Congo rebels agree to merge

By Emmy Allio UGANDA government officials yesterday said Congolese rebel groups had agreed to merge despite the RCD-Kisangani rebel leader's refusal to sign the document, reports Emmy Allio. Lt. Col. Noble Mayombo, the Chief of Military Intelligence and one of the mediators in the talks, said any group unwilling to unite with the others would be left aside. "Uganda wants the rebellion in Congo to merge and to have one territory, one army, one programme, one enemy and to sustain itself economically by organising the resources it controls," Mayombo said yesterday. Sources said the signing of the merger document is expected today. The RCD-Kisangani leader, Prof. Wamba dia Wamba, whose group decided to 'step aside', will not sign. Wamba said the merger should come after a process of mutual trust between the parties. He said the Congolese had not been made to sit at a round-table to debate and reach an amicable decision amongst themselves. Mayombo said, "Any group that refuses to sign is not conscious of the pressure Uganda is facing over Congo from the population and the global community. Ethnic clashes in Bunia could also end under a merger." The merged group is to be known as the Congolese Liberation Front (CLF) and is to be led by Jean Pierre Bemba, leader of the MLC, for a one-year period. Wamba was to be his deputy. The leadership would rotate annually. CFL is also to have former Wamba deputies Mbusa Nyamwisi and Tibasima Atenyi as prime minister and energy/mines minister respectively. MLC's Secretary-General Oliver Kamitatu will remain a secretary general in the new group. His deputy will come from Wamba's group. Yesterday, Bemba said, "I will work with any group which wants stability in Congo. We cannot wait to merge when Kabila is busy planning a major offensive against us." The UPDF commander in Congo will oversee the merger implementation. Ends.