Power98.7: Power Business
Monday, 18 March 2019
Interview analysing the rising tensions after Rwanda prohibited Ugandan trucks from entering its territory and its citizens from cross the Katuna border which is the busiest port between the countries. The discussion evaluates the source of the conflict in the Great Lakes region, the historical background behind the conflicts, and the current context of the proxy war taking place in the North Kivu, South Kivu and Beni provinces in the DRC. The interview analyses the weak role played by regional bodies like the International Conference of the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), the East African Community (EAC) and SADC in resolving the conflict. The discussion also unpacks the complexity of conflict caused by existence of multiple rebel groups like the Rwanda National Congress (RNC), the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), the DRC March 23 Movement (M23), the Burundi RED-Tabara, and Ugandan Allied Democratic Forces (ADF); and the inability of the the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FADRC) and the United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) taking control due to lack of coordination and reported collusion between the FADRC with some of the rebel groups. The discussion also analyses the role played by President Paul Kagame’s support of the M23 as a proxy against FDLR which is exiled to forests in North and South Kivu, which has lead to a deadlock in negotiations on how to deal with the conflict between the DRC and Rwanda; and the complexity added by Uganda’s purported support of the RNC as a proxy against the ADF which is exiled to forests in Beni province.
