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[GENEVA, 1 December 2008] - Several months after having done away with the post of the independent expert on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Human Rights Council has decided to send seven independent experts to the country. Juan Gasparini and Michel Bührer/Human Rights Tribune - Seven experts will now consecutively visit the DRC from now until March 2009. The Human Rights Council ended its special session on the catastrophic situation in the DRC with a resolution, adopted unanimously this Monday the 1st December. After negotiations between the European Union and African countries, the resolution will create a mechanism to review the human rights situation on the ground. The text condemns in particular violence and abuse against women and forced recruitment of child soldiers, issues that African countries didn’t want mentioned. It also calls for an immediate end to all other human rights violations, particularly in the east of the country, as well as for a peaceful solution to the conflict. But its most striking provision is sending seven independent experts to the DRC so that they can report back to the Council at its next regular session in March 2009. The experts hold mandates on the following issues; gender based violence, internal displacement, the independence of the judiciary and the legal profession, human rights defenders, the role of multinationals, children in armed conflict and the right to health. In March 2008, the Council, after having abolished the mandate of the DRC expert, asked the country to invite these seven rapporteurs to visit. There was however no certainty that the government was going to agree and no timetable fixed for the visits. France, on behalf of the EU, had wanted to include the experts against torture and extrajudicial executions. A source close to the negotiations told HRT that the request had been turned down by the African group. France also expressed disappointment that the government had not been asked to continue its cooperation with the International Criminal Court. The DRC delegation has agreed to the provisions in the declaration. However it believes that it deals with the consequences of the conflict and overlooks the causes. It criticizes the UN for not putting pressure on those countries, which it says are trying to destabilize Congo in order to encourage an uprising in North Kivu and divide the country. It did not mention any particular country, but it is clear that it is referring to Rwanda. Surprisingly, the DRC representative used the opportunity to accuse the NGO, Human Rights Watch of calling on the population of « certain provinces » to rise up against the central government in Kinshasha. Asked to comment by the Human Rights Tribune, Sebastien Gilloz, HRW representative at the Council, said that « the accusation was so ridiculous that we would prefer not to comment ». A week ago, HRW published a report on the situation in the Congo since the current President, Joseph Kabila, came to power. The report includes details about political prisoners, the assassination of political opponents and enforced disappearances.