Africa press review

In the spotlight: Tshisekedi and Kagame face to face

Audio 03:57

Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame are meeting this Wednesday, July 6 in Luanda.

© AP/Jerome Delay / RFI

By: Frédéric Couteau Follow

4 mins

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 The crisis between the DRC and Rwanda will be on the table this Wednesday in Luanda, during the meeting between the Congolese Félix Tshisekedi and the Rwandan Paul Kagame

 ”, points out the Congolese information site

Cas-Infos

.

“ 

The two presidents will be alongside the Angolan Joao Lourenço, who has been appointed mediator by the African Union to make peace in this conflict born of the resurgence of the M23 which currently occupies certain areas of the DRC.

For months,

Cas-Infos recalls,

Kinshasa has accused Kigali of supporting the rebel group M23. 

»

And on the occasion of this meeting, the news site believes, “ 

the Congolese delegation intends to obtain from Rwanda the fact that it no longer supports the M23, qualified as a terrorist organization.

"With the evidence in the possession of the Congolese government, Kigali will be forced to tell the truth and abandon its hypocrisy if it really wants the region to be at peace",

indicates a source in the presidency who insists on the fact that

"the delegation Congolese is very determined to put an end to the vagueness surrounding Rwanda's support for M23, but also to put an end to the actions of the group which occupies Bunagana and other areas of the East". 

A regional force from the beginning of August?

For its part,

Jeune Afrique

 notes that “ 

Kinshasa has been struggling for several weeks to obtain a condemnation of Rwanda by the international community.

But only the US Embassy in the DRC and the US Senate Foreign Affairs Committee have so far directly implicated Kigali.

In parallel, the DRC is active for the establishment of a regional force,

still believes to know

 Jeune Afrique, intended to fight armed groups in eastern Congo.

At the last summit of Heads of State of East African countries, which was held on June 20 in Nairobi, the latter called for its rapid establishment.

But Félix Tshisekedi objected to Rwanda being part of it.

Still, the objective would be to make this force operational by the beginning of August

 ”.

Turn the page ?

So, notes

Le Pays

 au Burkina Faso, " 

beyond the hugs and handshakes that the two leaders will not fail to exchange, we hope that they will be able to tell each other the truth, in a clear desire to turn the page. .

And above all that they will be able to reach a compromise in order to find a solution to the problem of troublemakers on both sides of the border.

Any alternative other than a politico-diplomatic solution aimed at tuning the violins at the top could be fraught with dangers for the entire Great Lakes region.

And no one has any interest in it

 ”.

Denis Mukwege, future president of the DRC?

And then still about the DRC, note the emergence in Congolese political life of Denis Mukwege.

He is undoubtedly the most famous and respected Congolese on the planet.

Does gynecologist Denis Mukwege, Nobel Peace Prize 2018 have political and even presidential ambitions?

Perhaps, according to the specialized information site on the DRC,

Afrikarabia

.

Afrikarabia which points out that " 

less than 18 months before the elections in the country and in a tense political context, the idea of ​​a possible candidacy of Denis Mukwege is in the air: a collective of intellectuals has just challenged the Nobel Peace Prize for it to be the last resort for the next presidential election

 ".

And Afrikarabia to wonder: “ 

the question now is whether Denis Mukwege wants to and if he is ready to embark on the Congolese political backwater and take a beating?

The appeal of the intellectuals has not yet received a response from the principal concerned.

Often, when asked about a possible candidacy, the doctor felt that he was more useful in his Panzi hospital treating his patients than in the gilded salons of power.

But it is true that the situation in Congo has not improved since Felix Tshisekedi came to power.

The sounds of boots and the waves of displaced people fleeing the war in the East bring back very bad memories for the doctor.

Could this context make him change his mind?

 »

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  • Newspaper

  • ground floor

  • Rwanda

  • M23

  • Joao Lourenco

  • Felix Tshisekedi

  • Paul Kagame