John Njoroge
07/11/12
The breakaway rebel militia, M23, have this afternoon said it will march on to Goma if the killing of innocent civilians does not stop with immediate effect.
“If people of a given tribe are being killed and yet the Monusco peacekeepers cannot protect them, M23 will take over Goma,” the M23 political coordinator Bishop Jean Marie Runiga said yesterday at press conference in Bunagana in the Democratic Republic of Congo. “We are capable of capturing even more ground,” Bishop Runiga added.
The group has also given Congolese President Joseph Kabila an ultimatum to respect the wishes of the Congolese people, uphold the M23 Goma agreement or face the wrath of the Congolese population.
This is the first time the M23 is putting forward the semblance of a political agenda and is seeking to show it has a political wing working on the sidelines. The group also said its fight with the Kinsasha administration is informed by the lack of proper accountability by the Congolese government, the abuse of human rights in the country and the oppression of minority groups.
“We are shocked that President Kabila convened a meeting of his parliamentarians and claimed the M23 agreement does not exist,” Bishop Runiga said, as other reports filtered in that Congolese government has ordered civilians in Goma to close shops.