Social media has been awash with images of combatants of the Rwanda National Congress (RNC) who were either killed or captured by Congolese government troops. They have been operating in South Kivu and have formed a coalition under the name P5 together with Conseil national pour le renouveau et la démocratie (CNRD), Democratic Front for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) and several Mai Mai groups. The political head of CNRD is Paul Rusesabagina, an international conman who has managed to convince people that he saved scores of Tutsi in the movie Hotel Milles Collines. Recently, another perennial wannabe opposition leader, former Prime Minister Faustin Twagiramungu openly, rallied behind Rusesabagina. According to the latest UN Group of Experts report, CNRD imposes taxes in areas it controls after relocating from around Masisi area in North Kivu due to pressure from another armed group, Nduma Défense du Congo-Rénové (NDC-R). The report says the armed group moved along with a large number of civilians who were used as porters but also indirectly serve as human shields. The UN report is very timely as it corroborates the links between RNC, Uganda and FDLR after it interviewed senior FDLR officers who were arrested by Congolese authorities sneaking back into DRC. They were just returning from Uganda for an arranged meeting with RNC and a senior Ugandan minister. But as has been the case in the past, such reports have always been published but somehow they always manage to gather dust without any action. The report was not compiled by Rwanda, so it vindicates its many statements on the security situation in the region. Action is needed now because the people of Congo deserve to start on a clean slate and that begins by sweeping out unwanted forces.
