Rebel Chief Agrees to Ceasefire in Congo

The rebel leader Laurent Nkunda agreed to support UN efforts to restore peace in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo yesterday even as his troops were battling government forces.

After meeting the UN special envoy, Olusegun Obasanjo, Nkunda said he would respect a ceasefire, contribute to a mission monitoring violations, and open a humanitarian corridor for people displaced by months of heavy fighting in North Kivu province.

"Today is a great day for us because we were losing many men and now we have a message of peace," said Nkunda, who wore a grey suit rather than his usual fatigues to the meeting in his home village of Jomba, near the Ugandan border.

After the two-hour talks, which saw the two men dance briefly with rebels and children outside the church compound, Obasanjo said that he had been asked by Nkunda to tell the Congolese president, Joseph Kabila, to suspend fighting.

"I know now what he [Nkunda] wants," Obasanjo said. "I know that a ceasefire is like dancing the tango: it cannot be done by one only."

But while the talks were taking place the UN peacekeeping mission, Monuc, reported heavy fighting between Nkunda's National Congress for the defense of the People (CNDP), who claim to be protecting the minority Tutsi population, and government troops near Ndeko, 70 miles north of the provincial capital Goma.

Clashes between the two forces have displaced more than 250,000 people since September, and raised concerns of a humanitarian catastrophe. Previous ceasefire agreements have failed. Lieutenant Colonel Jean-Paul Dietrich, a spokesman for the Monuc forces, told Reuters that the fighting dampened hopes of a lasting peace. "The army is firing rockets. The CNDP is using mortars. It's not a good sign if they continue to fight while the special envoy is holding talks".

Nkunda, who has close ties to Rwanda and claims that Kabila's troops are assisting Hutu rebels linked to the 1994 genocide, also accuses Monuc of bias against him. Obasanjo said Nkunda had agreed to the formation of a tripartite commission to monitor ceasefire violations on the condition that Monuc was not involved.

Nkunda has requested face-to-face talks with Kabila, but so far he has refused.

Obasanjo said he expected that peace talks between the warring parties would take place soon in Nairobi, but that the leaders would not be directly involved.

"I expect exploratory talks. When it gets to a stage where the negotiators of both sides reach a point, they will report to President Kabila, who will then come to it."