{"id":74331,"date":"2021-09-15T19:00:19","date_gmt":"2021-09-15T17:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/africa-news\/central-africa\/dr-congo\/dr-congo-massacres-persist-despite-martial-law\/"},"modified":"2021-09-15T19:00:20","modified_gmt":"2021-09-15T17:00:20","slug":"dr-congo-massacres-persist-despite-martial-law","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/africa-news\/central-africa\/dr-congo\/dr-congo-massacres-persist-despite-martial-law\/","title":{"rendered":"DR Congo: Massacres Persist Despite Martial Law"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Attacks on civilians by armed groups have continued in two conflict-ridden provinces of eastern\u00a0Democratic Republic of Congo<\/a>\u00a0since the government imposed martial law in May 2021, Human Rights Watch said. Various armed groups, some unidentified, have killed at least 672 civilians, while Congolese security forces have killed 67 civilians, in Ituri and North Kivu provinces between the start of\u00a0martial law<\/a>\u00a0on May 6 and September 10, according to data collected by the\u00a0Kivu Security Tracker<\/a>, a joint project of Human Rights Watch and the Congo Research Group.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

A massacre in August, one of several mass killings that month, highlights ongoing insecurity in the region and the inadequate military response. On August 2, the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), an Islamist armed group led by Ugandans, allegedly killed at least 16 civilians, including 2 women, in the village of Idohu, Ituri province. A dozen Congolese army soldiers were in the village, and more were stationed in a military camp nearby, but they did not prevent the attack. Other armed groups and some elements of Congo\u2019s national army have also been implicated in attacks in the area.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Congolese government may recognize the need for greater security in Ituri and North Kivu provinces, but imposing martial law hasn\u2019t accomplished that,\u201d said\u00a0Thomas Fessy<\/a>, senior Congo researcher at Human Rights Watch. \u201cDespite the government\u2019s efforts to spin its actions as military successes, many people across eastern Congo still live in constant fear of the next massacre.\u201d<\/p>\n

President F\u00e9lix Tshisekedi has asserted that military control would restore security in the region, but the numbers of civilians killed in attacks have largely remained unchanged. Despite the high civilian deaths, the government spokesman, Patrick Muyaya, while visiting Ituri province on August 21,\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0the results of martial law to date were \u201cvery encouraging.\u201d On August 26, Muyaya told Human Rights Watch that martial law was \u201cshock therapy\u201d that was not intended to be permanent. \u201cWe are convinced that the solution cannot be military only, but it must start with the military part,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Human Rights Watch in August spoke to seven people by telephone who witnessed the Idohu attack, as well as local Congolese activists, national assembly members, security and diplomatic personnel, and United Nations staff, along with the government spokesperson.<\/p>\n

Since the declaration of martial law, Kivu Security Tracker data shows no indication that Congolese forces have increased military operations to improve civilian protection in areas most at risk.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe got information that these enemies [armed groups] were on their way, but [government soldiers] didn\u2019t go after them,\u201d an activist based in Idohu told Human Rights Watch. \u201cIn Idohu, there were troops, but they fled back to their camp, which is about a kilometer away. We don\u2019t understand how they operate.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ADF\u2019s leader pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (ISIS) in 2019, but the extent of links between the two armed groups remains unclear. The ADF has intensified attacks against civilians as well as government forces in Beni territory, North Kivu, with at least 18 incidents recorded and 90 civilians killed in July alone.<\/p>\n

On August 27, suspected ADF fighters killed at least 19 civilians and abducted several others in Kalunguta, Beni territory,\u00a0according to the UN<\/a>. The media\u00a0reported<\/a>\u00a0that suspected ADF fighters on September 1 killed at least four people in an ambush on a large civilian convoy escorted by Congolese soldiers and UN peacekeepers near Komanda, Ituri. Two days later, the ADF allegedly\u00a0hacked<\/a>\u00a0to death 30 civilians in the village of Makutano in Ituri.<\/p>\n

Joint military operations involving the Congolese army and UN peacekeepers\u00a0began<\/a>\u00a0in August in Beni territory. The peacekeepers, deployed under the UN stabilization mission in Congo (MONUSCO), provide air and logistical support, intelligence and surveillance capacity, and the Force Intervention Brigade (FIB), a combat unit.<\/p>\n

Credible reports allege that Congolese troops have recently been using ethnic Banyabwisha from North Kivu, including recent defectors from the ADF, as proxy forces to fight the ADF in Ituri\u2019s Tchabi area. Congolese authorities should urgently investigate the use of proxy forces and demobilize any former ADF fighters, Human Rights Watch said.<\/p>\n

The citizens\u2019 movement Struggle for Change (Lutte pour le changement, or LUCHA) on August 12\u00a0called<\/a>\u00a0on the authorities to end martial law in Ituri and North Kivu provinces. The group said that despite promises from President Tshisekedi, attacks against civilians had not declined, and that the authorities have used martial law to drastically narrow basic freedoms of expression and association.<\/p>\n

The government also claimed that martial law was\u00a0intended<\/a>\u00a0to eliminate corrupt military networks. Following an investigation\u00a0led<\/a>\u00a0by the inspector general of the army,\u00a0Gen. Gabriel Amisi<\/a>, also known as \u201cTango Four,\u201d military officials said they\u00a0arrested<\/a>\u00a0several officers allegedly involved in misappropriating funds, embezzlement, and maintaining fake payrolls of non-existent soldiers. The government should ensure that those arrested are fairly prosecuted, and extend investigations to senior military officers who are under international sanctions, implicated in serious abuses or suspected of\u00a0profiting from<\/a>\u00a0illegal activity<\/a>, including Amisi, Human Rights Watch said.<\/p>\n

Congolese authorities with MONUSCO assistance should adopt measures to re-establish trust with civilian populations, including by reinforcing early warning networks and consulting with communities and civic groups about protection needs. Authorities should take all steps possible to protect civilians, including by promptly responding to those who bravely inform them of armed group activity and movements. Congolese army units deployed in operations should be carefully vetted to identify and suspend soldiers and officers implicated in abuses or collaborating with armed groups.<\/p>\n

\u201cPresident Tshisekedi should refocus attention on civilian protection and tighter military oversight in eastern Congo to spare long-suffering communities from further atrocities,\u201d Fessy said.<\/p>\n

Allied Democratic Forces and the Idohu Massacre<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) armed group has been linked to scores of killings and abductions in North Kivu\u2019s Beni territory in recent years, and, more recently, in the neighboring Irumu territory of Ituri province.<\/p>\n

In the late afternoon of August 2 outside the village of Idohu, Ituri, alleged ADF fighters abducted and tied up 14 people who were cutting wood on the edge of the forest, and forced them to walk toward the village. Once on the main road, the RN4, the fighters executed the 14 villagers and 2 others they encountered. Their bodies were laid in a line across the road. Some of the victims\u2019 throats were cut or their skulls cracked, while others appear to have been shot.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were cutting trees to make charcoal,\u201d a 40-year-old villager told Human Rights Watch. \u201cI heard noises and got scared so I ran and hid in the forest, but the others stayed back. I heard them scream as they were all taken by the [attackers].\u201d He said he returned the next morning: \u201c[T]hat\u2019s when I saw the dead bodies on the road. Three of those killed were members of my family.\u201d<\/p>\n

On August 4, alleged ADF fighters attacked Congolese army positions in the southern Tchabi area of Ituri, over 100 kilometers from Idohu, killing at least 10 soldiers and injuring others. The ADF regained control of several areas, including the village of Mapipa, UN sources said. Government forces had two weeks earlier\u00a0announced<\/a>\u00a0that they had dislodged the ADF from the area.<\/p>\n

In July 2019, the ADF leader, Seka Baluku, had\u00a0pledged allegiance<\/a>\u00a0to the Islamic State, and ISIS\u00a0claimed<\/a>\u00a0responsibility for the August 2021 attacks on Idohu and Mapipa. The United States\u00a0designated<\/a>\u00a0the ADF as an ISIS affiliate in March 2021, calling it the \u201cIslamic State of Iraq and Syria \u2013 Democratic Republic of Congo.\u201d Between August 13 and September 8, a US Special Forces team\u00a0visited<\/a>\u00a0Congo to \u201cevaluate the future Congolese counter-terrorism team whose focus will be ISIS-DRC.\u201d However, UN experts said in June that they had\u00a0not found<\/a>\u00a0\u201cconclusive evidence of [ISIS] command and control over ADF operations, nor of [ISIS] direct support to ADF, either financial, human or material.\u201d<\/p>\n

An ISIS-focused counterterrorism approach to the ADF\u00a0risks<\/a>\u00a0ignoring decades-long factors in eastern Congo\u2019s conflicts, including customary power, land disputes, military support for armed groups and proxy conflicts, access to natural resources, trafficking, and widespread impunity for serious crimes.<\/p>\n

While government officials and the media tend to attribute almost all attacks taking place in Beni territory to the ADF, research\u00a0suggests<\/a>\u00a0that other armed groups and some elements of the national army may have been involved.<\/p>\n

Congo\u2019s international partners should support credible government efforts to investigate attacks on civilians, hold those responsible to account, and improve protection for vulnerable populations, Human Rights Watch said.<\/p>\n

UN-Backed Military Operations and Civilian Protection<\/strong><\/p>\n

ADF reprisal attacks and massacres of civilians\u00a0have followed<\/a>\u00a0previous government military offensives against the armed group, which\u00a0heightens<\/a>\u00a0civilian protection concerns. The Kivu Security Tracker found that \u201cin all likelihood, the aim of such [ADF] killings is to discredit and put pressure on the Congolese authorities, to divide the forces pursuing them, and to divide society as a whole.\u201d Although Congo army operations did not significantly increase during the first three months of martial law, joint operations with MONUSCO, the United Nations peacekeepers, have begun against armed groups in Beni territory.<\/p>\n

Since January 2014, MONUSCO\u2019s Force Intervention Brigade (FIB),\u00a0created in 2013<\/a>\u00a0as a more robust UN unit, has assisted Congolese troops in various operations in northern North Kivu. Poor coordination between the Congolese army and the FIB have repeatedly\u00a0undermined<\/a>\u00a0such joint operations, though. In late April 2021, President Tshisekedi\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0the FIB would \u201csupport [our] troops to address with most efficacy this issue of terrorism and violence in the east.\u201d In August, MONUSCO\u00a0deployed<\/a>\u00a0Tanzanian and Kenyan troops to support Congolese forces in offensive operations. The\u00a0UN has announced<\/a>\u00a0that Nepalese and South African soldiers would reinforce the FIB in these operations.<\/p>\n

On September 9, the head of MONUSCO, Bintou Keita, speaking from Beni,\u00a0described<\/a>\u00a0martial law as a \u201cvery important tool in the fight against insecurity in the east and in both [North Kivu and Ituri] provinces in particular.\u201d She said that \u201cmartial law should be accepted at the community, civil society, and opinion leadership levels.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2016, the\u00a0UN Group of Experts on Congo<\/a>\u00a0found that Brig. Gen. Muhindo Akili Mundos, who was responsible for Congolese military operations against the ADF from August 2014 to June 2015, had recruited ADF fighters, former fighters from Mai Mai local armed groups, and others \u201cto participate in the killings.\u201d The Group of Experts found that these recruits were implicated in massacres in Beni territory that began in October 2014, and Mundos was placed on the UN sanctions list. But rather than investigating Mundos, President Tshisekedi\u00a0promoted<\/a>\u00a0him to army deputy inspector general in 2020.<\/p>\n

MONUSCO should fully respect the UN\u00a0Human Rights Due Diligence Policy<\/a>\u00a0when supporting Congolese military operations and withhold all support to units or commanders who may be implicated in attacks on civilians or other serious human rights violations. UN peacekeepers should also improve ties with local communities and ensure that protecting civilians is central to all operations.<\/p>\n

Demobilization of Armed Group Fighters<\/strong><\/p>\n

For decades, Congo\u00a0has lacked<\/a>\u00a0both an effective demobilization framework that could disarm rebel fighters and militiamen, and reintegrate them into communities, and a vetting system that would enable authorities to identify and investigate those responsible for abuses. Since President Tshisekedi took office in 2019,\u00a0thousands of fighters<\/a>\u00a0have surrendered or shown a willingness to do so, but have not been processed. As a result, those who laid down their weapons often later returned to their armed groups, and the authorities have struggled to persuade others to surrender.<\/p>\n

More than 100\u00a0armed groups<\/a>\u00a0continue to operate in eastern Congo. In July, the Tshisekedi administration launched a new Disarmament, Demobilization, Community Recovery, and Stabilization program. However, many Congolese activists have publicly\u00a0raised<\/a>\u00a0concerns<\/a>\u00a0over the program\u2019s coordinator, Tommy Tambwe, a former leader of major Rwandan-backed rebel groups that have been responsible for countless abuses over the past 25 years. His appointment seriously\u00a0jeopardizes<\/a>\u00a0the program\u2019s chances of success, Human Rights Watch said.<\/p>\n

Mass Displacement<\/strong><\/p>\n

On August 13, the UN humanitarian coordinator in Congo, David McLachlan-Karr,\u00a0expressed<\/a>\u00a0\u201cgrave concern for a spike in killings\u201d and lamented \u201ca sharp rise in displacement\u201d from the actions of armed groups and local militias. North Kivu has\u00a01.8 million<\/a>\u00a0internally displaced people and Ituri has\u00a01.7 million<\/a>, including a\u00a0disproportionately high number of women and children<\/a>, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). \u201cMany have related horrific stories of targeted killings, rape, and torture,\u201d McLachlan-Karr said. Over five million people are displaced across Congo,\u00a0one of the largest<\/a>\u00a0internally displaced populations in Africa.<\/p>\n

Following the ADF attack on Idohu, villagers fled to the town of Komanda, where camps were already housing thousands of internally displaced people. Many of the displaced there have sought shelter and safety within local communities, further taxing local schools, churches, and health centers. Some 2.8 million people or half the Ituri population\u00a0are severely food insecure<\/a>, according to the UN.<\/p>\n

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Human Rights Watch (HRW).<\/i><\/p>\n