Latest news with #M23-held
The Star
16 hours ago
- Politics
- The Star
Students in rebel-held eastern Congo brave insecurity to take exams
FILE PHOTO: Students return home from classes at the Mama Mulezi school complex, after M23 rebels announced the reopening of schools and universities, in Goma, North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo, February 11, 2025. REUTERS/Arlette Bashizi/File Photo BUKAVU, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) -Tens of thousands of secondary school students sat for state exams in rebel-held eastern Congo this week, a complicated logistical feat requiring rare cooperation between the government and M23 rebels. The Rwanda-backed insurgents seized eastern Congo's two largest cities in an offensive earlier this year and are now trying to show they can govern. African leaders along with Washington and Doha are meanwhile trying to broker a peace deal that would put an end to a conflict with roots in the Rwandan genocide more than three decades ago. The state exams, administered across the sprawling central African country for students hoping to go to university, began on Monday and will continue through mid-June. Administering them throughout the east of Democratic Republic of Congo required having education officials personally escort documents and other materials from the capital Kinshasa into M23-held cities and towns. "We were among those who went to Kinshasa to collect the items," said Jean-Marie Mwayesi, an education official in South Kivu province, where M23 claims considerable territory. "Thanks to the combined efforts of our teams and partners, all 111 centres we cover have been served." President Felix Tshisekedi's government announced last month it was waiving exam fees - which normally exceed $40 - for students in North and South Kivu provinces, citing insecurity. While M23 has previously said it seeks the ouster of Tshisekedi's government, the group's leader Bertrand Bisimwa told Reuters that it still recognised Kinshasa as the administrator of national exams. "Our presence in the eastern part of our country does not make this a separate country," Bisimwa said. "The education of our children is apolitical. It must be protected against any political divergence because we all work for the interest and well-being of our children." Human rights groups have repeatedly accused M23 of executing civilians including children - allegations the group has denied. Exauce Katete was among the students who sat for exams at a school in the South Kivu regional capital Bukavu, which fell under M23 control in February and where insecurity including vigilante violence has increased since then. "Yes, security is there. I can still see a few people outside, responsible for keeping us safe. There are no disturbances, no noise, everything is going well," Katete said, referring to plainclothes officers positioned by M23 outside the school. Mwayesi, the local education official, said that of 44,000 students who registered in his zone, nearly 42,000 showed up, speculating that the remainder may have been displaced by fighting. (Reporting by Congo newsroom; additional reporting by Sonia Rolley; writing by Robbie Corey-Boulet; editing by Mark Heinrich)
Straits Times
16 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Students in rebel-held eastern Congo brave insecurity to take exams
FILE PHOTO: Members of the M23 rebel group mount their vehicles after the opening ceremony of Caisse Generale d'epargne du Congo in Goma, North Kivu province in the East of the Democratic Republic of Congo, April 7, 2025. REUTERS/Arlette Bashizi/File Photo FILE PHOTO: Students return home from classes at the Mama Mulezi school complex, after M23 rebels announced the reopening of schools and universities, in Goma, North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo, February 11, 2025. REUTERS/Arlette Bashizi/File Photo BUKAVU, Democratic Republic of Congo - Tens of thousands of secondary school students sat for state exams in rebel-held eastern Congo this week, a complicated logistical feat requiring rare cooperation between the government and M23 rebels. The Rwanda-backed insurgents seized eastern Congo's two largest cities in an offensive earlier this year and are now trying to show they can govern. African leaders along with Washington and Doha are meanwhile trying to broker a peace deal that would put an end to a conflict with roots in the Rwandan genocide more than three decades ago. The state exams, administered across the sprawling central African country for students hoping to go to university, began on Monday and will continue through mid-June. Administering them throughout the east of Democratic Republic of Congo required having education officials personally escort documents and other materials from the capital Kinshasa into M23-held cities and towns. "We were among those who went to Kinshasa to collect the items," said Jean-Marie Mwayesi, an education official in South Kivu province, where M23 claims considerable territory. "Thanks to the combined efforts of our teams and partners, all 111 centres we cover have been served." President Felix Tshisekedi's government announced last month it was waiving exam fees - which normally exceed $40 - for students in North and South Kivu provinces, citing insecurity. While M23 has previously said it seeks the ouster of Tshisekedi's government, the group's leader Bertrand Bisimwa told Reuters that it still recognised Kinshasa as the administrator of national exams. "Our presence in the eastern part of our country does not make this a separate country," Bisimwa said. "The education of our children is apolitical. It must be protected against any political divergence because we all work for the interest and well-being of our children." Human rights groups have repeatedly accused M23 of executing civilians including children - allegations the group has denied. Exauce Katete was among the students who sat for exams at a school in the South Kivu regional capital Bukavu, which fell under M23 control in February and where insecurity including vigilante violence has increased since then. "Yes, security is there. I can still see a few people outside, responsible for keeping us safe. There are no disturbances, no noise, everything is going well," Katete said, referring to plainclothes officers positioned by M23 outside the school. Mwayesi, the local education official, said that of 44,000 students who registered in his zone, nearly 42,000 showed up, speculating that the remainder may have been displaced by fighting. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ex-DR Congo president returns to country, party says
Former Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila is back in the country for the first time in two years having arrived in the M23-held eastern city of Goma, two spokespeople from the rebel group as well as a youth leader from his party have said. Kabila's arrival comes after senators stripped him of his immunity over alleged support for the Rwanda-backed M23 which has been fighting the Congolese army. Kabila, who has previously denied a link with the rebel group, recently decried the justice system for permitting itself to being "exploited for political end". The 53-year-old led DR Congo for 18 years, after succeeding his father Laurent, who was shot dead in 2001. Speaking to the BBC, a Goma youth leader for Kabila's People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD), confirmed earlier reports from the M23 that Kabila had returned and stated that residents were "happy" about his arrival. "Kabila should be allowed full access to the country. For us it is like a father has returned to his children," Innocent Mirimo told BBC Swahili. Last month, the PPRD was banned because of its "ambiguous attitude" to the occupation of Congolese territory by the M23. In a message on X, rebel spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka welcomed Kabila to Goma saying: "We wish him a pleasant stay in the liberated areas." A similar message was shared by another spokesperson, Willy Ngoma. The Congolese authorities, who accuse Kabila of war crimes and treason, say there is a "substantial body of documents, testimony and material facts" that link the former leader to the M23. In a now-deleted YouTube video released on Friday, Kabila called the Congolese government, led by President Félix Tshisekedi a "dictatorship", and stated there was a "decline of democracy" in the country. He also outlined his plan to end decades of instability in the country. Congolese government spokesperson, Patrick Muyaya, has rejected Kabila's remarks, telling Congolese TV channel RTNC TV that Kabila "has nothing to offer the country". Fighting between the Congolese army and the M23 first broke out in 2012 and ended in a peace deal the following year. But in 2021 the group took up arms again, saying the promises made in the deal had been broken. Since the beginning of this year, the M23 has made major advances in the mineral-rich east, including taking the key city of Goma in January. The group, which Rwanda has denied backing, says its goal is to protect the minority Tutsi-ethnic group. However, the ongoing conflict has led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of civilians who have been forced to flee their homes in the last few months. Kabila, who stepped down as DR Congo's president in 2019, was once an ally of President Tshisekedi. However the two men fell out, culminating in the termination of their parties' coalition in December 2020. The former president has been living outside the country, in South Africa, for the past two years. But at the beginning of last month he said he would be returning to help find a solution to the conflict in the east. What's the fighting in DR Congo all about? The evidence that shows Rwanda is backing rebels in DR Congo 'We would vote for peace - if we had a vote' Go to for more news from the African continent. Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica Africa Daily Focus on Africa
The Star
19-05-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Feature: In eastern DR Cong's Sake, life hangs between war and survival
SAKE, DR Congo, May 19 (Xinhua) -- In the war-scarred hills of eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the town of Sake bears the jagged outlines of conflict and endurance. The TOWN THAT FELL TWICE Once a quiet transit hub just 27 km west of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, Sake has become both a symbol of eastern Congo's unraveling and a strategic foothold in the resurgence of the March 23 Movement (M23) rebel group. Earlier this year, M23 rebels swept through the area, seizing control after fierce clashes with government forces. As mortars rained down on homes and farmlands, nearly all of Sake's 130,000 residents fled eastward, abandoning their homes, fields, and memories. Perched strategically at the junction of key roads, Sake is more than just a farming town. It serves as a rear guard for Goma and a buffer between the provincial capital and the contested territories of Masisi and Walikale. Whoever controls Sake also controls vital trade, aid and military routes. The town's fall in late January paved the way for the rebels to capture Goma just days later and continue their push toward Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu. When residents returned, they found no signs of peace, only remnants of war. Bullet casings littered the main roads. Though the markets have reopened, few buyers have returned. "We don't even know if this is still our homeland," said Noella Bulambo, a local vendor arranging plantains and tangerines on a piece of cloth. "We try to sell, but people are hungry. We ask ourselves: has this place been ruined for good?" Like most residents, Bulambo fled in early 2024 and lived in displacement camps near Goma. But in February, those camps were dismantled under rebel orders, and thousands were forced to "go back where they came from." In April, Bulambo reopened her small stall in a fractured market. But her town was no longer the same. Across M23-held territory, cash is scarce. With banks shut down, mobile payment systems disrupted, and trade routes blocked, local markets barely function. Barter has returned: charcoal for soap, maize for salt. "People's money is locked in the bank," said a local money changer. "Without cash, people don't eat." FIELDS THAT FEED AND KILL For Sake's residents, the war did not end when the shelling stopped -- it simply went underground. Hills and roads are now littered with hidden dangers: unexploded ordnance, roaming bandits and areas marked with branches where landmines are suspected. "We no longer go to the fields," said Immaculee Bauma, a mother of 10. "There are bombs buried there. Some people went and never came back. Others were raped. I would rather go hungry than bury another child." With farmlands too dangerous to farm, residents have turned to backyard plots and courtyard gardens. Marina Bazungu, 72, tends onions and spinach beside her damaged hut while caring for seven grandchildren. "We fled to Goma and stayed in camps," she said. "But we were forced to return. We are not safe here. We cannot reach our real farms. Explosions still happen." Taoffic Mohamed Toure, a veteran with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) based in Goma, said several children were hospitalized after mistaking unexploded ordnance for toys. "Some of them were just playing in the fields when they found shiny metal objects," he said. "They did not know it was deadly." Farming is the backbone of Sake's economy. "The Kamuronza area of Sake has good farmland," said local agronomist Jonas Mudumbi. "But no one dares plant. Traders are few. If we cannot grow food, we will die." GATEWAY TO PROFIT Today, Sake has evolved beyond a military outpost. Its position along the route to Masisi-home to Rubaya, one of the world's largest coltan deposits, making it a logistical and revenue hub for the M23 group. In recent weeks, people have been spotted repairing roads around Sake and deep into Masisi territory. Bulldozers level dirt tracks while trucks haul materials. "This is how we build a state," said Corneille Nangaa, head of the Congo River Alliance (AFC), a politico-military coalition allied with the M23 group. "Other countries have roads. Why not us?" But according to a UN report from December 2024, the M23 and its affiliates have forced local people to work on road and mining infrastructure. Locals refer to this practice as salongo, a term that once described voluntary community labor, but which now means unpaid, compulsory work. The UN estimates that the M23 extracts up to 120 tons of coltan monthly, generating more than 800,000 U.S. dollars through informal taxation and control of transport routes. As gunfire echoes from nearby frontlines and diplomatic efforts inch forward, the fate of Sake hangs in the balance. Yet in its scorched alleys and crowded markets, where broken lives are rebuilt one day at a time, the will to endure remains unbroken.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
DR Congo seeks to remove ex-President Kabila's immunity
The authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo are seeking to lift former President Joseph Kabila's immunity from prosecution after accusing him of backing rebels in the east. There was a "substantial body of documents, testimony and material facts" linking Kabila to the M23 armed group, Justice Minister Constant Mutamba said on Wednesday. The M23 currently controls parts of the mineral-rich east of the country after making significant advances earlier this year. Kabila, 53, has not commented on the accusations but has in the past denied any connection with the insurgents. He led DR Congo for 18 years, after succeeding his father Laurent, who was shot dead in 2001. Joseph Kabila was just 29 at the time. After stepping down, he was given the title of "senator for life", which gives him legal immunity. In order to pursue a legal case, DR Congo's military prosecutor has asked the senate to overturn this. There were reports last month that Kabila had returned to the country – visiting M23-held Goma - after spending two years in South Africa. But these were denied by his political party, the People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy. What's the fighting in DR Congo all about? The evidence that shows Rwanda is backing rebels in DR Congo Your phone, a rare metal and the war in DR Congo Go to for more news from the African continent. Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica Africa Daily Focus on Africa
