BY MEGAN ARNEY
From U.S. marines stationed in Brazzaville, Congo, and the USS Nassau just off the coast of central Africa, to the stepped up propaganda of horrific pictures of refugees in the big-business press, Washington and other imperialist powers are gearing up for militarily intervention in Zaire.

This comes as rebel forces in that country have made huge gains, taking several major cities in the southern and central parts of the country and controlling most of Zaire's gold, diamond, copper, and cobalt mines. Troops of the Alliance for Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo/Zaire are now positioned near the city of Bandundu - a mere 160 miles northeast of the capital city of Kinshasa. Rebel leader Laurent Kabila has said they intend to be in the capital by June, the Washington Post reported April 8.

Meanwhile, the regime of President Mobutu Sese Seko is getting increasingly desperate. On April 8, Mobutu declared a state of emergency and had his newly appointed prime minister, Étienne Tshisekedi, placed under house arrest.

The April 9 Washington Post reported that the Clinton administration has conveyed to the Zairian president through African officials its desire for Mobutu to resign. Washington, which played a central role in installing Mobutu Seso Seko in power on the blood and bones of the independence fighters in Zaire in the 1960s, backed the dictatorship with millions of dollars until his imminent downfall became clear.

White House press secretary Michael McCurry said April 9, "Mobutuism is about to become a creature of history." Assistant secretary of state for African Affairs George Moose called the Mobutu regime "bankrupt" and "a thing of the past."

Some 1,800 U.S. troops arrived in Brazzaville a few weeks ago and set up a military base at the international airport, just across the Congo River from the Zairian capital. On April 8, the Associated Press reported that U.S. marines are practicing military maneuvers in that Congo city. The USS Nassau, an amphibious assault craft, is also off the coast, carrying 1,388 Marines. Thousands of imperialist troops, including from the United States, France, Britain, and Belgium, are now deployed in the region, and are prepared to enter Zaire to "evacuate their citizens." In addition, Paris, with 9,000 troops in Africa, has its second-largest military base in the Central African Republic, just north of Zaire.

On April 7, Kabila objected to the imperialist intervention, saying "They could move in at any time. They don't recognize the sovereignty of our people." Kabila called the moves by the imperialists "a threat to our territorial integrity."

A plethora of pictures and articles in the big-business press have touted the suffering of refugees. These are used to bolster the imperialists' argument for intervention under the auspices of "humanitarian aid."

Most of the refugees are civilians who fled the Rwandan war in 1992, but some took part in organizing mass killings in Rwanda and fear returning to that country. Rebels have said for weeks that they would open a corridor for the refugees to go back to Rwanda. In another maneuver to slander the Alliance, Roberto Garretón, a UN official, recently proposed a commission to look into allegations of mass murders by rebels. There has been zero evidence, however, to back up the claim. In his report, Garretón himself acknowledged that the information about the alleged deaths is "frequently inadequate and even contradictory."

Since the rebels captured Zaire's third largest city, Kisangani, on March 15, the momentum toward overthrowing the Mobutu dictatorship has swept into the south and central parts of Zaire. The rebels advanced south to Kamina - a rail center and a key part of the mineral-rich Shaba region - and went on to Lubumbashi.

The Associated Press reported that while fighting was sporadic there, rebel troops were welcomed by thousands of Zairian people. The rebels captured the city April 9 after defeating forces from Mobutu's Presidential Guard. Groups of cheering onlookers had gathered outside one army barracks in the city on April 8, as government troops tied on white headbands to signal their switch of allegiance to the rebels. Sgt. Kafua Otamba of the 21st brigade said, "We've suffered enough in Zaire over the last 30 years. We must get rid of Mobutu. We've had no pay and we have no food." Lubumbashi is the heart of Zaire's copper belt and cobalt mining.

The rebels of the Alliance captured the city of Mbuji- Mayi on April 4. Taking the central Zairian city was strategically the most important after Kisangani. The diamond-mining center of Zaire, Mbuji-Mayi is the country's richest source of hard currency with an estimated $20 million in official monthly revenue for diamonds.

Meanwhile in Kinshasa, moving to prop up his decrepit regime, dictator Mobutu approved the appointment of opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi as prime minister, only to arrest him a week later. The appointment on April 1 of Tshisekedi marked the desperation of Mobutu regime.

Two days later, Tshisekedi ordered parliament dissolved and announced a new cabinet excluding members of Mobutu's party. He proposed to the rebel forces to form a coalition government and offered them six of 24 ministerial posts in his cabinet, including those in charge of defense, external trade, and foreign affairs. Rejecting the offer, rebel spokesman Raphael Ghenda told Agence France-Presse in Goma, "We want the departure of Mobutu. Tshisekedi and his government are part of the Mobutu administration." On April 5, the Zairian opposition withdrew support from Tshisekedi.

Mobutu recalled parliament for a session April 7 to oust Tshisekedi. In response, several thousand protesters set up barricades of burning tires and police fired tear gas to turn back about 1,000 demonstrators heading for the parliament to stop the April 7 opening session. Mobutu then declared a state of emergency on April 8, which includes a ban on demonstrations, a curfew, and the appointment of military governors. The next day government forces arrested Tshisekedi, and Mobutu named army Gen. Likulia Bolongo to replace him. "Tshisekedi was brought to his home for his own safety," Defense Ministry spokesman Leon Kalima said. "He is not under house arrest." Hundreds of troops fired tear gas at some 10,000 protesters, who were demonstrating in support of the prime minister.

Delegations from the Mobutu regime and the rebel forces were in South Africa for negotiations for a cease-fire that began April 5. The talks ended April 8, however, as rebels continued their march west and south.  
 
 
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