I found this article about peace-keepers in the DRC, on BBC News. The UN troops are mandated to support the Congolese military, but there are allegations about abuses by the military. The UN peacekeepers are criticized for not speaking out about these abuses, and are also criticized by civilians for getting in their way in strikes against rebel groups.
This is an interesting reminder that UN peacekeepers are not always viewed favorably by the civilian populations they are intended to protect. In addition, what should the UN do when the civilians they are protecting don't want their protection?
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I think another problem for MONUC is/was the constant allegiance switching of all the various armed forces in the DRC. Like you say, MONUC is mandated to support the FARDC, the Congolese army. But in early 2007, the FARDC tried a mixage experiment with Nkunda's forces and together they were then supposed to fight the FDLR. But that didn't work so well and the mixed troops broke apart, so then the FARDC went back to fighting Nkunda. Allegedly the FARDC then allied with the FDLR to fight Nkunda. Meanwhile you have MONUC stuck in the middle of all of this. With a national army that is constantly changing, who exactly is MONUC supposed to support? The only thing they know for sure is that they're supposed to protect the civilians who have been targeted by all sides at some point. But then by doing so, as you pointed out, they stop what might have been a successful offensive operation against the rebels (although the operations in December '07 were a complete disaster for the FARDC). Makes you glad you're not part of MONUC trying to make sense of this confusion. I guess the only option for UN peacekeepers is to follow their mandate no matter how welcome they may or may not be.
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