A former deputy bourgmestre (mayor) in northern Rwanda is among the combatants of the genocidal FDLR militia recently captured on the battlefield in eastern DR Congo. Jean-Damascène Niyonzima, who identifies himself as a pastor, was recently paraded by the M23 rebels after he was captured on the frontline backing the Congolese army, FARDC. In footage taken by the rebels and shared on social media platforms, Niyonzima says he was the deputy mayor of the former Kinyami commune (district) in the former Byumba prefecture. “I was deputy mayor from 1989 through 1994,” he said in French. Maj Willy Ngoma, M23 Spokesperson paraded to media FARDC+ FDLR prisoners of war including soldiers and politicians .....meet JD Niyonzima FDLR senior cadre who was Assistant Bourgmestre of former Kinyami Commune now in Gicumbi District before the Genocide against Tutsi. pic.twitter.com/qFIFYN0Zt1 — Noel Kambanda (@NoelKambanda) December 16, 2022 He fled to DR Congo in 1994 as the genocidal regime fell and the Rwanda Patriotic Front/Army (RPF/A) took power in the capital Kigali, effectively putting an end to the Genocide against the Tutsi. Niyonzima, who was paraded alongside several FDLR combatants sporting camouflage fatigue of the Congolese army, FARDC, wore a necktie, white shirt and brown suit, as he responded to questions from M23 military spokesperson Willy Ngoma. He said ‘Lt Gen’ Victoire Byiringiro remained the head of the FDLR militia, which formed an alliance with the Congolese army and other local armed groups against the M23 rebels. FDLR is a key factor in the strained relations between Kigali and Kinshasa, which Rwanda has accused of arming and collaborating with to shell the Rwandan territory. The Congolese government has counter-accused Rwanda of backing the M23, claims Kigali has dismissed. Successive Congolese regimes have maintained close ties with the FDLR since the 1990s, with the militia linked to growing rhetoric of hate speech and genocidal violence that have surged in particularly eastern DR Congo in recent months.
