By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, August 27 -- Kicking off three days of Congo and Rwanda talks at the UN, the Security Council heard Monday from Under Secretary General Valerie Amos. Afterward a Council member told Inner City Press that Amos said that the M23 group is allowing humanitarian aid into the areas they control.
A Permanent Representative quoted Council president Gerard Araud, who did not do a stakeout after the consultations, that M23 "has won" territory, and that now a political process must be put in place.
Previously, Araud told Inner City Press that there are doubts about the international neutral force proposed by Great Lake countries.
Both sources said that the UN Mission MONUSCO flying Congolese officials to meet with Mai Mai militia, for a meeting the Mai Mai leader said was about recruiting his group to fight the M23, did not come up in Monday's Security Council meeting.
Perhaps that was because it was a briefing by Amos' OCHA, and not the Department of Peacekeeping Operations of Herve Ladsous, who not only won't answer any Inner City Press questions but hasn't been seen at the UN during this time of Syria, Sudan and Cote d'Ivoire. There appears to be no oversight, and no accountability.
On the agenda this week are back to back presentations byRwanda's foreign minister Louise Mushikiwabo and the coordinators of the DRC Sanctions Group of Experts, Steve Hege, whose 2009 writings about the FDLR have come into question. Expect sparks to fly -- watch this site.
