Goma, 10 December 2013 - A medal parade in honor of the Force Intervention Brigade of the UN Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) was organized in Sake, North Kivu province, on 9 December 2013. The parade, described as “historic”, saw the first batch of officers of the Force Intervention Brigade receive the UN peace medal.

The occasion was presided over by MONUSCO Force Commander, General Carlos Alberto dos Santos Cruz of Brazil. The Force Intervention Brigade, which was put in place through the Security Council Resolution 2098 to neutralize all armed groups in eastern D. R. Congo, comprises troops hailing from Malawi, South Africa and Tanzania.

After the guard of honor, a minute of silence was observed in memory of three Tanzanian soldiers who lost their lives during the fighting against the M23 rebel movement. The minute silence was also observed in memory of the late South African hero and former president, Nelson Mandela.

General dos Santos Cruz commanded the soldiers for a job well done, and to the three fallen Tanzanians, the General said they had sacrificed their lives for a noble cause in the research of peace in the D.R. Congo.

It is worth noting that the Tanzanian battalion medal parade comes six days after the UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Herve Ladsous, visited Goma.

Martha Biongo/MONUSCO and Major Pethias Mdoka/Force Intervention Brigade/MONUSCO