Feingold in Democratic Republic of Congo

[undeterred]

Last edited Wed Sep 4, 2013, 11:05 PM - Edit history (1)

U.S. sends Russ Feingold to DRC

Published: Sept. 4, 2013 at 9:25 AM

WASHINGTON, Sept. 4 (UPI) -- The U.S State Department announced special envoy to the DRC Russ Feingold arrived in the region to help drive the effort to bring peace to the country. Secretary of State John Kerry appointed former Sen. Feingold, D-Wis., to serve as a special envoy for the region in June. The State Department said Feingold was dispatched to the region to take part in efforts backed by the European Union, African Union and United Nations to bring peace to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

"The trip will be special envoy Feingold's first visit to the region in his new capacity, and follows on multiple trips during his tenure as a U.S. senator," the State Department said Tuesday. A statement issued Friday by the office of U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he was deeply concerned by the deteriorating security situation in the eastern DRC.

A Tanzanian member of a U.N. peacekeeping force in Democratic Republic of Congo was killed in fighting last week. The U.N mission, known by its French acronym MONUSCO, said several civilians were killed during fighting between Congolese forces and M23 in August.

Ban tasked the Great Lakes and DRC special envoys with working to find a peaceful solution to the situation. M23 took control of Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu province, briefly last year. Former leader Bosco Ntaganda surrendered to the International Criminal Court this year to face war crimes charges.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2013/09/04/US-sends-Russ-Feingold-to-DRC/UPI-12181378301104/?spt=hs&or=tn


Wishing you safe travels and success in your mission, Senator Feingold

[undeterred]

1. Bringing Peace to the Congo - a Blueprint for Special Envoy Feingold

BY WITNEY SCHNEIDMAN AND SASHA LEZHNEV, 31 AUGUST 2013

The clashes in the eastern Congo over the past week have once again brought into sharp focus the enduring conflict between the M23 rebels and the Congolese military as well as the role of the recently-deployed United Nations intervention brigade. As the new United States special envoy for the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Great Lakes Region of Africa, Senator Russ Feingold, embarks on his first trip to the region, it is imperative that he takes steps now to engage in the economic and commercial issues that are at the heart of the conflict.

To be successful in the herculean task of helping end the world's deadliest war since World War II, Feingold would do well to learn from one of the most effective U.S. special envoy missions of our time, George Mitchell, during his tenure as President Bill Clinton's envoy to Northern Ireland. While many people remember Mitchell as having brokered peace in Northern Ireland, few recall his strategic approach: to focus on economics first, in order to build trust and lay the foundation for tackling the tough security issues.

A decade after his tenure, Mitchell described the key to achieving sustainable peace in Northern Ireland: "I stress the economy. ... These and other conflict situations... all have an important economic underpinning. I've come to believe that you have to deal with political and security measures, but you have to include economics right at the very top. You need economic growth, you need job creation, you need opportunity for people... if you want to reduce the likelihood of conflict. That isn't guaranteed stability... but without it, it's very difficult to obtain."

A critical part of Clinton and Mitchell's strategic vision for the Northern Ireland peace process was economics, and they stuck by it patiently until it bore fruit. It was predicated on creating jobs, revenue and commercial opportunities in order to reduce violent tension between the two sides and incentives for peace and alternatives to conflict. Despite the violence at the time, Mitchell organized a White House investment conference on Northern Ireland in 1995, building on the recommendations of business leaders from Northern Ireland, Ireland, and the U.S., who believed there was far greater economic potential from peace than from war. The conference sparked the first meeting between Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams and Northern Ireland Secretary of State Patrick Mayhew, senior leaders from the opposing sides of the conflict.

Read more at: http://allafrica.com/stories/201308310561.html?viewall=1

cross posted from Good Reads

[PoliticAverse]

2. For those that missed Anthony Bourdain's show from Congo you can see it on youtube, here...

[undeterred]

3. Special Envoy Feingold Makes First Official Visit to the Great Lakes Region

Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region of Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Russell D. Feingold will be participating in a joint-visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda along with Mary Robinson, UN Special Envoy for the Great Lakes, Koen Vervaeke, EU Special Representative to the African Union, and Boubacar Diarra, Special Representative of the African Union Chairperson for the Great Lakes Region.

The trip will be Special Envoy Feingold’s first visit to the region in his new capacity, and follows on multiple trips during his tenure as a U.S. Senator. The joint delegation will be holding discussions with the senior leadership from the respective governments and members of civil society in order to advance the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the DRC and the Region. The envoys will also be focused on efforts to address the security situation in eastern DRC.

Following the joint-visit, Special Envoy Feingold will continue to Burundi, for meetings with the Government of Burundi and the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), and Ethiopia, for consultations with the African Union.

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2013/09/213721.htm