According to the communiqué of the General Secretariat of the East African Community (EAC) on March 20, national consultations for the drafting of the EAC Constitution for the political confederation should resume in the member states of the ‘EAC. Kenya is preparing to hold the sessions in May 2023.
Constitutional experts from the region responsible for drafting the constitution of the political federation of the EAC are preparing to hold consultations with various stakeholders including civil society, local leaders, opinion leaders and the business community to collect their views on what kind of political confederation they want for the EAC.
EAC Secretary General Peter Mathuki during a meeting with Chairman of Constitutional Experts Benjamin Joses Odoki said that the EAC Secretariat is committed to expediting the process and is working to Hold public consultations in all EAC partner states over the next two years.
For Peter Mathuki, political federation is the ultimate goal of EAC regional integration: “We are making significant progress in the common market, customs union and monetary union. Accelerating the process towards a political federation is essential”.
“The experts identified the stakeholders to be consulted, the themes to guide the consultation, the development of an information file for public awareness, the process of drafting the Constitution as well as a program of public consultations in all member states”said Benjamin Joses Odoki, Chairman of the EAC Constitutional Experts.
According to him, the experts also elaborated a theoretical framework of a political confederation following an in-depth analysis of regional integration in accordance with the treaty, protocols, laws and reports of the EAC.
Public consultations were also held in Burundi (January 2020) and Uganda (April-May 2021), but were postponed due to containment measures imposed across the region following the spread of Covid-19.
DRC: Ministerial reshuffle, Kamerhe and Bemba in the government
A reshuffle of the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo was announced on March 23, maintaining Prime Minister Jean-Michel Sama Lukonde in office, but redrawing the ministerial team nine months before the next presidential election.
According to Actualité.CD, among the new government appointments is the former vice-president (2003-2006) Jean-Pierre Bemba. A former warlord, Bemba was sentenced to 18 years in prison by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes committed in the Central African Republic before being acquitted on appeal in 2018, after ten years in prison.
“He is appointed Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, while the DRC, struggling with armed violence for nearly 30 years in its eastern part, is experiencing a peak of tension with its neighbor Rwanda, accused of supporting the M23 rebellion ».
Vital Kamerhe, former chief of staff of President Félix Tshisekedi, sentenced in 2020 to 20 years in prison for embezzlement before being acquitted on appeal in 2022, is also appointed to the rank of Deputy Prime Minister in charge of the Economy.
North Kivu: The deployment of the regional force continues despite the lull
Ugandan troops will be deployed at the end of March to Rutshuru as part of the EAC regional force. The emissaries of the Ugandan army (UPDF) served this Thursday, March 23, in Goma after a meeting with the military governor of North Kivu, Constant Ndima, says Actualité.CD.
“We come to make our contribution to the EAC, to the populations of North Kivu and the DRC in general for the return of peace in the East of the country. All armed groups must surrender their weapons for peace to return”said the Ugandan colonel Mike Walaka.
According to Actualité.CD, Ugandan troops will be deployed in Kiwanja, Rutshuru-centre and on the Mabenga axis, in the middle of Virunga Park. Areas entirely under the control of the M23 rebels.
“We are all Africans, we need peace without which there will be no development. The peoples will continue to suffer if there is no peace. We ask the people of North Kivu to lend us a hand in our mission. Let us work together so that there is peace in the areas where we will be deployed and elsewhere”said the Ugandan officer.
According to The East African, Uganda will deploy 1,000 troops to eastern DRC. And to recall that Uganda already had more than a thousand soldiers on Congolese soil as part of joint operations “Shujaa” with Congolese forces against the ADF Islamists in the territories of Beni and Irumu.
Return of the displaced
Burundian troops recently deployed to eastern DRC as part of the regional force (EACRF) have now taken control of key areas previously occupied by M23 rebels including Sake, Karuba, Mushaki and Kirolirwe, writes The East African .
“The M23 withdrew from Sake, Karuba, Mushaki, Neenero, Kirolirwe, Kibirizi, Mweso and adjacent areas in accordance with the decision of the EAC Heads of State mini-summit on February 17 in Addis Ababa, marking an important step in the ongoing phasing out”reads the communiqué of the EAC Regional Force (EACRF).
The deployment of the regional force and the withdrawal of M23 led to a significant return of displaced people to their homes. It also facilitated humanitarian assistance in certain areas and opened the main supply route from Sake to Kitchanga via Kirolirwe.
According to Actualité.CD, the civilian population is gradually returning to Sake, about 27 km from Goma (North Kivu).
Tanzania: Five dead from Marburg virus
The Ministry of Health confirmed an outbreak of Marburg virus in Bukoba in Kagera province in northwest Tanzania on March 21, four days after reports emerged of a “potentially contagious disease”. in the district, killing five people, including a health worker, who developed symptoms of fever, vomiting, bleeding from various body parts and kidney failure, reports The Citizen.
Following the outbreak, the government decided to strengthen public health measures to contain the outbreak and further prevent its local and international spread.
At any point of entry (airport, border post or port), the body temperature of all travelers will be checked. All people suffering from fever will be prevented from traveling in and out of the country until they have permission from the health authority: “Those with signs and symptoms will be tested and treated at designated health facilities.”
Marburg virus disease is a viral hemorrhagic fever. Symptoms include fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, rash, sore throat, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain, chest pain, and bleeding. Often fatal, there is no specific treatment or approved vaccine for Marburg virus disease.
Rwanda: The government “very concerned” about a possible genocide in Kivu
Speaking to members of the National Consultative Forum of Political Organizations on March 23, Rwandan Foreign Minister Vincent Biruta said that some international actors are adamant that they do not want to acknowledge the prominent genocide against Rwandophone Congolese in the eastern DRC, despite several reports and evidence highlighting the facts, writes The New Times.
“Recognizing genocide goes hand in hand with the responsibility to prevent it. The reason some international actors are reluctant to recognize planned genocide in the DRC is that this is followed by the responsibility to intervene and stop it. They shirk that responsibility, but we keep reminding them.”.
In November 2022, the UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, Alice Wairimu Nderitu, condemned the escalation of violence in eastern DRC which, for her, is a “sign of warning” in a region who experienced genocide: “The current violence is a harbinger of societal fragility and evidence of the continued presence of the conditions that allowed large-scale hatred and violence to erupt into genocide in the past.”
Kenya: Religious denominations call for dialogue between William Ruto and Raila Odinga
In a press release on March 22 on the eve of the holy month of Ramadan, Muslim religious leaders called for dialogue between opposition leader Raila Odinga and President William Ruto.
“They continue to amplify the political rhetoric that leads more and more people to disillusionment. Undoubtedly, the resulting tension, which increases as the days go by, will result in anarchy”said Hassan Ole Naado, Chairman of the Supreme Council of Muslims in Kenya. He further urged the country’s political leaders to tone down their remarks and solve their problems at the political level.
In Mombasa, Muslim leaders also called for a truce between the two leaders. “We urge the organizers and leaders of the planned protests to rethink their decision, as this could interfere with this period of Ramadan.
The holy month restrains the devotees from deeds and desires that disturb peace in society. It is a month for Muslims to reflect and turn to God,” said Sheikh Mohamed Khalifa, Secretary of the Imams Council of Kenya.
According to Nation, the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) also called, on March 22, on President William Ruto and the opponent Raila Odinga to dialogue to resolve the impasse that led to the demonstrations on March 20.
“We implore and ask our president to keep his promise to sit down and listen to Odinga and other leaders. We also invite Odinga to accept dialogue for the good of the country”said Bishop Martin Kivuva, president of the KCCB.
According to Nation, the Catholic Bishops condemn the use of force by the police during the March 20 protests: “Injuries and the loss of a single life cost far too much. Kenyan lives matter. We urge the police to exercise restraint on such occasions and urge them not to use live ammunition and excessive force.”
They urge Kenyans to desist from protests. For them, demonstrations do not solve problems: “The fact that it is legal to demonstrate should not make it a reason to paralyze the country, nor degenerate into a forced takeover of a legitimate government. We must be guided by the law and not by our own individual perspectives.”
After the protests on March 20, Raila Odinga announced that protests against the government will continue every Monday and Thursday starting the week of March 27.
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