Congo’s president appointed mediator of Chad's transition

By James Tasamba

KIGALI, Rwanda (AA) - Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi was appointed mediator Tuesday of the political transition to elections in Chad.

He was named during an extraordinary summit of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) in the nation’s capital, Kinshasa.

Leaders from 11 countries of the group met to discuss the transition, days after dozens were killed in protests concerning the delayed transition of power from the military.

Tshisekedi promised to do his best to bring peace to Chad and get the transition back on track.

“There are high stakes involved and a heavy responsibility balancing the aspirations of the Chadian people against the values and ideals of the African Union and ECAC as well as the fundamental principles in such circumstances,” he said.

The summit expressed concern about last week’s violence where protesters were killed and it condemned violence to settle political issues.

Other presidents of member states present included Mahamat Idriss Deby of Chad, Denis Sassou Nguesso of the Republic of Congo and Faustin-Archange Touadera of the Central African Republic.

Deby took leadership of the central African country last year following the death of his father, Idriss Deby Itno, who died on the frontlines fighting rebels after ruling the country for 30 years.

He had promised to hand power to an elected government in October after 18 months, but that deadline has not been met.

Deby was recently inaugurated as the nation’s transition president, after being named by the National Sovereign Inclusive Dialogue forum.

The military has extended the transition period by two years for elections.

About 50 people were killed last week and more than 300 injured after security forces opened fire on protesters demanding an end to military rule.

The protests were led by opposition parties that did not participate in a national dialogue.