AFRICA/DR CONGO – Between M23 “ghost” militiamen and private vendettas, Uvira lives in uncertainty

Kinshasa – A city suspended in limbo. This is the situation in Uvira, a city in South Kivu, in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, on the border with Burundi, which was captured on December 10 by M23/AFC guerrillas .
The M23/AFC recently claimed to have withdrawn from Uvira, but in reality, according to local sources contacted by Fides, its fighters remain present, especially in the peripheral areas, while in the city center the militiamen have abandoned their uniforms and prefer to dress in civilian clothes. On the other hand, the Wazalendo, pro-government militias allied with the Congolese army, are spreading rumors that they have “liberated” Uvira, something that has not been confirmed. In reality, fighting continues in the city’s surroundings and to the south, while the border with neighboring Burundi remains closed. The resulting security vacuum has unleashed a wave of private vendettas. People have been found murdered in their homes, some of them strangled. “These are acts of revenge among the city’s inhabitants, sometimes for trivial reasons,” local sources say. In addition, there have been robberies and looting of shops, and reports of sexual violence against young girls.
Before the border closure, at least 90,000 residents of Uvira and the surrounding areas sought refuge in Burundi. In Kiwanja, in the Rutshuru territory, a march in support of the M23/AFC was organized, with slogans calling for the Rwandan-affiliated guerrillas to remain in Uvira, as they are the only ones capable of guaranteeing the safety of its inhabitants.
Similar demonstrations were organized in Goma, the capital of North Kivu, which has been under the M23/AFC control since January. Congolese government spokesman Patrick Muyaya described these initiatives as demonstrations imposed on the civilian population by the militiamen. “Forcing victims to demonstrate in favor of their tormentors will not change the image of torturers and criminals that the M23 broadcasts to the entire world,” he stated.

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