Kabila visited Bemba at his home for a two-hour meeting in which they discussed working together to forge a cohesive political system. According to a newspaper in Congo’s capital, Kinshasa, “This meeting proceeded in an atmosphere full of joviality and warmth.”
“This is good that they have come out openly and done this,” Thornbloom says. “Bemba wants to start with a clean slate,” adding, “I think he’s wanting to show that he wants to be a reasonable person in the new government.”
Bemba has said he still intends to work within the political system as a member of the loyal opposition.
Last week, Bemba urged his followers not to resort to violence in the wake of the recent election, in which Kabila garnered 58 percent of the vote in the run-off election between the two men. Supporters of Bemba alleged Kabila’s victory was stolen through fraud, but the country’s Supreme Court ruled against his challenge and declared Kabila the winner.
Both leaders had pledged not to engage in violence if they lost the election, but loyalists on each side engaged in gun violence over several days while votes were counted. The conflicts included an attack on Bemba’s residence.
Recent days have been peaceful, however, but Thornbloom cautioned that the two leaders may not be able to stop all of the violence. “This does not necessarily mean they will be able to control all their people,” he said.
The elections were held with the hope that it would lead to a continued peace. Fighting that waged between 1998 and 2003 led to a humanitarian crisis that killed more than 4 million Congolese due to violence, hunger and disease.
