In a tense atmosphere marked by grief and urgency, members of the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans, along with the Joint Standing Committee on Defence, convened on Tuesday to seek answers from Defence Minister Angie Motshekga regarding the ongoing situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

This meeting was overshadowed by the tragic loss of 14 South African soldiers, whose bodies have yet to be repatriated more than a week after they were killed in action against M23 Rebels in the DRC.

During the parliamentary briefing, South African National Defence Force Chief General Rudzani Maphwanya and Brigadier General Godfrey Thulare took centre stage.

Their presentation provided updates on the situation, including assurances about efforts to bring the soldiers home.

Thulare remarked that all the regional bodies are working behind the scenes to deliver the bodies of the fallen soldiers back home as a matter of urgency.

“The priority we are working towards every day is the repatriation of the bodies of the deceased and the injured back at home. We have engaged the United Nations as well as MONUSCO in the DRC regarding this process,” he revealed.

Thulare added that last week’s Summit by the government of Zimbabwe led by President Emmerson Mnangagwa, the current chairperson of the 16-member Southern African Development Community deliberated on the security situation in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) with commitments given on the urgency of this process.

“The Summit has called for the immediate dispatch of chiefs of defence from contributing countries in the DRC to ensure that our troops are safe and the immediate repatriation is facilitated,” Thulare further stated.

The minister also in the company of her deputy, Bantu Holomisa was at pains to explain the real reasons for the continued deployment of SA troops in the DRC. She said the current peacekeeping mission is not South Africa’s first mission abroad.

“We have been everywhere. This is not South Africa’s first peacekeeping mission as this is our 23rd mission. This is the work that as a country, we have been doing on a consistent basis as part of AU and SADC, even as part of the world because we have also been to Haiti,” she stated.

The minister indicated that contrary to popular belief, the DRC mission is SADC-led, not SANDF-led as has been intimated.

siyabonga.sithole@inl.co.za