By Ebi Kesiena
Hundreds of displaced women in Goma have called for the departure of the rebel group M23 and an end to the violence in Eastern Congo.
According to the women the suffering from hunger and their children have been unable to attend school has moved them to take to the streets.
With babies on their back, they chanted slogans and carried signs demanding justice and peace.
Kasikiti Asuta, 42, displaced mother of four children said “M23 makes us suffer. We are hungry, even our husbands have been killed,”.
The conflict in eastern Congo has gone on for decades, with more than 100 armed groups fighting for control of valuable mineral resources while others protect their communities, and has triggered an exodus of refugees.
The demonstration took place while the East African Heads of State were meeting in Addis Ababa at a special summit to discuss the security issue in eastern DRC. The day before the protest, the Congolese army clashed with M23 rebels a few kilometres from the Goma.
Ealier, the Congolese army denounced the attack against its positions by the M23, in violation of the ceasefire as recommended by the East African Heads of State, at a recent Burundi Summit.
In December, the United Nations accused the rebels of being responsible for massacring more than 130 civilians in two villages.
