Congolese military forces and a coalition of abusive militias are threatening the security of civilians in Uvira, South Kivu province, in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Human Rights Watch said today.
The militias known as Wazalendo ("patriots" in Swahili) are allied with the Congolese army and oppose the abusive Rwanda-backed M23 armed group, which has captured parts of South Kivu. Concerns over the protection of civilians in Uvira were heightened by tensions over the appointment of a new army commander. Wazalendo fighters have harassed, threatened, abducted, and restricted access to services for members of the Banyamulenge community in Uvira, who are South Kivu-based Congolese Tutsis, accusing them of supporting the M23.
"The deteriorating situation in South Kivu reflects a dangerous combination of governance failures, distrust between armed forces and armed groups that have been allied with them, and rising ethnic tensions," said Clémentine de Montjoye, senior Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch. "Continuing atrocities by all parties to the conflict highlight the need for concerned governments to press for protecting civilians and providing safe passage for those fleeing the fighting."
In early September, a general strike and a protest led by Wazalendo fighters and civil society groups paralyzed Uvira for eight days. Wazalendo leaders opposed the September 1 deployment of Gen. Olivier Gasita Mukunda, a member of the Banyamulenge community, to the city, alleging that he had colluded with the M23. Media reported he has since left the city.
On September 2, Wazalendo militias organized roadblocks, particularly along a major route to the Burundi border. Transport, trade, and education services were largely shut down until September 9. Burundi relies on Uvira for trade in basic supplies and fuel amid a devastating economic crisis.
For several days, Wazalendo fighters intermittently prevented people from fleeing across the border, witnesses said. A border officer told Human Rights Watch: "[the Wazalendo] did not want to see people fleeing to Burundi." On September 5, Wazalendo fighters fired small arms and artillery within Uvira, killing an 8-year-old boy when a shell struck his house.
On September 8, Congolese military forces opened fire on unarmed protesters in Uvira who were protesting Gasita's deployment to the city. The forces shot some people in the back as they fled, killing an 8-year-old boy and injuring at least 9 civilians, including an 11-year-old girl.
The protest followed months of deteriorating relations between the Congolese army and the Wazalendo, fueled by mutual accusations of corruption, infiltration, and of abandoning front line positions.
"Some people tried to go to the area where General Gasita was, and this was not allowed," said a civil society leader. Human Rights Watch verified and geolocated a video showing protesters fleeing as gunshots were fired about 150 meters from the town hall.
The warring parties in eastern Congo have increasingly appealed to ethnic prejudices, triggering waves of discrimination and abuses. Many Wazalendo abuses have targeted the Banyamulenge, who have long been accused of being M23 supporters.
Human Rights Watch reviewed audio and video recordings of speeches by authorities that fueled distrust toward Gasita and the Banyamulenge. On September 6, four Wazalendo fighters surrounded the house of a civil society leader and member of the Banyamulenge community and attempted to force their way in. They told the guard, "Where is this 'Rwandan'? Now is the time to finish him off" and accused him of being related to Gasita. The fighters left after a local authority intervened.
On September 6, South Kivu authorities wrote to the deputy prime minister for the interior to raise concerns about increasing intercommunal tensions targeting the Banyamulenge, who have been denied access to water points, and requesting support to identify, arrest, and remove individuals who are behind incendiary speech and defy state authority. On September 11, a delegation from Kinshasa, including the deputy prime minister for the interior, traveled to Uvira to "reconcile local communities, relieve tensions, and re-establish state authority," according to media.
Tensions had escalated since August 25, when Wazalendo fighters prevented the funeral of an army colonel from the Banyamulenge community and his wife for several days and robbed people there. "They said no 'Rwandan' should be buried here in Uvira," a witness said.
On September 6, Gen. Sylvain Ekenge, the spokesperson for the Congolese army, said during a news conference, "We don't control the Wazalendo, the Wazalendo are not part of the armed forces," and said it was not the army's job to "manage" them.
In Burundi on September 8, police and ruling party youths detained hundreds of Congolese refugees and asylum seekers, according to several witnesses and media reports. They were given the "choice" of going to an official camp or returning to Congo, which about 80 people did. In Uvira, though, the returnees said they did not receive assistance. Over 70,000 refugees have fled eastern Congo into Burundi since January, when Rwandan forces and the M23 launched an offensive on Goma and Bukavu, North and South Kivu's capitals.
All governments in the region should prioritize the need for safe passage for civilians to escape fighting, Human Rights Watch said.
In May, Human Rights Watch documented that Wazalendo fighters had beaten, killed, and extorted civilians, at times on an ethnic basis. Despite growing concern about the Congolese army's lack of command and control over the Wazalendo, the army has continued to provide them with weapons, ammunition, and financial support.
Officials who knowingly provide weapons to abusive armed groups may be complicit in crimes they commit, Human Rights Watch said.
The Banyamulenge have long faced discrimination, exclusion, and targeted violence in Congo. Since the 1990s, Congolese political leaders and armed groups questioned the community's citizenship and portrayed them as outsiders, fueling recurrent persecution. Since the end of the Congo Wars in 2003, cycles of armed conflict in South Kivu continued to expose Banyamulenge civilians to violence, especially as disputes over land, political representation, and control of resources deepened. Mai-Mai militias committed much of this violence.
The resurgence of the M23 in late 2021 led these and other armed groups to form the Wazalendo to fight the M23. The Rwandan government has increasingly used anti-Banyamulenge and anti-Tutsi incidents to justify its support for the M23, and portray their military operations as aimed to protect the Banyamulenge community.
Congolese authorities should publicly condemn and act to prevent ethnically motivated harassment and attacks, including by investigating and appropriately prosecuting all those responsible. The government should also prohibit discriminatory practices that may lead to further abuses, Human Rights Watch said.
The Congolese authorities should end their support to the Wazalendo and ensure that those responsible for unlawful killings and other abuses are held accountable through fair and transparent judicial processes. Commanders who knew or should have known about serious abuses by forces under their control and did not take appropriate action may be prosecuted as a matter of command responsibility.
"Civilians in eastern Congo are caught between multiple armed forces and groups, often with little clarity on who is responsible for their safety," de Montjoye said. "The Congolese government needs to ensure that its armed forces take the lead on protecting civilians, delivering basic goods and services, and ending ethnic discrimination and abuse."
