DRC rebels reject local talks

2008-12-02 23:10

Goma - A rebel group in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo said on Tuesday it would not negotiate with a regional governor unless he was acting on behalf of the Kinshasa government.

"The government is the only one entitled to negotiate with the CNDP," referring to rebel chief Laurent Nkunda's National Congress for the Defence of the Peopl, said the movement's spokesperson Bertrand Bisimwa.

The governor of Nord-Kivu province, Julien Paluku, said on Monday he was ready for direct talks with Nkunda, a renegade Tutsi general whose forces are pitted against government troops in the troubled eastern region.

Officials in Kinshasa earlier gave the proposal a cautious welcome but described it as a local, not government, initiative.

"Despite the goodwill of Paluku, it seems that his initiative has not received the backing of Kinshasa," said Bisimwa.

"Negotiations cannot be held with someone who is not appointed by the government," he added.

The rebels have said they want direct negotiations with the government of President Joseph Kabila, but Kinshasa has resisted their demand.

Bisimwa accused the government of using the governor to "gain time" to try to force the CNDP to rejoin all-party negotiations.

The Amani Programme, launched with the help of the UN mission in DR Congo, known as MONUC, is the peace initiative intended to include all the armed factions in both Nord-Kivu and Sud-Kivu provinces.

Nkunda's forces have pushed back government troops in Nord-Kivu since fighting resumed in August and have also clashed with pro-government Mai-Mai militia and Rwanda Hutu rebels.

Kinshasa has made it clear it is only willing to deal with the CNDP in the context of talks with all the armed groups in the region.

- AFP