Cape Town – Former president Thabo Mbeki has reportedly defended his foundation’s decision to host the Congolese rebel militia M23 in a peace dialogue in Pretoria, saying it was essential to include the group if peace efforts in the DRC were to be meaningful.
Speaking at UNISA, he expressed surprise at the controversy, noting that M23 is already involved in talks with the Congolese government in Doha.
“It puzzled me that the question arose at all, because you can’t discuss peace and security in the Congo without involving the M23, otherwise, you are joking,” said Mbeki.
[WATCH] Former President Thabo Mbeki has defended the inclusion of the M23 rebel group at the recent African Peace and Security Dialogue.
He told students it was impossible to discuss peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo without engaging the M23. pic.twitter.com/kiIGzrw5eO
— Jacaranda News (@JacaNews) September 12, 2025
“That is why you have a process taking place in Doha, Qatar, where the government of Congo and M23 are meeting and necessarily it’s correct.”
Last weeek, the Minister of International Relations Ronald Lamola denied knowing that M23 rebels would attend the peace dialogue.
Africa Report had reported earlier that several months after fierce fighting in Goma between M23 rebels and peacekeepers claimed the lives of 14 South African soldiers and numerous rebels, an M23 delegation had arrived in South Africa for peace talks.
The presence of M23 representatives at the second annual African Peace and Security Dialogue in Magaliesburg, Gauteng, has puzzled the South African government. | @City_Presshttps://t.co/AbP64snfHu
— News24 🇿🇦 (@News24) September 7, 2025
Spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka, making his first trip to the country since the deadly clashes involving his group, the Congo River Alliance/M23, stressed that his mission was one of peace, the report said.
According to The Citizen, the conference drew dignitaries from across the continent, but the DRC government boycotted, and nationals protested outside due to M23’s presence.
M23 spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka thanked Mbeki for the invitation while criticising the DRC government for declining.
“It is dreadful. Awful. To have a president of a country deny an invitation for peace is really appalling. As a Congolese, I can only apologise to his excellency Thabo Mbeki and his foundation,” the report quoted him as saying while citing SABC News.
Lamola said his department did not screen the guest list but stressed the importance of dialogue in resolving Africa’s conflicts, urging for “African solutions to African problems” and greater beneficiation of the continent’s critical minerals.
“We were not aware that there were members of the M23 rebels. For us, the dialogue is part of information sharing and a way of trying to find solutions to the continent’s political conflicts,” Lamola told City Press.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
