Ahead of South Africa’s senior soldier pronouncing the now terminated Southern African Development Community (SADC) Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (SAMIDRC) not a failure, a Member of Parliament (MP) heard 174 SA National Defence Force (SANDF) personnel were ‘injured’ while deployed to the central African nation during a 15 month span.
Response to a Parliamentary question regarding injuries and type suffered by South African defence personnel asked by National Council of Provinces (NCOP) Democratic Alliance (DA) public representative Nicholas Gotsell on 13 March, the same day SAMIDRC termination was made public, give shrapnel as the leading cause of injuries. A hundred and sixty-five SANDF personnel were injured by shrapnel since December 2023, according to Defence and Military Veterans Minister Angie Motshekga, with a further nine shot and wounded.
According to the Ministerial reply, 133 of those injured and/or wounded returned to South Africa on 23 and 25 February following the Battle for Goma in which 14 South African soldiers died. Last year, 13 wounded members were repatriated to South Africa.
Gotsell was also informed two soldiers fell pregnant while on deployment with both now back in South Africa.
Another question answered by Motshekga revealed that 18 SANDF soldiers died on deployment to the DRC between 2020 and 2024. These were primarily with the United Nations’ Monusco mission. Although SANDF troops and equipment serving with SAMIDRC will return home by the end of May, the SANDF’s deployment under Monusco continues.
On Sunday 4 May, Motshekga said the phased withdrawal of SAMIDRC forces “marks a new chapter in our regional peacekeeping efforts. This reflects confidence in the DRC’s quest to manage its internal security challenges with reduced external military presence, supported by ongoing diplomatic and development partnerships.”
Another take on the start of the SAMIDRC withdrawal, particularly as it relates to South Africa, came from Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on International Relations and Co-operation (PCIRC).
A Parliamentary Communication Service statement has committee chair Supra Mahumapelo, a former North West provincial premier, saying South Africans should be proud of the “ambassadorial role the South African army played” despite challenges experienced “at this specific Goma mission”.
“We proved once more that international co-operation is the way to resolve the challenges that we are encountering as the continent (sic). Co-operation and good relations with our African brothers is even more necessary if we are to have a brighter future that we could all share,” the statement further quotes him.
