Mozambique in "deep division" over deployment of SADC and Rwandan troops

MAPUTO, Mozambique 

A paper by the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) points to “deep divisions” in Mozambique over the Rwandan and SADC deployments, and advocates a ” a joint vision for long-term stability” that includes “all the forces in Mozambique”.

According to the study published by the South African analysis institute, not only “has there been little communication” between the African Union (AU) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), which deployed more than 3,000 troops to Mozambique in mid-2021 within the framework of the SAMIM mission in Mozambique, given that the regional bloc has thus far held no “high-level discussions” with Rwanda, which has 2,000 men fighting the Islamic extremist insurgency in Cabo Delgado.

“Joint strategies with security forces that pull in the same direction would lead to a much better result,” the ISS says, stressing that “there are still attacks throughout the province of Cabo Delgado”, a situation corroborated by the United Nations Refugees, which continues to consider it “premature to encourage displaced people to return to their homes”.

“The SADC deployment is noted in official African Union (AU) documents as part of the AU’s African Standby Force. But so far there’s been little communication between SADC and the AU in this regard,” the study, authored by Liesl Louw-Vaudran, a senior researcher at ISS Pretoria, underlines.

“The southern African bloc only recently approached the AU – six months after the Mozambican deployment and when funds started running out,” the research observes, considering that “in doing so, SADC set aside its historical mistrust of the AU and its insistence on the principle of subsidiarity – which means, in this case, that the SADC leads on security issues”.

SADC “has also had no high-level discussions with Rwanda about its presence in Cabo Delgado”, the researcher points out.

Liesl Louw-Vaudran explains that “Rwanda believes that rooting out terrorism in the province is vital for its own security”. Nonetheless, the researcher notes that “tensions between SADC and Rwanda date back to differences over election results in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in early 2019. Despite overtures by President Paul Kagame to key SADC countries, concerns persist”.

“On 3 April, SADC ministers of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security met in Pretoria to discuss the mission with representatives of the main troop-contributing countries and Mozambique,” the heads of state of the bloc were expected to ratify a decision to extend the mission for another three months, until July 15, 2022, but “as has been the case with all SADC meetings on northern Mozambique, Rwanda wasn’t invited”, the ISS paper observes.

“SAMIM head Professor Mpho Molomo reassured member states that the mission’s troops and Rwandan forces are coordinating on the ground. But there have been no high-level political talks among heads of state of the countries concerned,” Louw-Vaudran reiterates.

“Institute for Security Studies research reveals deep divisions in Mozambique over the Rwandan and SADC deployments. Civil society organisations in the country question the transparency and financing of the Rwandan deployment,” adds the researcher.

The ISS considers that the AU “could help ensure that ‘African solutions’ for Mozambique” in this field “are successful” given that “it has experience in this regard, and most of its resolutions highlight the need to deal with issues that drive violent extremism”.

However, the research adds, member states of the pan-African organisation “rarely adhere to these policies, and some see coordination between regional economic communities (such as SADC) and the AU as a stumbling block rather than a benefit”.

“The first discussion of the AU Peace and Security Council (PSC) on SAMIM only happened in January 2022, six months after its deployment. The PSC retroactively endorsed the mission and called for funding and material assistance for the force,” the ISS underlines.

“The AU considers SAMIM one of the first deployments of the African Standby Force – a vital cog in its peace and security machinery. African Standby Force protocols stipulate that coordination, particularly with the AU Commission chairperson, is needed during its deployments. This hasn’t yet happened in the Mozambique case,” the analysis continues.

On the other hand, SADC also only sought AU support “when it needed funding to extend the mission’s mandate beyond the first six months,” the study notes.

Earlier this month, the SADC received an initial amount of €2 million from the European Union’s Rapid Response Mechanism, and now expects to have access to funding from the AU Peace Fund, which has $230 million (€211.6 million) in contributions from member states.