Kinshasa, 15 January 2015 – “I express full solidarity with the Government and back its fight against all armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The current fighting against the Front de Résistance Patriotique de l’Ituri shows our determination to neutralize all the groups that have inflicted untold suffering on the Congolese population. All the armed groups must now understand that any further attempt to use civilians as human shields shall not be tolerated”, said Martin Kobler.

FARDC-MONUSCO delegation met the leaders of the Front de Résistance Patriotique de l’Ituri at Aveba on 13 January 2015, to discuss the conditions for their surrender and liberation of child soldiers. As a result of a breakdown in negotiations with the Government, a joint operation was launched this Thursday 15 January when FRPI militiamen attempted to break out of the buffer zone set up by the FARDC.

“I am particularly shocked by the use of children by FRPI; it is a war crime. I fully support Government in firmly standing against any form of impunity for such a crime. These children have the right to a future,” concluded Martin Kobler.

Notes to Editors

Some combatants took advantage of the situation to flee to Getty, located about 10km in the North-East of Aveba to join their dependents. The fight is on-going and for the time being it is difficult to count the number of victims.

MONUSCO delegation that travelled to Aveba was led by the Deputy-Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General in the DR Congo, General Abdallah Wafy, accompanied by the Deputy-Commander of MONUSCO Force, General Jean Baillaud, and the chief of the Child Protection section, Mrs Dee Brillenburg Wurth.

FRPI was created in November 2002. Cobra Matata assumed the leadership of the group in 2010, after deserting FARDC. Since the creation of the armed group, its militia members have been presumed guilty of gross violations of human rights on civilian population in the district of Ituri and illegal trafficking of natural resources. Germain Katanga, one of the senior members of the group was sentenced in March 2014 by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity and war crimes perpetrated in the district of Ituri in February 2003.

On 3 November 2014, Cobra Matata, accompanied by roughly one thousand combatants, one third of whom were children, assembled at Kabona, in the territory of Irumu. With this development, FRPI leader manifested his intent to surrender to FARDC subject to many conditions.

From 8 to 22 October 2014, the Military Prosecutor’s department of the Ituri garrison, backed by MONUSCO, conducted wide-scale investigation on the human rights violations committed by FRPI. This will help advance prosecution of the group’s militia members.