Topic: Congo
Country: Philippines
Delegate Name: Sarah Ellwood
School: Forest Hills Central High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Philippines position papers GLIMUN 2007 committees
In the past few years and more recent months, the Democratic Republic of Congo has been faced with great internal political instability. Although the well-discussed installation of a democratic vote has been carried out within DRC, this novelty has proven to be almost more disruptive than uniting. The group led by Nkunda severely disagrees with how the government in Congo is being run. In order to maintain Congo’s democracy, this aggressive group must be overcome and eliminated. The Congolese government has stated previously that Nkunda and his group are in many ways the source of the country’s turmoil. With this information, the Philippines believes fully that this situation is securable with the help and support of the DRC.
Achieving and upholding peace, stability and democracy are the Philippines main goals concerning the Democratic Republic of Congo. To do this though, there is much that needs to be dealt with and changed for the better. In regards to the conflict in the east, Philippines believes that efforts to consolidate the authority need to be accelerated. The disarming and halt of proliferation to Nkunda and his troops is necessary and needs to be intensified. This alone will be a very helpful step in achieving peace within Congo. Also, the monitoring of borders between Rwanda and Congo is imperative to overcoming Nkunda in the sense that refugees and other civilians cannot easily invade Congolese borders. These things should be resolved though the available multilateral, regional and bilateral mechanisms in a spirit of sustained dialogue and cooperation. The Philippines is aware that the democratic elections are the groundwork for a positive political environment in Congo and should be protected in all respects.
We hope to continue working through and with the MONUC. As well, we trust the international community will maintain and intensify its partnership with the organizations, governments and civil society groups providing aid in this situation. We believe this committee should build upon the achievements to date and with that we will be able to come up with concrete proposals to address the interlocking tragedies in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
