Collaboration between the population and the Security Forces is key in the implementation of the Protection of Civilians’ mandate by MONUSCO Force and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC).

To make this partnership effective, MONUSCO Civil Affairs office organized, on April 8 in Kabasha, a locality about twenty km south-west of Beni, an awareness session on collaboration between the authorities, the population and the defense and security forces.

This sensitization session brought together community leaders, political and military authorities, representatives of women's associations and youth movements. The goal is to recreate a climate of trust between the population and the security forces and thus promote a more protective environment.

During the exchanges, Major Wilned Chawinga, commander in charge of civil-military relations from MONUSCO Intervention Brigade (FIB), insisted on the fact that the return of peace in the territory of Beni requires collaboration among the populations who must provide the information and the Defense and Security Forces, who use the information to better protect them. He recalled that the first actor in the protection of civilians is the population itself.

Young people involved in peace

The representative of the youth in Kabasha, Faustin Katembo, hailed the gradual return of peace and the revival of the rural farming activities which is triggering the development process in the region. He called on the young people to fight the rumors on social networks and to make a real commitment to collaborate with the Security Forces: "With regard to the protection of civilians, we have been informed that the first protector of the civilian, it's themselves. Let the young people therefore engage in the collaborating with the security forces so that peace returns to our territory and to our province. May the young people commit to denouncing suspicious cases so that security officers can intervene at the appropriate time,” he stressed.

He then praised the achievements made by MONUSCO, citing in particular on capacity-building for the police, logistical support for the FARDC, human rights defense, support for the judicial institutions, but also Mission’s involvement in the mobilization of young people drawn from armed groups, through the construction and rehabilitation of infrastructures. This helps them reintegrate socially and economically into their community.

For his part, Katembo Mastaki, deputy head of the student coordination in the territory of Beni insisted on the importance for young people to get involved in peace issues: "We must collaborate with MONUSCO and the FARDC and not trust the rumors accusing the defense and security forces. Peace is everyone's business. We must get involved to changing the situation. The mechanisms to be established are confidence in our authorities. We understood that MONUSCO is there to work with the government, it supports the FARDC and intervenes within the limits of its mandate”, explained Katembo Mastaki before launching this appeal to young people: “To the young people of Kabasha and especially to the students, we ask them not to join armed groups, but to work with the authorities to put an end to insecurity in the region”.

Women's leadership in the service of peace

Charmante Kapitula, head of the Association of Women for Peace and Integral Development, believes that women's leadership can help bring peace to the territory of Beni. “I focused my presentation on the leadership by women in the restoration of peace in the territory of Beni. The women who are victims of insecurity must collaborate with the local authorities to whom they must transmit the information. They must also collaborate with the defense and security forces,” explained Charmante Kapitula.

She encouraged women to play a major role in securing the region. “MONUSCO, through community engagement, push women to join local protection committees. This allows us to et the security situation improved in our respective areas,” concluded Charmante Kapitula.