DRC senators arrive for parliamentary diplomacy mission

Eight Congolese Senators led by the DR Congo Senate’s president Léon Kengo Wa Dondo arrived in Kigali yesterday afternoon for a three-day visit meant to promote Parliamentary diplomacy between the two countries’ parliaments.Travelling with Kengo, members of DR Congo Senatorial committee on foreign affairs, cooperation and security delegation, including senators Jean claude Mokeni Ataningamu, Amiral Kabamba Fataki, Ernest Lungu Kasongo Mukonzo, Léonard She Okitundu Lundula, Raymond Ramazan Baya, Jean-Robert Efoloko Empombi, and Patrice Ruhigwa Baguma.The Congolese politicians are accompanied by four staffers in their “friendship visit”.After arriving in Kigali, they visited the Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre, at Gisozi.A memo related to the visit signed by Sen. Édouard Mokolo wa Mpombo, the first Vice-President of the DR Congo Senate, states that despite earlier re-establishment of relations between Rwanda and DR Congo, the latter accuses her neighbour of supporting the M23 mutineersallegations contested by Rwanda.“In order to find a settlement to this conflicting situation between Rwanda and the DRC, it is appropriate that the two countries, at the Senate level, shall meet and exchange ideas on the causes of conflicts that continue to persist as well as help find lasting solutions,” reads part of the memo.The delegation will hold discussions with Senate president, Dr. Jean Damascène Ntawukuliryayo, and other senators.AU Peace FrameworkDuring her visit to Rwanda a week ago, UN Secretary General Special Envoy for Africa’s Great Lakes Region, , Mary Robinson, highlighted the importance of restoring trust among countries in the Great Lakes region to ensure long-term peace in the eastern DR Congo and the wider region. Robinson visited Kigali and Kinshasa as part of her regional tour to encourage implementation of the accord she called a “framework for hope,” which was signed by 11 countries in February to end decades of conflict and suffering in DRC and the wider region.The Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for DRC and the region signed in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on February 24, was endorsed by the DRC, Angola, Republic of Congo, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Central African Republic (CAR), Burundi, Rwanda, South Sudan and Zambia.

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DRC senators arrive for parliamentary diplomacy mission