WHILE the Southern African Development Community grapples with security challenges, especially in the DRC and Mozambique, the region will continue to pursue diplomatic solutions to bring lasting peace to those countries.
Executive secretary Elias Magosi said this over the weekend in Lusaka, Zambia, at the Extraordinary Organ Troika summit, plus SADC Troika, Troop Contributing Countries to the SADC Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (SAMIDRC), Personnel Contributing Countries to the SADC Mission in Mozambique (SAMIM), the DRC, and Mozambique.
The summit received updates on the peace and security situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Mozambique and reiterated SADC’s support to the two governments towards attaining lasting peace, stability and security.
The summit also reiterated the regional commitment expressed in the SADC Mutual Defence Pact that, “an armed attack against one shall be deemed a threat to regional peace and security”, and commended member states for demonstrating the spirit of collective regional solidarity through their continued contribution and support to SAMIM and SAMIDRC.
Magosi said: “We owe our peace, stability, and security to our leaders, past and present, for their relentless commitment to ensure peace remains the cornerstone of our regional cooperation and integration.”
“Many of the challenges the SADC founders grappled with at the time of signing the Declaration, have no doubt evolved to become new challenges and opportunities of the modern era. The region has also recorded during this period remarkable successes in our pursuit to create and maintain peace, security, and political stability,” he said.
Magosi added that while progress has been made in combatting terrorism and acts of violent extremism in the Cabo Delgado Province through SAMIM efforts, the security situation in the eastern DRC is still concerning.
“The resurgence of armed groups, including the M23 has caused untold misery to the people of the eastern DRC, with more than three million people, mostly women, girls, and children, displaced,” noted Magosi.
Additionally, during his visit to the eastern DRC, the secretary said he saw the urgent need to support the SAMIDRC for the mission to fulfil its mandate of restoring peace and security in the area, protecting civilians, and securing corridors to facilitate humanitarian support.
Magosi said while military intervention is critical in preventing and defending against the immediate threat, and protecting civilians in the process, pursuing diplomatic and political solutions presents a sustainable and inclusive pathway to address the underlying and often complex causes of conflict.
The chairperson of the SADC Organ, Zambia’s president Hakainde Hichilema concurred with Magosi, saying they want a stable and peaceful region, and to achieve this, they will continue engaging in diplomatic dialogue.
“We pledged to intensify public diplomacy on the role and successes of the SADC Peace Support Missions, including the SAMIM and SAMIDRC, to avoid negative external narratives that may compromise the success of the SADC Peace Support Missions,” said President Hichilema.