United Nations Security Council Resolution 2409 – The situation concerning the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Resolution 2409 (2018)

The Security Council,

Recalling its previous resolutions and the statements of its President concerning the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), especially its resolutions 2389 (2017), 2360 (2017), 2348 (2017), 2293 (2016), 2277 (2016), 2211 (2015), 2198 (2015), 2147 (2014), 2136 (2014), and 2098 (2013),

Reaffirming the basic principles of peacekeeping, including consent of the parties, impartiality, and non-use of force, except in self-defence and defence of the mandate, and recognizing that the mandate of each peacekeeping mission is specific to the need and situation of the country concerned,

Reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of the DRC as well as all States in the region and emphasizing the need to respect fully the principles of non-interference, good-neighbourliness and regional cooperation,

Recalling that the Government of the DRC bears the primary responsibility to protect civilians within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction, including protection from crimes against humanity and war crimes,

Reaffirming its strong support for the “Comprehensive and Inclusive Political Agreement” signed in Kinshasa on 31 December 2016, which remains the only viable path out of the current political situation, calling for a swift and full implementation of the agreement, in good faith and in all its components, in order to organize peaceful, credible, inclusive and timely elections on 23 December 2018, in line with the electoral calendar, leading to a peaceful transfer of power, in accordance with the Congolese Constitution,

Recalling that full and timely implementation of the 31 December 2016 agreement and the electoral calendar is critical in supporting the legitimacy of the transitional institutions, stressing the crucial importance of a peaceful and credible electoral cycle, in accordance with the Constitution and respecting the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, for lasting stabilization, rule of law and consolidation of constitutional democracy in the DRC, and calling on the DRC government to immediately implement the confidence-building measures in full, as per the agreement, including by putting an end to restrictions of the political space in the DRC, in particular arbitrary arrests and detention of members of the political opposition and of civil society, as well as restrictions of fundamental freedoms such as the freedom of opinion and expression, freedom of the press, and the right of peaceful assembly,

Recalling the importance of taking urgent measures to restore confidence between all actors involved in the electoral process, stressing the importance of the Government of the DRC and its national partners taking all necessary steps to accelerate preparations for the elections without further delay, and to ensure an environment conducive to the peaceful and inclusive conduct of political activities, including the security of all political actors, and reiterating its commitment to act accordingly regarding all Congolese actors whose actions and statement impede the implementation of the agreement and the timely organization of the elections,

Calling upon all parties to continue to reject violence of any kind, exercise maximum restraint in their actions and statements, to refrain from provocations such as violence and violent speeches, so as not to further inflame the situation, and to address their differences peacefully,

Remaining deeply concerned by reports of increased serious violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law committed by some members of the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC), the National Intelligence Agency (ANR), the Republican Guard and Congolese National Police (PNC), including against members of the opposition and of civil society in the context of the electoral process, strongly condemning the killing of civilians by State and non-State actors and disproportionate use of force by elements of the security forces, including during peaceful protests, in accordance with national legislation, stressingthe importance of releasing all persons detained arbitrarily, including human rights defenders and persons of different political affiliations, and emphasizing that the Government of the DRC must respect human rights and refrain from disproportionate use of force,

Welcoming in that regard the report of the Joint Commission of Inquiry, composed of representatives of the Ministries of Human Rights, Justice and Security, the National Commission of Human Rights and civil society, set up to investigate allegations of human rights violations and abuses committed on 31 December 2017 and 21 January 2018, which notes “cases of illegal use of force” and of violations of the right of freedom of religious assembly, and calling for the implementation of its recommendations, including regarding banning the use of live ammunition,

Reiterating its concern over the lack of progress in the investigations and prosecutions against alleged perpetrators of human rights violations and abuses committed during the 2011 electoral process, in January 2015, September and December 2016, in December 2017, and January and February 2018, and calling forfurther efforts to hold those responsible to account and fight impunity,

Remaining deeply concerned by the persistent high levels of violence and violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law, condemning in particular those involving targeted attacks against civilians, widespread sexual and gender-based violence, recruitment and use of children by armed groups and militias, the forced displacement of significant numbers of civilians, extrajudicial executions and arbitrary arrests, recognizing their deleterious effect on the stabilization, reconstruction and development efforts in the DRC, and emphasizing that all those responsible for all such violations and abuses must be swiftly apprehended, brought to justice and held accountable, and calling upon the Government of the DRC to facilitate, in line with previous agreements, full and unhindered access for the Joint Human Rights Office in the DRC to all detention centres, hospitals and morgues and all other premises required for documenting human rights violations, as applicable,

Recalling the importance of fighting impunity within all ranks of FARDC and PNC, commending the DRC authorities for prosecutions and convictions of members of the FARDC and PNC for crimes against humanity and encouraging them to take further action, and stressing the need for the Government of the DRC to continue to ensure the increased professionalism of its security forces, including the training and capacity building aimed at security during public meetings and protests fully respecting domestic and international human rights law,

Noting that the DRC has continued to suffer from recurring and evolving cycles of conflict and persistent violence by armed groups, expressing particular concern at the reports of growing inter-communal and militia violence in areas of the DRC, in particular in the regions of Kasaï and Tanganyika, including attacks against religious institutions, and killings of policemen, further expressing concerns about mass graves in the Kasaï region, and calling upon all parties to take appropriate measures to protect and respect United Nations, diplomatic and foreign premises, property and personnel and other civilians in the DRC,

Reiterating its deep concern regarding the security and humanitarian crisis in the DRC exacerbated by destabilizing activities of foreign and domestic armed groups, stressing the importance of neutralizing armed groups in the DRC, and recognizing the importance of efforts of the FARDC and the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO), including by conducting joint operations, in accordance with its mandate and the human rights due diligence policy on United Nations-support to non-United Nations forces (HRDDP), in that regard, recalling the strategic importance of the implementation of the Peace, Security and Cooperation (PSC) Framework for the DRC and the region, and reiterating its call to all signatories to fulfil promptly, fully and in good faith their respective commitments under this Framework in order to address the root causes of conflict and put an end to recurring cycles of violence, and promote lasting regional development,

Recalling that it is prepared to impose targeted sanctions under paragraph 7 (d) and (e) of its resolution 2293 (2016), regarding inter alia human rights violations or abuses or violations of international humanitarian law,

Stressing the need for continued cooperation with the International Criminal Court (ICC) by the Government of the DRC, and stressing the importance of actively seeking to hold accountable those responsible for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in the country,

Encouraging the continuation of efforts by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the African Union (AU), the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to restore peace and security in the DRC, encouraging the Government of the DRC to ensure continuous close cooperation with these and other international parties, and recognizing the efforts of the Government of the DRC aiming at the achievement of peace and national development,

Expressing concern at the illegal exploitation and trafficking of natural resources by armed groups among others, and the negative impact of armed conflict on protected natural areas, which undermines lasting peace and development for the DRC, and encouraging the Government of the DRC to strengthen efforts to safeguard those areas,

Welcoming the decisions of the ICGLR at its 7th summit on 19 October 2017regarding the fight against illegal exploitation of natural resources in the Great Lakes region and encouraging member States to further increase cooperation in fighting illegal exploitation and trade of natural resources, including gold and wildlife,

Expressing great concern over the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation that has left at least 13.1 million Congolese in need of humanitarian assistance, including more than 7.7 million severely food insecure people, expressing deep concern that the worsening humanitarian situation has reached catastrophic levels in some parts of the country and has prompted the United Nations to activate the highest level of emergency preparedness, further expressing deep concern regarding the very high number of internally displaced persons in the DRC which has more than doubled in the last year to more than 4.49 million, and the 540,000 refugees in the DRC, as well as the more than 714,000 refugees from the DRC as a result of ongoing hostilities, calling on member States and other international partners to scale up funding to urgently respond to the humanitarian needs in the country, further calling upon the DRC and all States in the region to work towards a peaceful environment conducive to the realization of durable solutions for refugees and internally displaced persons, including their eventual voluntary return and reintegration in the DRC in conditions of safety and dignity, with the support of the United Nations Country Team (UNCT), stressing that any such solution should be in line with relevant obligations under international refugee law, international humanitarian law and international human rights law, and commending United Nations humanitarian agencies, partners, and donors for their efforts to provide urgent and coordinated support to the population,

Expressing further concern at increased impediments to humanitarian access in eastern DRC resulting from insecurity and violence, as well as continued attacks against humanitarian actors and assets, calling upon all parties to respect the impartiality, independence and neutrality of humanitarian actors, and underlining the need for safe and unhindered access for humanitarian actors,

Recalling all its relevant resolutions on women, peace and security, on children and armed conflict, and on the protection of civilians in armed conflict, also recalling the conclusions on children and armed conflict in the DRC (S/AC.51/2014/3) adopted on 18 September 2014 by the Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict pertaining to the parties in armed conflicts of the DRC, and welcoming efforts of the Government of the DRC in this regard, welcoming efforts by the Government of the DRC to implement resolution 1325 (2000) and encouraging the implementation of the National Action plan,

Welcoming the progress achieved by the Government of the DRC, including the Presidential Adviser on Sexual Violence and the Recruitment of Children, in cooperation with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) for Children and Armed Conflict, the SRSG on Sexual Violence in Conflict, and MONUSCO, to implement the action plans to prevent and end the recruitment and use of children and sexual violence by the FARDC, and to combat impunity for sexual violence in conflict, including sexual violence committed by the FARDC and the PNC,

Welcoming the efforts of MONUSCO and international partners in delivering training in human rights, international humanitarian law, gender mainstreaming, child protection and protection from sexual and gender-based violence for Congolese security institutions and underlining their importance,

Welcoming the commitment of the Secretary-General to enforce strictly his zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), noting the various measures taken by MONUSCO and Troop- and Police-contributing countries (T/PCCs) to combat SEA, which has led to a reduction in reported cases, but still expressing grave concern over numerous allegations of SEA reportedly committed by peacekeepers and civilian personnel in the DRC, emphasizing the need to ensure that incidents can be reported and duly verified in a safe and simple manner, stressing the urgent need for T/PCCs and, as appropriate, MONUSCO to promptly investigate those allegations in a credible and transparent manner and for those responsible for such criminal offences or misconduct to be held to account, and further stressing the need to prevent such exploitation and abuse and to improve how these allegations are addressed in line with resolution 2272 (2016),

Reaffirming that the successful protection of civilians is critical to the fulfilment of MONUSCO’s mandate and the delivery of an improved security environment, also stressing the importance of peaceful means and progress on key reforms to promote the protection of civilians, as well as appropriate prioritization and resourcing,

Reaffirming its strong support to the SRSG and MONUSCO in the implementation of their mandates, strongly encouraging the continuation of their efforts and calling on the Secretariat to support MONUSCO to fully implement its mandate,

Recalling that it is important that all MONUSCO contingents, including the contingents of the Intervention Brigade, are properly trained and effectively equipped, including with adequate language skills, staffed and supported to be able to sustain their commitment to carry out their respective tasks,

Recalling resolution 2378 (2017), which requests the Secretary-General to ensure that data related to the effectiveness of peacekeeping operations, including peacekeeping performance data, is used to improve analytics and evaluation of mission operations, based on clear and well identified benchmarks,

Noting the publication of the report on “Improving Security of United Nations Peacekeepers”, which highlights the link between the safety and security of peacekeepers and the performance of troops, recognizing that fatalities can be a consequence of deficiencies in training, equipment and performance,

Welcoming the initiative of the SG to conduct Special Investigations into performance issues, encouraging the SG to report on the findings of such investigations and efforts to take collective action to improve peacekeeping operations,

Noting the financial constraints the United Nations face and the need for the United Nations to make the best use of the resources placed at its disposal, encouraging Member States to ensure that MONUSCO is sufficiently resourced and equipped to effectively carry out its mandate and to ensure that the United Nations makes the best use of the resources placed at its disposal,

Reiterating its call on all parties to cooperate fully with MONUSCO and to remain committed to the full and objective implementation of the Mission’s mandate, reiterating its condemnation of any and all attacks against peacekeepers, and emphasizing that those responsible for such attacks must be held accountable,

Emphasizing that MONUSCO’s activities should be conducted in such a manner as to build and sustain peace and facilitate progress towards sustainable peace and development, stressing the need to involve the UNCT and, in this regard, emphasizing the importance of joint analysis and effective strategic planning with the UNCT,

Determining that the situation in the DRC continues to constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region,

Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations,

Adopted by the Security Council at its 8216th meeting, on 27 March 2018.