![\"Belgian](\"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/jpg\/whatsapp_image_2025-03-21_at_5.12_07_pm.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nDuring recent visits to Goma, the former lawmaker engaged with local communities and M23 leadership, including military chief Sultani Makenga, amid the rebel group’s recent advances in the east. He observed that the city was not the war zone portrayed in international media but rather a place where some sense of order had returned under M23 control.<\/p>\n
“I was surprised at how quiet and orderly it was. Life in Goma felt normal: people were out in the streets, shops were open\u2014except the banks, which were closed by the Kinshasa authorities,” he noted.<\/p>\n
He contrasted this with the chaos under the Congolese armed forces (FARDC), whom he accused of extortion and misconduct. According to him, many people in the region saw M23\u2019s governance as an improvement over Kinshasa\u2019s neglect.<\/p>\n
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Dr Destexhe was particularly critical of the international community’s selective response to the crisis, highlighting what he described as a \u201cdouble standard\u201d in the way Western nations handle the DRC conflict.<\/p>\n
“When it comes to Rwanda or M23, there\u2019s a stance followed by sanctions. With the DRC, they might say hate speech is bad, but there are no consequences,” he stated, referring to claims of Congolese leadership spreading hate speech against certain communities and accusations that Rwanda backs M23 rebels.<\/p>\n
He also pointed to the influence of the FDLR, a group linked to the perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, within the Congolese army, which Rwanda insists continues to pose a threat to Rwanda’s security.<\/p>\n
“The FDLR has infiltrated the Congolese army\u2019s key units, advising them and spreading their ideology\u2014hatred of Tutsis and the genocide mindset.”<\/p>\n
MONUSCO, the UN peacekeeping mission in DRC, also came under fire from the veteran doctor, who dismissed it as a costly failure.<\/p>\n
“They\u2019ve been there 20 years\u2014costing at least $1 billion a year and how many civilians have they protected? Very few, I\u2019d guess,” he said. <\/p>\n
“MONUSCO has a vested interest in staying, but it\u2019s not in the Congolese people\u2019s interest.”<\/p>\n
With tensions escalating following the capture of the cities of Goma and Bukavu, the former lawmaker warned that the situation could spiral out of control unless a political solution is found. He suggested that M23\u2019s increasing strength\u2014bolstered by defectors from the FARDC\u2014could shift the balance of power further.<\/p>\n
\u201cKinshasa can\u2019t retake Goma and Bukavu\u2026 M23 might have the capacity to push to Kisangani or Lubumbashi,\u201d he warned. <\/p>\n
“Tshisekedi needs a political solution, or the situation on the ground could spiral\u2014I don\u2019t know how,” he added.<\/p>\n
He called for security for all Kivu residents, regardless of ethnicity, and development of the region\u2019s rich agricultural and mineral resources.<\/p>\n
To Rwanda and Belgium, where [ diplomatic ties recently frayed->https:\/\/en.igihe.com\/news\/article\/rwanda-severs-ties-with-belgium-orders-diplomats-to-leave-within-48-hours] over accusations of Belgium pushing for sanctions against Rwanda, the seasoned lawmaker insisted that \u201cSanctions are wrong and unfair\u2026 The Kivu issue is about survival for its people, not Congo\u2019s sovereignty.\u201d<\/p>\n
As a medical doctor, he urged Western nations to reassess their approach to avoid the misdiagnosis that has persisted for decades.<\/p>\n
“I\u2019m a doctor\u2014when treating a patient, you first diagnose the illness correctly. If the diagnosis is wrong, you can\u2019t treat them. The international community needs a proper diagnosis of the Kivu problem, then a solution. Right now, they\u2019re giving the patient the wrong medicine.”<\/p>\n
Watch the full interview below:<\/p>\n