DRC: Sultan Makenga’s New Sanctions, a step in the Right Direction, but where are the big fish?

The Untold Stories: Sultan Makenga's New Sanctions, a step in the Right Direction, but where are the big fish?

November 15, 2012 By Rwema IT Webmaster Leave a Comment

The Rwandan rebel proxy in Congo, Sultan Makenga is under sanctions by the US government for his notorious activities against the Congolese people. The US government has imposed sanctions against the leader of the M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo because he is accused of using child soldiers in the current conflict in DR Congo. The move follows the UN's decision on Monday to add Col Makenga to its sanctions list.

The US sanctions follows a UN panel of experts which said that Rwanda is not only supplying M23 with weapons and other support but also directly involved in the conflict in the DR. Whereas the UN Expert report has established all the facts on the ground, the Rwandan government has continued to deny the allegations as baseless and unfounded.
The Congolese government has welcomed the new sanctions and called it a step in the right direction, however, the Congolese government says that, the big fish are not Sultan Makenga, but those who support them militarily and in logistics. Therefore the DR Congo government said that, more is needed to be done to stop the rebellion in the east of the country, which borders Rwanda and Uganda by telling the Rwanda government that the business will not be as usual if you continue arming the rebels of M23.
The militants operating under the command of Sultan Makenga have conducted rapes throughout Rutshuru territory against women and children "It's a good start but it's totally inadequate," government spokesman Lambert Mende told the AFP news agency.

"Sultan did not invent this pseudo-mutiny in the east, [but remains] an instrument behind much wrongdoing," he said.
The M23 movement, also known as the Congolese Revolutionary Army, has been fighting the Congolese government since April following an army rebellion. The war in the DRC has since then cost many lives and nearly half a million people have been displaced by fighting between the rebels and the army.
The conflict has prompted Uganda to close its Border with Congo
According to Adam J Szubin the director of the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, the M23 rebel chief has caused misery to children and women
"Sultani Makenga is responsible for extensive atrocities against the population in the DRC, including the recruitment of child soldiers, and campaigns of violence against civilians,"

Under the UN sanctions, Col Makenga will be subject to a travel ban and freezing of his assets, however, with limited economic interests in the US and other European countries who are allies to the US, the impact of the sanctions might not be significant but rather symbolic to Sultan Makemga and his backers.
"Sultani Makenga has committed and is responsible for serious violations of international law involving the targeting of women and children in situations of armed conflict, including killing and maiming, sexual violence, abduction, and forced displacement," a statement from the UN sanctions committee on DR Congo said.
"According to testimonies and reports, the militants operating under the command of Sultan Makenga have conducted rapes throughout Rutshuru territory against women and children, some of whom have been as young as eight years old, as part of a policy to consolidate control."

Interestingly with all the facts and evidence gathered by UN, Rwanda has continued denying the allegations in a leaked report by a UN panel of experts that M23 leaders received "direct military orders" from Rwanda's defence Minister Gen James Kabarebe and his Chief of Staff Charles Kayonga.

Although Kigali government continues to deny that is indirectly and directly supporting M23,it is believed by many political commentators that Kigali government is backing armed groups in the east of DR Congo as a way to fight FDLR rebels who Rwanda accuse of being responsible for the 1994 genocide.

Basically Kagame has been accused of using militias as proxies in an on-going battle for the region, which is rich in minerals for his economic interests to enrich himself and his close military confidants who have invested in many business empires within and outside the country. It is not clear whether the new sanctions will mean anything to Kagame, but what is clear though, is that the regime in Kigali is riding on the rough road.
The same leaked UN report has also infuriated Kampala after accusing it of arming the Congolese rebels.
It has threatened to withdraw Ugandan forces from UN-backed international missions as a consequence.
On Tuesday, Uganda closed the Bunagana border crossing into DR Congo.
"The Congolese were complaining that M23 were taxing lorries and goods going through, so at the request of the government of Congo we have closed the border," AFP quotes Ugandan army spokesman Felix Kulayigye as saying.

Jacqueline Umurungi
Brussels.

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