Zaire’s government and the rebels who have captured a large part of the country have agreed to talk peace in Cape Town, reports Chris McGreal
PRESIDENT Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire has agreed to peace talks with the growing rebel army in the east after he secretly despatched a special envoy to seek South African mediation behind the back of his own government.
President Nelson Mandela said he hoped the negotiations – the first of the five-month civil war – will take place in Cape Town this week. The announcement came after a summit of African leaders in the city to discuss the Zaire crisis.
“Representatives of the contesting parties have made a request that they would like to meet in South Africa … to be able to discuss their problems,” he said.
Mandela said South Africa would send a plane to collect the Zairean rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, from the Rwandan capital, Kigali. It was not revealed who will be negotiating on behalf of the Zairean government but diplomatic sources say the ground for the talks was laid by the arrival of Mobutu’s special envoy in South Africa several days ago.
The envoy met Deputy President Thabo Mbeki to forward proposals for negotiations which were passed on to United States Vice- President Al Gore, who was visiting Cape Town. The two leaders contacted Kabila to encourage him to agree to talks.
Mandela said South Africa will play host to the negotiations but he will not become personally involved unless he is asked. Although South African officials say the agenda will be built around a plan for a ceasefire and elections put forward by Uganda, the rebels have previously insisted that talks centre on Mobutu’s resignation and the immediate formation of a new government.
While Mobutu’s envoy was in South Africa, the Zairean military stepped up pressure on the rebels with air raids against three towns in the east. But overall the government army has remained on the retreat despite launching what it promised would be a “devastating” counter-offensive last month.
The attack petered out in the face of stiff resistance by the rebels, who then continued their advances by seizing more towns and moving into the strategic, mineral-rich Shaba province. The rebels now control an area of eastern Zaire about 1 200km long.
Opposition parliamentarians, and even members of Mobutu’s own party shaken by the rebel successes, added to the growing pressure on the Zairean leader to negotiate.
The announcement of the talks came after days of intense diplomatic pressure on the Zaireans. On Tuesday, the United Nations Security Council rushed through a peace plan for Zaire while a delegation of African foreign ministers flew to Kinshasa. The next day Mandela hosted a snap summit of other African leaders in Cape Town to discuss the Zaire crisis.
A South African foreign ministry spokesman, Peter Swanepoel, described the promise of talks as the culmination of a series of initiatives by African nations to focus on negotiations rather than military intervention to contain the conflict.
“All of that is part of a more concerted African effort in trying to deal with the Great Lakes situation, not as an initiative on its own but parallel with other similar initiatives. There’s been a very definite increase in the focus on the region,” Swanepoel said.
Mobutu’s initiative apparently came without the knowledge of his own government. Earlier this week his Cabinet ruled out negotiations. Only hours before Mandela’s announcement, the foreign minister, Kamanda wa Kamanda, rejected the UN Security Council peace plan.
It called for an immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Zaire, including mercenaries. It also laid out plans for negotiations and elections.
“This is a timid advance. We sincerely regret that this resolution does not condemn the aggressors. If the foreign troops do not pull out, we consider that there is no cessation of hostilities,” Kamanda said.
Zaire claims that Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi have invaded its territory in support of the rebels. The three governments deny involvement despite evidence that their soldiers crossed into Zaire at the beginning of the civil war five months ago and continue to assist the rebels.
But Mobutu is also relying on foreign forces, notably Serb mercenaries led by a Belgian commander. The Zairean leader has also acquired Russian-made fighter jets and helicopter gunships which flew air strikes against three towns in rebel-held areas this week. At least 21 people were killed.
Kabila denounced the air raids as “terrorism” and threatened retaliation. “It is a criminal act by the decadent government in Kinshasa which, instead of attacking military targets, chose to bomb the civilian population,” he said.