Talks open to secure peace in DR Congo's restive east

0 Comments | AFP, January, 2008

GOMA, DR Congo (AFP) — Talks to secure peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo's conflict-torn eastern regions opened Sunday amid warnings by the Catholic Church against a "Balkanisation" of the vast African country.

"Territorial integrity, the inviolability of borders and national unity of the Democratic Republic of Congo are not negotiable," the Roman Catholic Conference of Bishops wrote in a statement echoed earlier by other religious leaders.

It warned against what it called the "balkanisation" of the country violence, by the creation of mini-states. The country has remained politically fragile following its 1998-2003 civil war.

Government ministers, lawmakers, international officials and representatives of various armed groups in the eastern Nord- and...