Walikale Territory

Last updated

Walikale Territory
Walikale Territory
Walikale Territory
Walikale on a map of North Kivu Province
Democratic Republic of the Congo (26 provinces) - Nord-Kivu.svg
North Kivu on a map of DR Congo
CountryFlag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.svg  DR Congo
Province North Kivu
Time zone UTC+2 (CAT)

Walikale Territory is a territory located within the Congolese province of North Kivu, in the eastern regions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The headquarters are in the town of Walikale. The locality is situated between Bukavu and Lubutu (Maniema Province) on DR Congo National Road No. 3 in the valley of the river Lowa, 135 km to the west of Goma. [1]

Contents

Walikale is rich in cassiterite, which is refined elsewhere into tin. As of 2008, Walikale's cassiterite resources were largely controlled by warlords empowered by the ongoing Kivu conflict. Specifically, the renegade FARDC 85th Brigade, under Colonel Samy Matumo, controlled the mine at Bisie up to early 2009, when it was replaced by "accelerated integration" FARDC elements. [2]

The FDLR is continuing its activities in the territory, with May 2009 attacks in Busurungi, in the area bordering South Kivu. [3] Busurungi has around 7,000 inhabitants, spread between the villages of Bunyamisimbwa, Busurungi, Kahunju, Kamaito, Kamanyola, Kasebunga, Katokoro, Kitchanga, Kifuruka, Bukumbirwa, Kilambo, Kitemera, Moka, Ndaboye, Nyamimba, and Tuonane. [4]

History

The FDLR: Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda

The ‘Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda’ (FDLR) was initially a political-military movement that was created in 2000 by Hutu rebels that had participated in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. During the first Congo war in 1996, the Rwandan army started to dismantle the refugee camp that had been created to host the refugees of 1994, in search of ex-FAR (Forces Armées Rwandaises). The ALIR (Armée de Libération du Rwanda), former FDLR, was, therefore, created by these Hutu rebels in order to dismiss the new Rwandan Government and to resettle a Hutu government. The use of the acronym FOCA (Forces combattantes Abacunguzi) refers to a kinyarwanda word meaning ‘saviors’ or ‘liberator’.

However, their presence in the DRC was supposed to be temporary, in order to allow them time and protection (the wideness of the territory and its forests offers much more possibility to hide than Rwanda) to build up an army and to organize their potential coup d'État. [5]

The FDLR FOCA is, today, divided in three main brigades commanded by ‘Colonel’ Mutima, ‘Colonel’ Sadiki and ‘Colonel’ Omega. Their number has been evaluated between 3000 and 4500 rebels (Mercier 2009) In order to develop their influence and control over the territory, the FDLR tried on a few occasions to create alliances with the Mayi-Mayi Kifufua, Simba or Tseka, but at the moment no long term alliance has been created and fights between the FDLR and these groups are believed to have occurred on access to mines.

The FDLR have an important impact in Walikale today: from all the armed groups’ presents in the region, they are the most organized, numerous, structured and their knowledge of the territory constitutes their strength. On the other hand, the accumulation of years and years of fighting and wild livelihoods (part of their members literally live in the forest all year long) as well as the discovery that their chiefs (involved in the 1994 genocide) have absolutely no interests in going back to Rwanda (the official and initial aim of the FDLR), where they would probably be judged by the National of International court of justice.

Location in Walikale: approximate zones of FDLR’s actions.

The FDLR control the territory of Walikale on wide superficies. Their presence has been detected on a wide axis going from the east of Oninga (border with Lubutu) to Walowa Yungu (Mpito/Ntoto area) as well as on the western part of the southern axis going from the Kahrizi-Biega Park. They have different basis:

Mining activities

The areas controlled by the FDLR are mainly isolated forests and mining sites, exploited illegally and manually, with their own governance system, out of which we can identify:

  • The Bakano area: eight mining squares in Isangi, two in Mpango. They both are cassiterite, coltan, and gold mines.
  • The Ihana area: three mining squares in Ihana of gold and cassiterite.
  • The Luberick area: one mining square in Bana Mutati of gold and cassiterite, another mining square in Walowa of cassiterite and coltan.

Cassiterite, coltan, and gold are being extracted from these mines and brought illegally to Goma through Masisi territory. The only way to reach these sites is by plane from Goma to Walikale Centre, followed by a long trek into the forest by motor bike and on foot (of a minimum of six hours). [7]

The Mayi-Mayi Simba

The Mayi-Mayi Simba group was initially created in 1964 during the ‘Lumumbist rebellion’. It used to share communitarians ideals and motivations, but its motivations today are exclusively related to pillage and looting. They are located in the north of Walikale territory, on the western axis near the borders with Lubutu and Maniema (region of Oninga), but their activities have decreased in the last years in Walikale.

It is very hard to evaluate their number, as today they often attack in alliance with the Mayi-Mayi Tseka, or very occasionally with the FDLR. One of the most recent grouped attacks is the one lead in the famous mining site of Bisié. [8]

The Mayi-Mayi Kifuafua

Initially, the Mayi-Mayi Kifuafua was a self-defense group, aiming at defending their villages against the CNDP (previously called the RDC) in the region of Ufamando, in South Kivu. Today they have moved to South Walikale, in Walowa Loanda and Walowe Ubora regions, and control the southern axis of Chambucha to Karete. This position is very strategic as it is right on the trade road linking Bukavu to Walikale. They also control the eastern area of the Chambucha-Karete axis.

The Mayi-Mayi Kifuafua is divided into two groups, and antagonisms have started to arise between the leaders of these factions

These different tendencies and orientations are believed to be at the origins of ethnic tensions between Walowa Loanda and Walowa Ubora.

The Mayi-Mayi Tseka

The official motivation of the Mayi-Mayi Tseka is the protection of Walikale against the Tutsi invader. This faction was formed by Tseka, a merchant of ore, by young peasant from Walikale having lost their lands during the war, by some deserters of the FARDC or by formers CNDPs. Their location – on the western axis directed toward Kisangani, on the North of the cities of Mubi and Ndjingala, next to the famous mining area of Bisié – is representative of their concrete motivation, which is mining exploitation. [11]

Territory

The territory is divided into 2 collectivities, Bakano (4238 km2) and Wanianga (19,237 km2), and comprises 15 "groupements" totalling 90 localities. Walikale is the largest territory in the province of Nord-Kivu, with 39.46% of its surface. [12]

The territory is bordered by Lubero Territory on the north, Rutshuru Territory and Masisi Territory on the east, Tshopo Province and Maniema Province on the west, and South Kivu on the south.

Many armed groupings, often former Interahamwe or the militias of Laurent Nkunda, control the forests and have forced a significant proportion of the population into urban settlements. These armed groups often inflict robbery and violence on the local people, as well as engage in hunting and poaching of nominally protected species.

The territory is composed of various terrestrial and fresh water eco-regions. There are transition forests in the northeast and wet tropical forests and farmed land in the southeast and from Gilbertiodendron and Uapaca to the western edge of the province. [12] Since 1975, the southwest corner of the Walikale has been a part of Kahuzi-Biéga National Park. [13]

Population

The principal peoples of the territory are:

Accessibility

From Goma to Walikale Centre

There are three main ways to access Walikale Centre from Goma. The easiest and most secure way is by plane: there are no internal flights between Walikale and Goma, but the MONUSCO often flies from one city to the other, as well as some commercial planes. The landing strips are also very precarious.

The other ways of accessing Walikale Center from Goma are by land:

From Kisangani to Walikale Centre

Another possibility to access Walikale Centre is from Kisangani, the capital of the Orientale Province. It is the longest way of the three (the distance between Goma and Walikale Centre via Kisangani is more or less 1700 km) but it is the safest. From Goma, it is possible to take planes to Kisangani. The itinerary from Goma to Walikale via Kisangani is the best to transport material, as the roads are good enough for trucks. It implies crossing North Kivu, following the axis Goma - Butembo, Butembo – Komanda, Komanda – Nia Nia, Nia Nia – Bafwasende and finally Bafwasende – Kisangani. Then from Kisangani to Walikale, until Lubutu, the road follows the N3, and then secondary roads link Lubutu to Walikale Centre. The overall trip can take up to one week.

Food insecurity and emergency

In 2011, 55% of the population of Walikale has been affected by the consequences on the ongoing crisis in North-Kivu. This ongoing crisis is a security crisis but also tends to become a food crisis. Years of recurrent conflicts in Walikale has increased the vulnerability of the population and has disrupted the basic functioning of the economy and the society; without being considered as a humanitarian emergency yet, the situation in Walikale is too unstable and threatens the life of too many people to be left out of food security programs planning. [14]

The context of protracted crisis worsened food insecurity but did not totally originate it; it is essential not to limit the analysis to insecurity itself, but also to consider the root causes of food insecurity, which can vary from one region to another. Unlike some other conflicts, where armed groups' activities and insecurity directly provokes food insecurity, in the case of Walikale it appears that structural causes, historical causes of food insecurity and insecurity itself are intrinsically linked.

Historical causes

Structural causes

Politics

Walikale Territory is represented in the National Assembly by two deputies:

Umoja Wetu, Kimya II and Amani Leo

After the Congolese wars, Walikale territory had known a period of relative calm: surely, armed groups' activities had not ceased, "food lootings" were still frequent, and armed groups benefited from the central state’s ignorance of the region to continue their mining exploitation activities and to extend their local power. However, almost no conflicts were going on between armed groups, and neither the governmental army nor was the MONUC was interfering with their activities. [24]

In addition, some armed groups such as the FDLR had even started to integrate into the social and economic organization of Walikale; as shown in a report by the Pole Institute dating from 2008, the FDLR had begun to constitute "a state within a state" (Rudahigwa, 2008): customary chiefs admitted at the time that an important part of Walikale territory was under control of the FDLR, who had imposed its own rules and organization. Regular collections were organized within the local population of each village, and a part of their harvest had to be given, as a sort of tax. In exchange, the FDLR protected them. Furthermore, the members of the FDLR even started to develop economic activities other than mining looting, such as farming, local trade of foodstuff or manufactured products, and even building a hospital or social infrastructures. [24]

Even though in 2008 the FDLR represented an obstacle to food security in the sense that, through their taxing system and their lack of integration within the local population, the population was deprived from an important part of their harvest, the stability they imposed to the region ensured a certain regularity of food production and trade. In addition, the vulnerability of the population was lower because the FDLR taxing system encouraged the production of foodstuff and the cultivation of land; the farmers and peasants were fewer victims of attacks and could access their camp with lesser fear than today.

The growing power and activities of the FDLR in North Kivu led Kagame and Kabila to plan a joint intervention in 2009, to stop FDLR activities and to repatriate to Rwanda its combatants: this 2009 Eastern Congo offensive was named Umoja Wetu ("Our Unity" in Swahili). Judging whether this first intervention was efficient or not is irrelevant here, but two months after, in March 2009, the FDLR had grown in power again and started to lead reprisal attacks on the population. In Walikale, the consequences of these reprisals led to a food and humanitarian crisis in 2009 and marked the beginning of insecurity and violence in Walikale. (GRIP, 2011)

Many "volunteers" also joined the FDLR after the Umoja Wetu operation, mostly members of the CNDP and various Mayi-Mayi groups. The FDLR therefore represented at that moment, the most powerful opposition to the FARDC and by extension, to the central government, and therefore reassembled all military groups or rebels opposed for various reasons to the Congolese government. [25]

The consequences on the population of Umoja Wetu were dreadful: civilians became tools of the war, and the instauration of terror, recurrent massacres, and killings that followed Umoja Wetu were exclusively meant to put a pressure on the government. The military operation Kimia II and Amani Leo, led by the FARDC and supported by MONUC (which then became MONUSCO), worsened the insecurity in Walikale: not only were civilians victims of abuses meant to force the FARDC to stop their attacks, but also, entire villages were destroyed by fighting between the FDLR and the FARDC. (GRIP, 2011)

Therefore, this military operation completely destabilized the relative organization of food production and trade in Walikale. Instead of regular taxation, armed groups began to steal directly from the populations and to commit exactions in villages and on the fields. Food and rapes became weapons of the FDLR and other armed groups in Walikale, weapons that led to the current situation of food instability and humanitarian upcoming crisis.

The November 2011 election was also a factor in explaining the resumption of armed groups’ activities, and in particular of FDLR activities. In fact, the accumulations of the alliance between Kabila and Kagame and of the various military operations led to the development of a real hatred on behalf of the FDLR against the government of Kabila; his reelection in November therefore provoked a movement of protest orchestrated by the FDLR, which once again was reflected as a resumption of attacks on the population and the intensification of fighting with the FARDC. According to a member of a local NGO, this resumption could also be related to the fact that the opposition was constituted by members supporting the FDLR and the Mayi-Mayi.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Kivu</span> Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

North Kivu is a province bordering Lake Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its capital is Goma. The 2020 population was estimated to be 8,147,400.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bukavu</span> Provincial capital and city in South Kivu, DR Congo

Bukavu is a city in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), lying at the extreme south-western edge of Lake Kivu, west of Cyangugu in Rwanda, and separated from it by the outlet of the Ruzizi River. It is the capital of the South Kivu Province and as of 2012 it had an estimated population of 806,940.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mai-Mai</span> Militia groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The term Mai-Mai or Mayi-Mayi refers to any kind of community-based militia group active in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) that is formed to defend local communities and territory against other armed groups. Most were formed to resist the invasion of Rwandan forces and Rwanda-affiliated Congolese rebel groups, but some may have formed to exploit the war to their own advantage by looting, cattle rustling or banditry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goma</span> Provincial capital and city in North Kivu, DR Congo

Goma is the capital and largest city of the North Kivu Province in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu, next to the Rwandan city of Gisenyi. It shares its borders with Bukumu Chiefdom to the north, Rwanda to the east, Masisi Territory to the west, and is flanked by Lake Kivu to the south. The city lies in the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift System, and is only 13–18 km (8.1–11.2 mi) south of the active Nyiragongo Volcano. With an approximate area of 75.72 square kilometers, the city has an estimated population of nearly 2 million people according to the 2022 census, while the 1984 estimate placed the number at 80,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kivu conflict</span> Conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Kivu conflict is an umbrella term for a series of protracted armed conflicts in the North Kivu and South Kivu provinces in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo which have occurred since the end of the Second Congo War. Including neighboring Ituri province, there are more than 120 different armed groups active in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Currently, some of the most active rebel groups include the Allied Democratic Forces, the Cooperative for the Development of the Congo, the March 23 Movement, and many local Mai Mai militias. In addition to rebel groups and the governmental FARDC troops, a number of national and international organizations have intervened militarily in the conflict, including the United Nations force known as MONUSCO, and an East African Community regional force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Congress for the Defence of the People</span> Congolese militia

The National Congress for the Defence of the People is a political armed militia established by Laurent Nkunda in the Kivu region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in December 2006. The CNDP was engaged in the Kivu conflict, an armed conflict against the military of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In January 2009, the CNDP split and Nkunda was arrested by the Rwanda government. The remaining CNDP splinter faction, led by Bosco Ntaganda, was planned to be integrated into the national army.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is a source and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically conditions of forced labor and forced prostitution. The majority of this trafficking is internal, and much of it is perpetrated by armed groups and government forces outside government control within the DRC's unstable eastern provinces.

Army General Gabriel Amisi Kumba was Chief of Staff of the Forces Terrestres, the army of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Amisi was a former Forces armees Zairoises (FAZ) officer who was recruited into the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo (AFDL) in 1996. During the Second Congo War, Amisi was assistant chief of staff for logistics of the Rally for Congolese Democracy (RCD-G). This position was the origin of his nickname, as T-4 was the abbreviation for his position. He was implicated by Human Rights Watch in the execution of soldier Joe Lona Bifuko and in the torture of prisoners in the ANC military intelligence detention centre in Goma in 2001.

Kanyabayonga is a town straddling the Lubero and Rutshuru territories of North Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Administratively, the part which is in Lubero is the commune of Kanyabayonga and, the part in Rutshuru belongs to the Kanyabayonga groupement (grouping) which extends well south of the town and is within the Bwito chiefdom. The region as a whole has seen much armed conflict since 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rutshuru Territory</span> Place in North Kivu, DR Congo

Rutshuru Territory is a territory in the North Kivu province of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with headquarters is the town of Rutshuru.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bunyakiri</span> Town in Democratic Republic of the Congo

Bunyakiri is a town located in the high plateau of Kalehe Territory in the South Kivu Province in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Bunyakiri is nearby the Bulehe and Mulamba villages. It is mainly inhabited by Tembo, Havu, Twa and Hunde ethnic groups.

The Alliance of Patriots for a Free and Sovereign Congo is an armed militia group which operates in the north-east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. APCLS is traditionally active in Masisi Territory, North Kivu and is considered one of the largest mai-mai groups operating in the province. Formed in 2006, the APCLS draws most of its support from the Hunde ethnic group. Its ideology is founded on opposition to the Tutsi ethnic groups who are believed to threaten the integrity of the Congolese state and to be supported, in particular, by Rwanda. The APCLS is a belligerent in the ongoing Kivu conflict and is led by Janvier Buingo Karairi, known as General Janvier.

The Land Forces, also called the Congolese Army, are the land warfare component and the largest branch of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 North Kivu offensive</span>

On 30 June or 2 July 2014, the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and United Nations forces launched an offensive against rebel groups in the Masisi and Walikale territories, part of the North Kivu province, in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nduma Defense of Congo-Renovated</span>

Nduma Defense of Congo—Renovated is an armed militia group operating in north-east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo which controls large parts of North Kivu province. It has been a major participant of the Kivu conflict since its 2014 split from the Nduma Defense of Congo.

This a timeline of the Kivu conflict during 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M23 offensive (2022–present)</span> Conflict in the DR Congo

In late March 2022, the March 23 Movement (M23) launched an offensive in North Kivu, clashing with the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) and MONUSCO. The fighting displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians and caused renewed tensions between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, as the latter was proved of supporting the rebel offensive.

Yusufu Eric Mboneza, more commonly called Yusuf Mboneza, is or was a Congolese military officer and rebel. During his career he served in the Rally for Congolese Democracy, the National Congress for the Defence of the People, the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and finally the March 23 Movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bwito Chiefdom</span> Chiefdom in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Bwito Chiefdom is a chiefdom located in the Rutshuru Territory of North Kivu Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It is bordered to the north by Batangi Chiefdom and Kanyabayonga commune in Lubero Territory, Bwisha Chiefdom in the east, and to the north-east by Lake Edward and the Republic of Uganda. To the west, it is bordered by Bashali Chiefdom in Masisi Territory, and to the northwest by Wanyanga Chiefdom in Walikale Territory. To the south, it is bordered by Nyiragongo Territory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bashali Chiefdom</span> Chiefdom of the Masisi Territory of the North Kivu Province

The Bashali Chiefdom is a chiefdom located in the Masisi Territory of North Kivu Province in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Topographically, it is bounded to the east by the Virunga National Park, to the north by the Bwito Chiefdom of Rutshuru Territory, to the northwest by Walikale Territory, to the south by the Bahunde Chiefdom, and to the west by the Osso sector. Encompassing a total area of 1,582 square kilometers, the chiefdom is the administrative and sociopolitical structure for the Hunde ethnic group and is administratively subdivided into two groupements: Bashali-Mokoto and Bashali-Kaembe. Kitchanga, the urban center and administrative capital of the Bashali-Mokoto groupement, is the most densely populated locality within the chiefdom.

References

  1. RUNGE, J. (1996). "Palaeoenvironmental Interpretation of Geomorphological and Pedological Studies in the Rain Forest "Core-Areas" of Eastern Zaire (Central Africa)". South African Geographical Journal. 78 (2). Informa UK Limited: 91–97. Bibcode:1996SAfGJ..78...91R. doi:10.1080/03736245.1996.9713613. ISSN   0373-6245.
  2. Polgreen, Lydia (16 November 2008). "Congo's Riches, Looted by Renegade Troops". New York Times . Retrieved 16 November 2008.
  3. MONUC, MONUC condemns the attack in Busurungi and despatches a joint protection team
  4. S/2009/603 (French version), 23 November 2009, footnote 4 at page 87.
  5. Brune Mercier, Ressources Naturelles et Violence en RDC: les cas des FDLR, GRIP, 2009
  6. GRIP, Armes légères dans l'Est du Congo: Enquête sur la perception de l'insécurité, 2011
  7. International Alert, The complexity of resource governance in a context of State Fragility: The case of Eastern DRC, 2010
  8. idem, GRIP, 2011
  9. Grasset Julia, Conflicts and Food Security in Walikale: Feasibility and Challenges to Program Implementation, Sciences Po Lille (unpublished) 2012
  10. Idem.
  11. idem GRIP, 2011
  12. 1 2 Monographie provinciale du Nord-Kivu, DSRP
  13. Barume, A.K.; Forest Peoples Programme (2000). Heading Towards Extinction?: Indigenous Rights in Africa : the Case of the Twa of the Kahuzi-Biega National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo. IWGIA document. IWGIA. p. 68. ISBN   978-87-90730-31-4 . Retrieved 21 March 2023.
  14. Julia Grasset, Conflicts and Food security in Walikale, Sciences Po (unpublished) 2012
  15. Zwa, Conflict-sensitive land policy and governance in Africa, 2005
  16. Jean-Claude William, Banyarwanda et banyamulenge: Violences Ethniques et Gestion de l'Identitaire au Kivu, 1997
  17. Mahmood Mamdami, When victims become killers: Colonialism, Nativism and the Genocide in Rwanda, 2001
  18. Severine Autesserre, The trouble with the Congo, 2010
  19. UNDP, Exercice participatif d'analyse des conflits et capacités de paix pour la planification du développement dans la province du Nord-Kivu, 2008
  20. Amnesty International, Mass Rapes in Walikale: Still a need for protection and justice in Eastern Congo, 2010
  21. Timothy Raeymaekers, Conflicts and Food Security in Beni - Lubero, 2010
  22. Timothy Raeymaekers, Conflicts and Food Security in Beni Lubero, 2005
  23. Alinovi; Hemrich;Russo, Addressing Food Insecurity in Fragile States: case studies from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Somalia and Sudan, 2007
  24. 1 2 GRIP, 2011
  25. Primo Pascal Rudahigwa, La conférence de Goma et la question des FDLR au Nord et au Sud-Kivu, Pole Institute, 2008 http://www.pole-institute.org/documents/RCN%B021.pdf

01°25′S28°02′E / 1.417°S 28.033°E / -1.417; 28.033