There is undoubtedly a need for a political solution to the ongoing crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which recently reached new depths with the fall of Goma. Yet viable solutions to intricate, multilayered conflict dynamics are difficult to reach when one party—in this case, the Congolese government—is brought to its knees following humiliating military defeats. The probability of a sustainable compromise that will reduce violence in the Kivus is difficult to envisage in the face of an insurgency led by skilled military entrepreneurs who have crucial military and diplomatic backing from neighboring countries. Certainly, the M23 has advanced some legitimate claims that are shared by both the Tutsi minority they claim to represent and wider layers of the population tired of the Kabila government’s inept governance. However, it is unlikely that its leaders, given their current military advantage, will accept any deal which does not reward their ambitions. In sum, the rebel takeover of Goma has decreased the possibility to break with a vicious cycle in which insurgent violence is time and again politically rewarded.
The responsibility of the "international community" in relation to the current events is multifaceted. It is not the least reflected in the inconsistent policies towards Rwanda, which have allowed the M23 to build up its military capacities unhindered. But in the context of the current bashing of the Congolese army (FARDC), it is important to point out that the "international community" also bears a responsibility for the failures of this military. The battle for North Kivu’s capital Goma on September 20, 2012 was not only a historic event in itself; it was also a test case for the effectiveness of donor policies vis-à-vis the DRC’s security sector, and stabilization more broadly. While the M23’s taking of the town was certainly a defeat for the FARDC, it has also shown the bankruptcy of donors’ military reform policies and the military cooperation between the FARDC and the UN peacekeeping mission in the DRC, MONUSCO.
Read the full article in the Global Observatory.