15 November 2000
The DRC Summit which was supposed to be held in Maputo, on 15 November 2000 had to be postponed because not all the Heads of State were able to attend.
Following the Summit in Maputo on 16 October 2000, it was agreed that the warring factions would withdraw their forces back to 15km. Rwanda and Uganda also agreed to pull their forces back to much further positions (200km and 100km respectively). The UN Forces, MONUC, would be requested to oversee the withdrawals and to ensure that nobody took advantage of the withdrawals.
The South African Defence Minister was mandated by the Summit to convene a meeting of Defence Minister of the DRC, Zimbabwe, Rwanda and Uganda to concretely deal with the disengagement, the possible deployment of MONUC forces and measures to deal with the problem of the Interhamwe. They were to report back to a Summit to be convened in Maputo on 30 October 2000. The Summit had to be postponed because of the COMESA Summit, which was held in Zambia.
Consultations took place to convene the Summit on the 10th or 11th November. This was not a suitable date for the Heads of States and it was then proposed that the Summit be held in Maputo on the 15 November 2000, although some Heads of States were not able to attend.
Given the serious escalation of the conflict in the Northern and Southern Congo, it is imperative that all Heads of States, involved in the conflict, attend the Summit and therefore the Summit was postponed.
South Africa as convenor of the Summit, will urgently consult with other Heads of State to find a suitable date for the convening of the Summit. The Defence Ministers will continue to meet to ensure that they give a comprehensive report to the Summit.
The South Africa government urges all sides to adhere to the decisions of the Maputo Summit and to stop all the fighting.
For more information, please contact Dumisani Rasheleng
Office No: (012) 351-0067 / 0128
Cell No: 083-709-8166
Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
Private Bag X152
Pretoria
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