The eastern region continues to be afflicted by conflicts and armed violence. This is notably the case in North Kivu, where a portion of the province is under the control of the M23 rebels, supported by neighboring Rwanda.
On March 28th, these rebels held a meeting in the town of Kiwanja, Rutshuru, where three individuals associated with the former regime of President Kabila appeared alongside Corneille Nangaa, the former president of the Electoral Commission leading a politico-military platform with the M23, known as the Alliance of the Congo River (AFC).
Three former officials of the People’s Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD), the party of former President Joseph Kabila, were visible in the images from the M23 meeting in Kiwanja, Rutshuru. Clad in military fatigues, side by side, were Adam Chalwe, former coordinator of the presidential majority youth under Joseph Kabila and former DG of Malaïka TV; Yannick Tshisola, formerly among the leaders of the PPRD youth; and Henry Maggie, who was once a member of the youth league of the former presidential party.
Also present was Corneille Nangaa, the former president of the Electoral Commission, now leading the Alliance of the Congo River.
These defections prompted a reaction from the current leadership of the PPRD. Ferdinand Kambere, the party’s deputy permanent secretary, stated that “people are free to express their freedom” and that it has no connection to the “Raïs [Joseph Kabila, Editor’s note] nor the PPRD, let alone the FCC,” the former ruling coalition.
“The demands of the PPRD and the FCC are known and documented. We continue our struggle in resistance, we say it, the rest does not concern us,” Ferdinand Kambere emphasized.