Author: Sarisha Harikrishna
October 23, 2024
A history of the M23 rebels’ uprisings and their current agenda
The rebellion by the March 23 Movement, more commonly known as the M23 rebellion, has been the core reason for the pain and brutality inflicted in the Congo. This has led to a deep-running humanitarian crisis. The M23 rebels are led by an ethnic group native to the African Great Lakes region, called the Tutsi, which is the second largest of the three major ethnic groups in Rwanda. The M23 rebels' reign of terror in the province of North Kivu, located in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been ongoing since 2021. The insurgence of the M23 rebellion was due to their stance that the Congolese government had not properly implemented a 2013 peace accord with them.
The M23 derives its name from a peace deal signed in 2009, which ultimately fell through. The history of the M23 rebels is long, descending from a line of Congolese rebels that goes back to the 1990s when the Rwandan genocide, a painful and traumatic event, had spilled over the border, leading to regional conflicts in the DRC. Their last major rebellion was back in the year 2012, so to say that their insurgence was a shock would be an understatement. Certain parts of the group resurfaced in the DRC at the end of 2016 although clashes were only reported in November 2021.
Experts have reasonable belief that the M23 hopes to negotiate a satisfactory deal with the DRC’s new disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) program. This program has been put forward to multiple militant groups in the region over the years. The exclusion of the M23 group from the DDR program was due to their designation as a terrorist organization. This relegation further motivated the M23 to continue with its reign of terror. Jason Stearns, the Congo Research Group Director at New York University (NYU), has agreed, saying that the announcement of a new DDR program was the golden opportunity for the M23 rebels to continue pushing their agenda.
The involvement of Rwandan forces and its impact on regional stability
The situation in the Congo has since been exacerbated by the fact that the M23 rebels have received a substantial amount of backing from Rwanda, which according to United Nations (UN) officials has over 4,000 troops on the ground and influences the rebellion. The violent scenes that are presently unfolding in the Congo have been pinpointed as a regional conflict. Rwandan soldiers are fighting alongside the M23 rebels. Southern African troops, as well as Burundian soldiers, are allies with the Congolese government and are united against the M23 rebellion.
Burundi soldiers are being deployed to aid the Congolese government since it wants to ensure security along the border area shared by both countries. Burundi’s government and its army contend that the absence of stability in the Congo’s South Kivu is a severe threat, hence its involvement in the peace process in the Congo. The collaboration of Rwandan forces with the M23 rebellion has led to unfair discrimination against innocent members of the Tutsi community who have zero affiliation with the group. The minority group has had their Congolese citizenship repeatedly questioned for decades and this conflict has only escalated feelings of distrust against the community.
The displacement and suffering of Congolese civilians
The brutality and violence perpetrated by the M23 rebels have painted a bleak future for innocent Congolese citizens, with more than seven million people being internally displaced due to the persistent threat of violence and atrocities. Early 2024 saw nearly 358,000 people being displaced in the DRC, 80 percent of whom were displaced due to the armed conflict. Amid the armed conflict in Congo, there have also been reports of a 30% increase in grave violations against young children in the country.
Living in the Congo during an armed conflict comes with many risks for vulnerable groups such as women and children who face the possibility of abduction, rape, recruitment to be soldiers, and other forms of sexual abuse, along with the grim risk of death. Rockets fired by Rwandan military forces and the M23 rebels struck the Shabindu-Kashaka displacement site and led to the death of a nineteen-year-old, while multiple other shelters were destroyed.
Human Rights Watch has reported the dire humanitarian conditions that continued to persist where individuals have been unlawfully detained and extorted for their valuables. Survivors of sexual abuse have also recounted horror stories of their abusers wearing military uniforms. The sexual abuse against men, women and children are routinely perpetrated by not only militia groups but also the Congolese government themselves. False allegations of collusion with Rwandan forces have been the core motivation behind these attacks.
Sexual violence in conflict zones is an abhorrent and grave violation of human rights law, which constitutes it as a war crime. The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court clearly outlines sexual and gender-based assaults as war crimes. More specifically, Article 8(2)(b)(xxii) of the statute categorizes rape and sexual slavery as a war crime that is strictly prohibited under international law. Violence in the conflict-stricken region is also in violation of Article 3 of the Fourth Geneva Convention which seeks to afford protection to civilians during such conflicts.
Calls for Peace and Global Intervention
The havoc wreaked in eastern DRC has inevitably gained international attention with the conflict being the main topic of discussion in a special meeting chaired at the UN Security Council in early 2024. The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) has urged the M23 rebellion to adhere to the Luanda roadmap, a 2022 agreement signed by Angola, the DRC, and Rwanda that aims to achieve peace in the region.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has emphasized the need to take the humanitarian crisis in Congo very seriously, especially since there has been disappointingly slow progress in terms of how humanitarian support arrives. Asha Shamamba, a resident of Goma in the DRC, said she has heard promises but not seen much change in the last two years from the UN presence.
What’s next for Congo’s War-Torn Regions?
The situation in Congo is much deeper than what meets the eye, as evidenced by its more than decades-long continuation. It is incredibly difficult to predict how the situation in the country will unfold in the coming years. The blocking of humanitarian aid to the region has intensified fears regarding the rebellion’s full-scale advance.
It is recommended that larger international organizations crack down and continue to pressure the Congolese government to take more comprehensive actions to eradicate this problem. In addition, the lack of publicity surrounding this dire humanitarian crisis further aggravates the situation. More mainstream news outlets should be airing coverage related to this crisis to spread more awareness regarding the severity of the situation in the Congo.
Glossary
Abhorrent: Causing repugnance, disgust and loathsomeness.
Atrocity: An extremely cruel, violent or shocking act.
Article 8 (2)(b)(xxii) of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court: (xxii) Committing rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, as defined in article 7, paragraph 2 (f), enforced sterilization, or any other form of sexual violence also constituting a grave breach of the Geneva Conventions.
Demobilization: The action of releasing someone from one of the armed forces, especially at the end of the war.
Disarmament: A military policy of reducing or eliminating the armaments of a country or region.
Eradicate: Get rid of something completely or destroy something bad.
Genocide: The crime of intentionally destroying part or all of a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, by killing people or by other methods.
Havoc: Confusion and lack of order, especially causing damage or trouble.
Insurgence: A rebellion, uprising or riot.
Militia: A military force whose members are trained soldiers but they often have other jobs as well.
Reintegration: The process of helping individuals, particularly those who have been involved in the criminal justice system, transition back into society after rehabilitation.
Relegation: To put someone or something into a lower or less important rank or position.
War crimes: Violations of international humanitarian law (whose perpetrators incur individual criminal responsibility under international law).