President of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has said that his government will remain steadfast in demanding justice and accountability for victims of atrocities committed in the eastern part of the country, despite the recent peace agreement signed with Rwanda.
In his address to the nation on Monday, June 30, marking the 65th anniversary of Congo’s independence from Belgian colonial rule, President Felix Tshisekedi said that the agreement signed in Washington, DC on June 27 ushers in unprecedented hopes for peace for Congolese in the long-troubled eastern region.
He said: “It marks a new era of lasting peace, regional cooperation, and shared progress. It gives us the responsibility to rebuild our people, revive our economy, and restore dignity to every Congolese citizen. But although this peace is valuable, it remains fragile; it requires relentless commitment from all of us—the government, the people, and international partners—to consolidate it.”
President Tshisekedi added: “We will continue to demand justice for the victims and accountability for the perpetrators of these atrocities.”
He emphasized that the government’s unwavering goal is to restore state authority across the entire territory and to achieve genuine, lasting, and inclusive peace throughout the region.
While Tshisekedi praised the role of the United States and Qatar in facilitating what he described as sincere dialogue with Rwanda, the AFC/M23 coalition views the situation differently.
Corneille Nangaa, Coordinator of the Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC), said portraying Congo’s issues merely as a conflict between Kigali and Kinshasa is “a dangerous and unacceptable oversimplification.”
