Dialogue or no dialogue before the 2023 elections: the opinion of a mediator based in Ituri
Less than six months before the elections in DR Congo, the Secular Coordination Committee and the Nobel Peace Prize winner Denis Mukwege propose to the living forces of the Nation to organize a consultation to respond to the current political climate. With this in mind, the Women’s Desk of Actualité.cd contacted Pétronille Vaweka, a mediator based in Ituri, to gather her opinion.
According to Pétronille Vaweka, the holding of a dialogue before the elections is conditioned by peace and security in the country. She says the current priority is to restore peace and security in DR Congo, particularly in the eastern region. She stresses that the country needs peace to develop on all fronts.
The tense security environment and growing political instability ahead of the elections make a peaceful transition difficult. This is why the Lay Coordination Committee and Denis Mukwege are calling for urgent consultation between the living forces of the nation in order to respond to the serious violations of human rights observed.
However, faced with this call, Joseph Kabila’s Common Front for the Congo completely distanced itself from the electoral process, while Martin Fayulu and his political party EciDé withdrew their candidacy for the national deputy.
Pétronille Vaweka is concerned about the energy deployed by politicians in their disputes rather than in resolving the security and social problems that affect the population. She affirms that women and children are the main victims of armed conflicts and highlights the disastrous consequences of this situation on Congolese youth. Young adolescent girls find themselves pregnant, many children do not go to school and grow up in camps for the displaced.
For Pétronille Vaweka, a political dialogue focused solely on political interests will not respond to the suffering endured by the Congolese population.
In conclusion, it is important to take into account the call for consultation launched by the Lay Coordination Committee and Denis Mukwege. However, priority must be given to restoring peace and security in the DR Congo in order to create an environment conducive to free and fair elections. Political dialogue can only be effective if it is genuinely focused on solving the country’s problems and if political actors put aside their personal interests to focus on the well-being of the Congolese population