The curtains fell on October 5 on the 19th conclave of the French-speaking community which took place in France and in the presence of nearly fifty heads of state and governments. On the sidelines of this edition which aims to “build a safer and more diverse space and to fight against all this hate speech”, there were, as usual, bilateral meetings to discuss the challenges posed to peace and stability in the French-speaking area, and behind-the-scenes negotiations to restore cohesion between the members of this organization which is more than ever at a crossroads. Thus, the Secretary General, Louise Mushikiwabo, pleaded from the opening of the summit, for the negotiated return to the French-speaking family, of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, all suspended since they were led by the military, due to hence the disenchantment with the language of Molière risks increasing in this African continent, although it is considered “the beating heart of the Francophonie”. The eternal war in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, which remains the country with the most French speakers in the world after France, was also discussed during the closed session of heads of state, and to some extent little darkened this summit with the bloodshed of President Félix Tshisekedi who decided to snub all the meetings of the second and last day, visibly exasperated by the fact that Emmanuel Macron did not say a word about the Congolese crisis in his speech .
We hope to find the epilogue of this Congolese crisis before the next Francophonie summit is held.
The president hosting the summit had however said urbi et orbi before this 19th edition, that he would do everything to bring together the two neighbors and sworn enemies who are the Rwandan Paul Kagame and the Congolese Félix Tshisekedi, and many observers are still wondering why he avoided the subject in his speech. Is it because of the diplomatically explosive nature of the crisis and his extreme caution so as not to add salt to the wound? Or would it be because of his relationship with Kagame described as a mixture of mutual admiration and political-diplomatic pragmatism? In any case, the Congolese authorities did not appreciate this equivocal silence from Macron on the “invasion” of the east of the DRC by the M23 supported, according to the UN, by Rwanda, and did not were quick to bring out the sulphate by asking Félix Tshisekedi to boycott the rest of the summit. And although Emmanuel Macron smoothed the edges after the reaction of the Congolese president, the delegation from Kinshasa continued to wonder what’s the point, especially since the damage is already done, or the dolo is already paid as they would say a disappointed and disillusioned Bwaba. In any case, Emmanuel Macron’s backpedaling is considered by Congolese leaders as the rope that supports the hanged man that is cut when it’s over, and therefore did not allow them to sit around the same table the two neighbors who accuse each other in the tragedy that has struck the east of the DRC for decades. By denouncing the Rwandan presence in this devastated region of Congo while pointing the finger at the anti-Kagamé Hutu rebels who swarm in the area, the French president not only avoided a second clash with his Congolese counterpart after their eventful press conference in March 2023, but also to frighten his Rwandan “friend” who justifies his involvement in the crisis by the DRC’s support for its sworn enemies. However, the opportunity was too good for Emmanuel Macron to play go-between between the two heads of state, in order to give more chance of success to the ongoing Angolan mediation, which has been slipping for months due to mutual distrust. between the ”protagonists”. This time it was a failure, but we hope to find the epilogue of this Congolese crisis which has fallen almost into oblivion, before the next summit of the Francophonie is held in Cambodia, in 2026.
Hamadou GADIAGA
