Less Rumble in the Jungle

Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon chose to take his first trip in office to the Democratic Republic of Congo. After his visit to the war-torn country, he commented that the past year had seen “remarkable progress.” The reason for hope in the DRC comes after the July 2006 national elections. Joseph Kabila, son of the former president of Congo who was assassinated in 2001, won the presidency. Widespread fears arose that his rival, Jean-Pierre Bemba would contest the results of the election and mobilize his personal militias. However, Mr. Bemba has acknowledged his defeat. President Kabila is now faced with the challenge of balancing the political situation by allocating power to Mr. Bemba as well as other militia leaders and warlords. On January 24th an announcement was made that in order for every faction to get its share of representation, the cabinet would have 59 ministers and vice-ministers. This number alone illustrates the huge obstacles in governing the country.
One of the main reasons Mr. Ban chose the visit the DRC was because of the UN’s peacekeeping force in the country. The MONUC is the largest UN deployment in the world with more than 16,500 soldiers. However, the Economist reported that the MONUC is still, “undermanned, underarmed, and without the intelligence and logistical support it would need to protect the civilians properly.” The UN mandate will most likely be renewed next month although there is little chance it will be given new troops because of the dangers around the mission and the lack of resources available.
After years of conflict, most Congolese have modest expectations. Mr. Kabila’s government has a long complicated road ahead that includes maintaining and observing the rule of law, running a disciplined army, and restoring infrastructure throughout the country.