A temporary base of MONUSCO peacekeepers has been established at Kamandi Gite on the coast of Lake Edward, in Lubero territory, in North Kivu.
The announcement was made on the 13th of July in North Kivu by Alain Muongo, from the MONUSCO civil affairs section in Lubero during a meeting between a MONUSCO delegation, humanitarian agency representatives, and the Civil Society representatives.
The temporary based is made up of a unit of the Indian contingent coming form Kanyabyanga in the South of the Luberao territory.
Alain Muongo, from the MONUSCO civil affairs section in Lubero said, “The mission of the base is to assess the security situation in this region plagued by the activism of the armed groups”
“It will notably carry out a certain number of activities in collaboration with the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC), within the framework of the “protection of civilians”. He said.
The presence of peacekeepers in the Kamandi region is welcomed by local civil society. Its president, Sami Sakumi, asked this team of peacekeepers to stay there as long as possible, particularly to facilitate the disarmament of children associated with armed groups.
“We congratulated the arrival of MONUSCO here in Kamandi, because their presence will also facilitate us in bringing back the children associated with the armed groups, who leave the bush to join the community.
“We have asked MONUSCO to help us in this sensitization campaign to get these young people from bushes so that they can come back to join civilian life because they have the DDR mission”, says Mr Sakumi.
He added that the entire population of Kamandi believes that MONUSCO’s presence can also bring peace and stability to the region.
“We have suffered a lot. We are fed up with the harassment committed by the Mai-Mai around us, and the presence of MONUSCO still relieves us a little because we believe that MONUSCO can no longer return without there being peace here at home. »He clarified.
The Administrator of the territory, Colonel Donat Ndonda Mandonga, also welcomes the arrival of peacekeepers in the area.
He believes that the UN soldiers also provide logistical support to the Armed Forces of the DRC (FADRC) to enable them to better fight the enemy.
