Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni yesterday called for the deployment of an African Union force to the volatile region of Ituri in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), saying the current UN mandate for its mission, MONUC, was useless.

"The situation in Ituri (where rival ethnic militias have clashed over the last week, despite MONUC's presence) requires an African force with a proper mandate, which should include monitoring a ceasefire if there is any, defending itself, defending civilians, and being able to ultimately enforce peace by dealing with the trouble-causers militarily," Museveni told a joint press conference with visiting Burundi President Domitien Ndayizeye.

Museveni clarified that he meant a force deployed by the African Union.

"This (MONUC's) is a useless mandate and I have been speaking to various leaders about the situation and they will know what to do," Museveni said: "I have talked to many people including the UN secretary general, the US, leaders in Europe and other African leaders like President (Thabo) Mbeki and President (Benjamin) Mkapa".

"The current MONUC mandate should change because the best they can do is to observe peace disruptions without taking action," he said: "They (MONUC) remain in their vehicles as people are killed. That is dangerous tourism".

Over the weekend, MONUC officials reported that more than 30 civilians had been massacred in Bunia, Ituri's capital.

The leader of one of the militias involved in the Bunia clashes told AFP that the African Union should immediately deploy a military mission in northeastern DRC and that security forces sent there by the Kinshasa government should leave.

Earlier yesterday, Mbeki called for MONUC's mandate to be beefed up, to allow it to better protect civilians in DRC.

Museveni said Uganda would not play a role in the force, given the widespread accusations that Ugandan troops now pulling out of Ituri helped fuel the ethnic tension there.

"They were saying we were in Congo to get gold, now that we have left, let us see how we shall starve because we have withdrawn," he said.

"We shall however not return to Congo unless our enemies (Ugandan rebel elements) return there, and even then we shall make wider consultations before we return," he said. – Sapa.