Speaking at the UN Security Council briefing on September 30, Rwanda's Permanent Representative, Ambassador Martin Ngoga, said the UN reports on eastern DRC overlooked key drivers of the conflict, including tensions between the AFC/M23 rebel group and the Kinshasa administration, as well as the security threats posed to Rwanda.
'The latest report on eastern DRC reflects troubling omissions. Chief among them is the failure to sufficiently address one of the most dangerous drivers of violence, and that is hate speech and identity-based persecution. The report does not address the issue of mercenaries,' Ngoga said.
FDLR's decades-long menace
Ngoga accused the DRC government of continuing to back the FDLR, remnants of the militia responsible for the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, despite repeated concerns raised by Rwanda.
'FDLR, that is backed by the DRC government, has its origin in the force that killed 1 million Rwandans. It is the only genocidal group that remained in its military formation, in known locations, with the same intentions, undisturbed for a period of 31 years,' he said.
Ngoga warned that the FDLR's presence in eastern DRC directly threatens Rwanda's security. 'It happened once to us in '94. We took advice from preachers and hid in churches, and we were slaughtered like cows. It will never happen again. FDLR are Rwandans, and in Rwanda is where they should be, and this is what we are asking the DRC to do,' he said.
He added that, unlike neighbouring countries like Tanzania that disarmed and repatriated perpetrators of the 1994 genocide, the DRC has chosen to arm and support the group.
'The problem we have with the DRC is they chose the opposite direction: to arm them, reorganise them, continue to support them until now. And we have a report 31 years later that says they even have strongholds in the DRC. These are people who killed our people, want to continue killing...They should be neutralised.'
He questioned MONUSCO's role, noting: 'MONUSCO cooperates with the DRC government, DRC army, knowing FDLR is within the DRC army. And what MONUSCO does, and this is on record, is to avoid units and battalions in which FDLR is deployed. Formally, that is the position of MONUSCO. What does complicity mean?'
Mercenaries are a growing concern
Ngoga also raised alarm over mercenaries operating in eastern DRC, saying they have been consistently overlooked in UN reporting. This comes amid reports that the DRC has enlisted mercenaries from the private security firm of former US Navy SEAL officer Erik Prince, months after Romanian mercenaries were forced to flee following the M23 offensive in Goma.
'There are mercenaries now. There were mercenaries before. When they were thrashed out of the forest, everyone was there to see. Why is it that the Security Council treats this as a non-issue, and why is it that MONUSCO does not consider this as an issue?' he asked, urging the UN to address their presence as a serious threat to regional stability.
UN reporting and hate speech
Ngoga criticised the UN for underreporting key facts and portraying armed groups in a biased manner. He also highlighted the dangers of hate speech targeting Kinyarwanda-speaking Congolese communities.
'I have seen reports of the Security Council where you quote from social media postings. Who has not seen hate speech on social media, in classrooms, in churches, where hate is taught to 10-year-olds? Only last week, some people were being tormented because they had long noses. Those who know the history of the region know what it means. What a long nose meansâ€"it means death to some people,' he said.
Call for a credible peace process
While criticising the UN, Rwanda reiterated its commitment to the Washington Peace Agreement and the Doha process, which provide structured and inclusive frameworks for dialogue, addressing governance, exclusion, armed groups, and ethnic tensions.
'This is a one-time chance to bring lasting peace to the DRC, and the Security Council must lend its unequivocal support. Rwanda is fully committed to this process, and we shall implement it to the letter,' Ngoga said.
He also stressed the importance of humanitarian access and the safe return of refugees. 'Some of the refugees are already returning to Rwanda, and mechanisms are in place to receive them,' he said.
Rwanda's right to self-defence
At the same time, Ngoga reminded the Council that Rwanda has faced repeated cross-border attacks from the DRC over three decades and stressed that Rwanda will continue to defend itself in the face of threats.
'If 21 attacks by a non-state group supported by a state member of the UN do not constitute the reason to activate Article 51 of the Charter, which threshold exists?' he asked, stressing Rwanda's right to defend its citizens.
Wycliffe Nyamasege
