The United Nations top envoy to the Democratic Republic of the Congo told the Security Council on Thursday that there has been a “sea-change” in the eastern part of the country since mid-January when rebel groups declared an end to hostilities. The rebel groups, with the active involvement of the Rwandan and DRC governments, decided to integrate into the Congolese army and while this is a welcome development, it has “also brought new challenges, which have to be carefully managed,” said Alan Doss, the special representative of the secretary general to the DRC, in a briefing to the council. The main challenge is integrating the former rebels into the national army and this has been hampered by a lack of money, food and ammunition, Doss said. On a positive note, he said that 1,100 children have been separated from armed groups. The United Nations Children's Fund estimate that are some 30,000 child soldiers in the DRC. In response to increased fighting late last year, the Security Council authorized an additional 3,000 peacekeeping troops to bolster the U.N.'s Mission in Congo, which goes by its French acronym MONUC. The troops have yet to arrive and “regrettably ... other critically important capacities are not yet in sight” either, Doss said, adding that about 18 helicopters that were mandated along with the additional troops are also yet to arrive. “Without the additional 18 helicopters required for rapid deployment and reaction, MONUC's capacity to respond rapidly to emerging threats and to protect civilian populations will be curtailed,” he added. The force's ability to support the Congolese national army, as required by its mandate, would also be “seriously constrained,” Doss said. The U.N. Mission in Congo was established in 1999 to facilitate the Lusaka Accord, which was meant to end a civil war between forces loyal to Congo President Laurent Kabila, who was backed by Angola, Namibia and Zimbabwe, and forces loyal to rebel leader Laurent Nkunda, who was supported by Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda.
