 11 member states' parliaments, and embodies the desire of the heads of state to solve the region's problems. The objectives of the Pact are: (1) carrying out the proposals in the Declaration of Dar-es-Salaam, the agreements, the action programmes, the regional follow-up mechanism and the special fund for reconstruction and development and (2) creation of conditions of security, stability and sustainable development between the member states. The Pact also includes an action plan adopted on 16 December 2006 by the 11 heads of state.

The Nairobi Pact proposed a regional follow up mechanism for the ICGLR. This mechanism includes the Summit of Heads of State and of government, the Inter-ministerial Regional Committee, the Secretariat, and national mechanisms for coordination and cooperation. At the time of its creation, the CIRGL was chaired by the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General in the GLR and coordinated by a UN/AU joint secretariat based in Nairobi. Since the signing of the Nairobi Pact, the heads of state and government have taken turns to chair the Conference. The current chairman is President Kibaki of Kenya. The Summit of Heads of State meets every second year and oversees the implementation of the Pact.

The Inter-ministerial Regional Committee is the executive organ of the Conference and meets twice a year. It lays down strategies and control mechanisms for the implementation of the Pact. The Secretariat is the technical and coordination organ of the CIRGL. It began its work in March 2007 and officially opened in May 2007 in Bujumbura. It is directed by an Executive Secretary, the ambassador Liberata Mula Mula, whose mandate lasts for four years and is not renewable. The Secretariat is responsible for: (1) carrying out the decisions of the Summit and of the Inter-ministerial Regional Committee, (2) promoting the Pact and carrying out the programmes of action, projects, agreements and activities, and (3) coordinating the implementation of Conference's activities.

Each member state has a national coordination mechanism for implementing the Pact with the regional economic communities and regional institutions, called the Inter-ministerial Regional Committee.

Observers at the CIRGL are neighbouring countries, African regional and international organisations and technical and financial partners. The Group of Friends of the GLR (countries and international organisations) partly funds the Conference. Member states are expected to make annual contributions.

The Pact contains many protocols, action programmes and projects. It puts special emphasis on non-aggression and mutual defence in the GLR (Protocol 5). According to this protocol, the member states commit themselves to maintain peace and security and in particular: (1) not to resort to force to resolve their differences, (2) not to support (directly or indirectly) armed groups based in the territory of another state nor to allow on their territory armed groups engaged in armed conflicts against the government of another state and (3) to cooperate to disarm and break up existing rebel groups. Illegal exploitation of natural resources is recognised as a violation of sovereignty and a serious cause of conflict and insecurity in the region. Under Protocol 9, member states commit to establish regional regulations and mechanisms to prevent such exploitation.

Following the recommendations of the Nairobi summit, a third Summit of Heads of State should have taken place in Kinshasa in December 2008 but in view of the security crisis in North Kivu province the meeting was postponed.

Another big public show or the expression of a genuine desire to cooperate?

EurAc has followed the process with great interest. Clearly the weak participation of civil society, the bureaucracy and politicization have resulted in a distancing from the reality on the ground. Poor coordination with other regional processes carries the risk of creating parallel structures. Nevertheless, EurAc has always found that, as an inclusive framework, the CIRGL could make a difference, not only through good intentions expressed in grand declarations but above all through the different instruments it contains such as the special fund for reconstruction and development and the various Protocols.

In order for the ICGLR not to remain merely a big show without any impact on the ground, EurAc encourages the states of the region to put the fine words spoken in Dar-es-Salaam and Nairobi into action and to implement the wishes, ambitions and objectives which were formulated there. This could be done for example by normalising economic relations between the DRC, Rwanda and Uganda, by agreeing on and implementing measures to regulate cross border movement of persons and goods (including both arms and minerals) and by applying the Protocol on non-aggression and mutual defence. Such measures will serve to put an end to impunity.

Recommendations

EurAc considers the establishment of the ICGLR to be an important process. It may be imperfect but there is nothing else like it, as it involves heads of state, governments, national parliaments and local civil society. This initiative must serve as a blueprint for a regional approach to the problems of the different countries of Central Africa.

It is important for the international community to support the CIRGL and in particular the implementation of the Nairobi Pact. EurAc asks the European Union and its member states to:

- Respect and strengthen the ICGLR in its role, make it better known and help build a stronger leadership that is better able to resolve conflicts. In the past, the ICGLR has been to an extent ignored by "peace builders" at the international level. We have seen for example the birth of a parallel ad hoc structure, set up by the United Nations to facilitate the work of UN Special Envoy Olusegun Obasanjo as mediator in the conflict in the east of the Congo because the ICGLR did not have the necessary human and material resources. A reinforcement of the ICGLR to facilitate the work of Obasanjo would have assigned this responsibility to the region and made the approach more coherent;

- Contribute financially, diplomatically and with expertise to the immediate implementation of the « Protocol on non-aggression and mutual defence» and the « Protocol on illegal exploitation of natural resources», which we believe to be the priority tools for reestablishing sustainable peace in eastern Congo;

- Encourage the ICGLR to develop its « added value » and make it more complementary to other regional organisations. The Great Lakes region is at the heart of five major regional processes: continental, eastern, central, southern and that of the GLR itself. There is a multitude of inter-governmental regional organisations, of which most have similar objectives of economic integration and overlap geographically. In the economic sector the ICGLR should capitalise on initiatives that are already in place rather than investing heavily in its own projects. The ICGLR should also avoid that structures as the CEPGL become an instrument for stronger states of the region to exploit the natural resources of more fragile states.

- Raise awareness about the ICGLR and the Nairobi Pact at local level. A better connection between the Secretariat in Bujumbura, the various national committees, and the field could further strengthen this.

- Support initiatives to create a network of civil society in the 11 member countries so that it can play a key role in the implementation of the agreements. EurAc believes that civil society has a crucial role to play in promoting the ICGLR and making it more participatory.

- Contribute to the ICGLR's budget so that it has the means to fulfill its mandate. EurAc considers that any support for the organs or activities of the Conference should be channeled directly to the ICGLR itself now that it has its own facilities for financial management.

- Help make the ICGLR visible to the public by means of several key projects without allowing it to transform into a « super NGO ». Avoid any strategy based just on support of projects to the exclusion of its wider political goals.

For further details:

Kris Berwouts
Rue des Tanneurs, 165 B - 1000 Brussels, Belgium
Tel: +32 (0)2 213 04 000
@: kris.berwouts@eurac-network.org
www.eurac-network.org

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posted by Mamadou Kouyate @ 11:16 AM