The DRC’s largest church organizations met with the M23 rebels supported by Rwanda in order to stop the weeks-long fighting that has been occurring in the east of the country. All parties involved also have to work together in order to rebuild the city of Goma, which was recently seized by the rebels. It has served as a humanitarian sanctuary for the 6.5 million people displaced by the fighting. The Congo, specifically the east, has been a zone of chaos due to over 100 groups attempting to take over the mineral-rich area. Efforts from neighboring countries to create peace have largely failed. Despite a declared ceasefire, M23 rebels were still fighting Congolese forces as they tried to take towns close to the provincial capital Bukavu. The peace meetings have created mixed feelings amongst the displaced in Goma, with some being hopeful and others cynical.
The DRC’s eastern regions are filled with minerals, and have always been an attractive target for invasion. Peace talks have been going on for ages, and because of that I feel as though the talks will accomplish nothing. The fighting won’t stop until Congo’s leader meets with M23’s leader, and even then it will take a lot of compromise in order to drag the groups away from Congo’s minerals. While the churches remain firm in their stance that the solution to the conflict is not military, the fact is that it will require a lot of strong arm negotiation.
This fighting with M23 rebels has been happening for years. Countries have been vying for the DRC’s east, and that won’t stop until an incredibly strong power takes hold. Perhaps South Africa, or another strong regional power, but South Africa has its own problems to deal with right now(see above article). The DRC’s people are exhausted and no doubt they want an end to the fighting and the rebels out of their land, especially with Goma taken. Sub-Saharan Africa is currently a shatterbelt region, and for good reason. Many countries and groups are overlapping and conflicting, and it’ll take a strong power to rise above the rest in order to stop the conflict.