Zambia, DRC confer over border security situation

Authorities in Zambia have started talks with their counterparts in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to try and resolve an impasse over the Kasumbalesa border entry, which has seen truck drivers refusing to enter the DRC, the Zambia Daily Mail reported on Tuesday. The drivers from Zambia and other southern African countries have parked their trucks on the Zambian side of the border, saying they will only enter the DRC once their security was guaranteed. This followed the killing of a Zambian driver by a DRC security officer last Friday. Ministry of Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary George Zulu said the government has engaged the Congolese government to try and resolve the intense security impasse at the border. "Government has noted with concern what is happening at Kasumbalesa border post, where our gallant young men are being killed by the Congolese security officers. This is very unfortunate and I want to inform the nation that the Consular- General of the DRC and the Zambian Consular-General had a meeting and are both working towards improving the security situation at the border," he was quoted as saying by the paper. The Zambian government has since asked the DRC authorities to consider stepping up security measures at the border by putting in a place a 24-hour traffic patrol system. Over 500 trucks are marooned at the border as truck drivers have refused to enter into the DRC. The Zambia-DRC border has been experiencing security concerns for years. Last year, the drivers staged a three-day protest after another Zambian driver was burnt to death after he killed two pedestrians. The brutal killing of the Zambian driver sparked retaliatory attacks on Congolese nationals in Lusaka, the Zambia city and Ndola city on the Copperbelt province in which some Congolese were brutally beaten.