Up to 400 Congolese fleeing from ongoing conflicts and violence spread by the Congolese army and its militia allies in DR Congo’s South Kivu Province crossed into southwestern Rwanda, through the Bugarama border, on Monday morning, February 17. ALSO READ: M23 rebels capture Bukavu in latest advance They then asked for help to be able to travel back home - through Rwanda - to Goma and Bukavu, the capitals of DR Congo’s North Kivu and South Kivu provinces, respectively, where some had earlier fled when fighting raged between AFC/M23 rebels and a Congolese army coalition comprising, among others, Burundian troops, and FDLR, a DR Congo-based terrorist militia founded by remnants of the masterminds of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. ALSO READ: Bukavu business community urges M23 to quickly secure city, halt criminal activity The weary group, including women with very young children, was first screened in a church compound near the border town in Rusizi District close to the borders with Burundi, to the east, and DR Congo, to the west. ALSO READ: Pastor recounts ordeal during Bukavu looting, contact with fleeing DR Congo, Burundi soldiers A mother of seven who looked weary sat on a plastic chair, waiting for her turn to be registered. She told The New Times that her very long journey started on Friday, February 14, when she set off from Kalemie, on the western shore of Lake Tanganyika, until she got to Kamanyola, one of the groupements (groupings) within the Ngweshe Chiefdom of Walungu Territory, where a clash was going on. Kamanyola is located in the Ruzizi Plain in South Kivu Province where it shares a border with Rwanda and Burundi. Serving as a natural border, separating DR Congo from Rwanda and Burundi on the other side, Ruzizi Plain, a large valley situated between the Mitumba mountain chain and Ruzizi River, has been the theatre of ongoing conflicts and violence for over two decades. ALSO READ: EAC, SADC leaders approve harmonised plan for FDLR neutralisation When the old lady heard that security had been restored in Bukavu, she wanted to take no chances hanging around in Kalemie where the AFC/M23 rebels had not yet reached. In Kamanyola, Congolese soldiers who are fleeing from battle with the rebels terrorise people by committing massacres and looting, some men in the group said. The weary old lady said: “My journey started in Kalemie. When we got to Luvungi we were warned that there was fighting farther ahead. Our driver turned back but another encouraged him to carry on and not to fear. When we got to Kamanyola we found a battle going on. We heard that it was FARDC fighting and we had to find a place to hide for the night. The drivers realised that FARDC was revolting and worried we could be robbed and vehicles stolen. “We had heard that peace had returned in Bukavu since M23 secured it. So, we decided that if we go through Rwanda, here, we could get means to get back home. This is how we got here and we are thankful for the welcome we received. We do not fear M23 because we know that wherever the rebels have passed, they have been hugely welcomed.” ALSO READ: Bukavu business community urges M23 to quickly secure city, halt criminal activity After being registered, in Bugarama, local authorities then arranged to get buses to transport the Congolese from Bugarama to Kamembe and Rubavu, with most of the Congolese paying transport fees themselves. Up to 25 of the Congolese wanted to stay and arrangements were made for them to be hosted in Nyarushishi Transit Center. Moments after the first two buses left the area, The New Times observed that more people were still coming through the border, heading to the church compound where they would also be registered before heading to their preferred locations in rebel held DR Congo zones. ALSO READ: Why genocide ideology doesn’t dissolve three decades after dispersion of genocidaires The war between a Congolese army coalition comprising FDLR, more than 10,000 Burundian troops, 1,600 European mercenaries, and South Africa-led SADC forces, against M23 rebels, started in 2021. M23 is now part of a larger rebel coalition, Alliance fleuve Congo (AFC), created in December 2023. VIDEO: Corneille Nangaa on capture of Goma, FDLR, and march to Kinshasa The AFC says it is fighting for governance that supports basic human rights, secures all citizens, and addresses the root causes of conflict. Its leaders have vowed to uproot tribalism, nepotism, corruption, and genocide ideology, among other vices, widespread in DR Congo.
