NYARUGENGE - The situation in Eastern DRC featured prominently yesterday during a meeting between President Paul Kagame and Mary Robinson, the President of Oxfam International.

At the e meeting that took place at the State House in Kiyovu, it was noted that despite the positive impact of the recently completed joint operations with DRC against the FDLR, the problem of the armed Genocidaires had not been completely resolved.

A statement from the Office of the President says, however, President Kagame pointed out that the most important outcomes included the new bilateral cooperation between the governments of Rwanda and DRC.

Robinson, who is also a former President of Ireland, came to Rwanda after holding talks with the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Joseph Kabila.

Another achievement of the operation that was  noted by Kagame during the meeting was the support by the Congolese population to the joint operations, which creates a solid foundation for continued collaboration in different areas to achieve stability and development in the region.

Meanwhile, in a subsequent news conference, Robinson reported that she had successful meetings with the two leaders whom she said were eager to embark on an action plan to protect civilians, most of whom, she said, are women and children.

She expressed her concern for these civilians and called upon leaders of the Great Lakes Region to coordinate the peace process.

"The FDLR continue to threaten the peace and security of the civilians and I think there is an urgent need to bring back peace for the sake of these people, Oxfam is doing well in the camps but more needs to be done,” she told the press.

Having come from the Liberian capital Monrovia, where the Liberian Plan of Action under the Security Council resolution 1325 was launched, Robinson encouraged leaders to unite against Gender Based Violence.

"If countries in the great lakes adopted plans of Action involving participation of women at all levels, it would enable the voices of women to be heard. The women I met in Congo want to be agents of change in the conflict,” Robinson said.

The action plan was launched last weekend during the Womens’ Colloquium held in Liberia, a meeting that President Kagame attended.

The President also committed to continued support for the implementation of the Resolution, noting the importance of including women in the promotion of peace, since beyond being disproportionally affected by conflict, they are a valuable resource for leadership in the search for sustainable peace and stability.

Ends