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President Yoweri Museveni

KAMPALA. – Uganda is making frantic efforts to resuscitate the peace negotiations between the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo and the defeated M23 rebels, a senior government official said yesterday. Okello Oryem, minister of state for international affairs, told reporters that Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and his DR Congo counterpart Joseph Kabila have been in talks since the warring parties failed to sign the final peace agreement on November 11.

“The government of Uganda is still determined that this process is brought to fruition that the parties sign the agreement. President Museveni has talked to Kabila several times since the 11th on this matter. Museveni is also in touch with Malawian President Joyce Banda and South African President Jacob Zuma,” Oryem said.

Banda is the chairperson of the Southern African Development Community, a regional body where DR Congo is a member.

Oryem said while Uganda as a mediator is interested in the signing of a peace agreement, it is up to the Congolese to settle their own problems. Uganda negotiated a peace agreement between the Congolese government and the defeated M23 rebels, but the government sided failed to sign the final peace agreement arguing that they need the final text they had initialed earlier to be reviewed.

Oryem said M23 rebel commanders who had fled to Uganda would only be handed over to the UN system after the peace agreement is signed.
Crispus Kiyonga, the mediator of the talks and Uganda’s minister of defence, yesterday in a closed door meeting briefed diplomats about who was responsible for the failed signing of the peace agreement.

The signing of the peace agreement was seen as a major factor in ending fighting in eastern DR Congo. More than 800,000 local people have been rendered homeless in the past two years because of the conflict. – Xinhua.