THE notorious M23 rebel group is wreaking havoc in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, seizing the region’s two biggest cities in a deadly uprising which has forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes.
Central to their campaign is the assertion that ethnic Tutsis living in DR Congo are being persecuted.
Digging into the status of Tutsis in DR Congo – and how it relates to the M23 uprising – is a complex and sensitive matter that goes to the heart of who is considered Congolese.
For starters, many global authorities argue that in their purported fight against discrimination, the rebels have committed unjustifiable atrocities. The UN and US, for instance, have sanctioned M23 leaders over allegations of war crimes, such as sexual violence and the killing of civilians.
Secondly, some regional analysts say that rather than seeking to defend Tutsis, the M23 – and Rwanda, which backs the rebel group – is primarily seeking to exploit the eastern DR Congo’s vast mineral wealth.
It is also worth noting that there are thought to be hundreds of thousands of Tutsis in DR Congo – there is no official estimate – and many do not support the actions being carried out in their name.
That being said, experts and organisations like the UN have documented decades of discrimination against Congolese Tutsis and the Banyamulenge – a Tutsi sub-group concentrated in the South Kivu province.
This ranges from ethnic killings, to workplace discrimination, to hate speech on the part of politicians.
At the root of this discrimination is the association of Tutsis with neighbouring Rwanda, which has been led by Tutsis since 1994. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, many Congolese Tutsis played a key role in violent Rwandan-backed rebellions against the governments then running DR Congo.
The perception that Congolese Tutsis are “foreign” can have deadly consequences.
Bukuru Muhizi, a researcher and economist from South Kivu’s Mwenga territory, told the BBC that people from various generations of his family had been killed because of their Banyamulenge and Tutsi identities.
