MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the massacres in eastern Congo

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to its previous resolutions on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in particular that of 10 March 2016[1],

–  having regard to the Council conclusions of 23 May 2016 on the Democratic Republic of the Congo,

–  having regard to the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance,

–  having regard to the Cotonou Agreement,

–  having regard to the statement by the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (VP/HR) of 22 June 2016 on the massacres in eastern Congo,

–  having regard to Rule 123(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.  whereas the violence in eastern Congo has so far claimed 1 116 lives, between October 2014 and May 2016, while 1 470 other people have been abducted and 34 297 families forcibly displaced or dispersed;

B.  whereas the material damage includes 13 health centres burned down, 27 schools destroyed, forcibly abandoned or occupied by displaced people or military or armed groups, and several villages occupied by armed militiamen;

C.  whereas among the armed groups operating in eastern Congo, the Ugandan Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) movement is often accused of being responsible for the series of massacres affecting this area since 2014;

D.  whereas in 2013 the Congolese army and UN peacekeepers launched a first major operation against the ADF, but assumed a much less offensive role in 2015;

E.  whereas a recent report by the Congo Research Group said that soldiers in the DRC’s army had been participating in massacres of civilians in the country’s northeast since 2014, although it said it was unclear to what extent the military hierarchy was involved;

F.  whereas the author of this report, Jason Stearns, who was expelled from the DRC in April 2016, stated that ‘the ADF is not a foreign Islamist organisation, but a deeply rooted militia in local society, which has ties with local political and economic people and is well integrated in existing smuggling networks, in particular that of timber’;

G.  whereas the massacres in eastern Congo are the result of links between politics, ethnicities and exploitation of resources;

H.  whereas political tensions are high in the DRC, where President Kabila, in power since 2001, is required by the constitution to step down before the end of the year, but is accused of delaying the presidential election due in November 2016 in order to hold on to power;

I.  whereas the Congolese Government is cracking down on dissent through arrests and intimidation of opponents, such as Moïse Katumbi;

J.  whereas the Congolese opposition adopted a common declaration at a meeting in Genval, Belgium, on 9 June 2016, refusing an extension of President Kabila’s time in office;

1.  Denounces the ongoing killings of people in eastern Congo, and urges the Government of the DRC to ensure the safety of all its inhabitants and to prevent regular soldiers from participating in the trade and exploitation of local natural resources;

2.  Asks for an international investigation that can help identify the perpetrators, accomplices and instigators of the massacres, crimes against humanity and violations of human rights suffered by the populations in eastern Congo;

3.  Calls for a resumption of the joint operations between the FARDC (Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo) and MONUSCO (UN Stabilisation Mission in the DRC) to neutralise the armed groups in eastern Congo;

4.  Reiterates its call on the authorities of the DRC to expressly undertake to comply with the constitution and to ensure the timely holding of elections by the end of 2016, in full accordance with the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, and to guarantee an environment conducive to transparent, credible and inclusive elections;

5.  Calls on the VP/HR to intensify the dialogue with the DCR authorities under Article 8 of the Cotonou Agreement, with the objective of stopping the massacres in eastern Congo and obtaining definitive clarification concerning the electoral process;

6.  Calls for the EU to consider imposing targeted sanctions on those responsible for the massacres in eastern Congo and the violent crackdown on peaceful activists and the political opposition in the DRC, including travel bans and asset freezes, so as to help prevent further violence;

7.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the African Union, the President, Prime Minister and Parliament of the DRC, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the UN Human Rights Council and the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly.