Brussels, 05/01/2009 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has condemned the massacres committed in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) by Ugandan rebels from the Lords Resistance Army (LRA), which have already led to hundreds of deaths. In a press release published on Friday 2 January, Louis Michel, the European commissioner for development, declared that “the situation in the Haut Uele is still very worrying following the reprisals carried out by the LRA against civilians” and called on the LRA to “immediately cease any criminal acts against innocent civilians”.
Commissioner Michel pointed out that widespread violence in the North East of the DRC, “brutally illustrates that the tragedies affecting this country are not just concentrated in Northern Kivu”. He is concerned that action by the Ugandan rebel group represented a “real threat” to regional stability, including the Southern Sudan and the Central African Republic.
The European Commission explained that it is closely monitoring the situation and is calling on the LRA to sign the final pages of the Juba peace agreement and observe it in full. The Commission is encouraging ongoing initiatives to stop the LRA continuing its action and is calling on international humanitarian rules to be respected. (A.N./transl.rh)