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Laurent Nkundabatware, His Rwandan Allies, and the Ex- ANC Mutiny: Chronic Barriers to Lasting Peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

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Laurent Nkundabatware, His Rwandan Allies, and the Ex- ANC Mutiny: Chronic Barriers to Lasting Peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Laurent Nkundabatware, His Rwandan Allies, and the Ex- ANC Mutiny: Chronic Barriers to Lasting Peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. By David Barouski 13 February, 2007. 1st Edition. This document may be distributed freely provided it is unaltered and distributed in whole. No photos taken by the author can be reproduced outside of this document without permission from the author. 1 For the untold millions of civilians in Central Africa who died just trying to survive day-to-day. For the children, and for current and former kadogos who had their childhood taken from them. For all peace-seeking Rwandan and Congolese people who want to return home but cannot. For all peace-seeking Congolese and Rwandan people who are treated like Ibicucu. For the living and deceased victims of the events described herein. For the brave members of the Collective. 2 Children living in the slums at the bottom of the hills in Children outside an orphanage: Kisangani, Kigali, Rwanda. Democratic Republic of the Congo. Photos by David Barouski. 2006. A child soldier (kadogo) in North Kivu Province, Rwandan orphans in Kabuga village Democratic Republic of the Congo. near Kigali. Photo by an anonymous Congolese civilian. Photo by Lord David Alton. Courtesy of the Congolese Civil Society. 3 Table of Contents Foreword………………………………………………………………………………………6 General Summary……………………………………………………………………………...10 Part 1: Chronology Chapter 1: Background…………………………...……………………………………………12 Chapter 2: Mutiny in Kisangani………………………………………………………………..28 Chapter 3: Rebellion…………………………………………………………………………...35 Chapter 4: The Siege of Bukavu……………………………………………………………….52 Chapter 5: Aftermath………………………………………………………………………...103 Chapter 6: The Gatumba Massacre…………………………………………………………...127 Chapter 7: A Transition in Crisis……………………………………………………………..148 Chapter 8: Rwandan Reinvasion……………………………………………………………...168 Chapter 9: Integration and Desertion…………………………………………………………203 Chapter 10: Rutshuru Territory Under Occupation…………………………………………..220 Chapter 11: Presidential Elections Approach - Preparations for War………………………..237 Chapter 12: Post-Preliminary Elections………………………………………………………265 Chapter 13: The General’s Post-Election War………………………………………………..295 Part 2: The Future: Sustaining the Peace Chapter 1: Looking Forward………………………………………………………………….362 Chapter 2: Military Considerations………………………………………………...…………377 Chapter 2a: MONUC’s Role………………………………………………………………..380 Chapter 2b: The FARDC’s Role……………………………………………………………389 Chapter 3: Peripheral Problems and Prospective Solutions…………………………………..401 4 Chapter 4: Rwanda and the FDLR/FOCA……………………………………………………407 Chapter 5: Ethnicity and Land Claims………………………………………………………..422 Epilogue……………………………………………………………………………………....426 Appendix I: Acronyms and Abbreviations…………………………………………………...428 Appendix II: Bibliography……………………………………………………………………441 Appendix III: Maps…………………………………………………………………………...447 Appendix IV: Photographs…………………………………………………………………...450 5 Foreword People often ask me why I chose Laurent Nkundabatware as the focus of this book. Why does this so-called “warlord” receive so much attention? What makes him more unique than other militia leaders in the Congo? First and foremost, when examining armed groups in Congo, his militia (partly comprised of what are technically Congolese government soldiers) is one of the biggest threats to the peace process in the Congo. While most militia groups have the ability to cause great instability in a specific area of the country, General Nkundabatware has the ability to spark a full-scale regional war that could draw in Rwanda, Burundi, and Uganda. That list does not include the nations who would intervene to defend the Congo from another foreign invasion (like Angola). For this reason, General Nkundabatware and his followers should be subject to a detailed analysis. The Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda (FDLR)/ Forces Combattantes Abacunguzi (FOCA) is also a major barrier to the Congo’s peace process and possesses the capability to start a regional war, but there are already a number of published reports dedicated to describing their role as a regional threat. Additionally, it is important to understand the figurehead behind a rebel movement as an individual in order to comprehend their motives. A comprehensive understanding of a militia leader often allows one to understand the group’s activites and predict their future actions. By predicting future actions, preventative measures can be taken to help those caught in his destructive path and more effective plans for finding a solution to the problem can be generated. Another reason General Nkundabatware is the focal point of this book is to demonstrate once-and-for-all the level of involvement Rwanda still has in the Congo, which is in violation 6 of a U.N. arms embargo on the Congo and the Pretoria Accords. Considering General Nkundabatware and his army act as Rwanda’s proxy, this book aims to demonstrate the solution to ensure lasting peace in the Congo does not lay entirely within its borders. It was the initial influx of Rwandan refugees fleeing the Rwandan Patriotic Army’s (RPA) invasion of Rwanda during the early 1990s and the secondary wave of refugees fleeing the Rwandan Genocide of 1994 that set the stage for subsequent outbursts of war in Congo-Zaire. Until the international community holds Rwandan officials accountable for their invasion of Zaire in 1996, the Congo in 1998, and their direct support of General Nkundabatware from 2003 onward, the Congo will never know peace. A third reason is to provide a detailed account of events General Nkundabatware was involved in. Such a chronology has never been compiled before. While several reports by different humanitarian agencies have addressed individual events in detail, these events have never been compiled together chronologically to provide a wholistic perspective. This compilation can also serve the purpose of providing background information for interested reporters, journalists, researchers, and other media members who are interested in covering, researching, or writing about any of the topics related to this book. Additionally, people in the Congo and abroad have asked questions about certain aspects of these events. Some of the events have very conflicting reports and/or psychological operations involved that clouded the truth. I aspire to answer as many questions as I can and hopefully bring a clearer picture of what happened during certain pivotal events. A fourth reason is to raise public awareness for the plight of child soldiers. When I began researching General Nkundabatware, it was this issue that originally drew me to him. I had come across intelligence detailing his soldiers’ abduction of innocent children in the 7 Congo and Rwanda to use in his army, usually against their will. I consider this among the most abominable crimes and by demonstrating his militias’ complicity in this terrible crime, I hope to incite people to demand immediate and meaningful action on this issue throughout the world and demand justice and rehabilitation for the innocent victims. I can never possibly say or do enough to condemn these crimes properly. I have made a point to include Congolese sources in this book in order to allow their perspectives to be heard. Too often, western writers, journalists, and scholars rely only on material written and/or statements given by “westerners” and I feel this is a mistake. Africans are acutely aware of the events going on around them and they are the most valuble resource. As a word of caution, the events in Part 1 of this book are presented chronologically. As a result, some paragraphs may seem disjointed and out-of-place at times. One topic may seem to jump to another without an obvious visible relationship between the two. This is not intended to confuse or mislead the reader and I have done my best to keep it coherent, yet chronological. The copious footnotes are intended to provide additional information that often goes beyond the scope of the main topic of the book. They are also used to provide translations of certain words, phrases and important background or historical information on individuals, events, and armed movements. Special emphasis is given to certain subjects, including, but not limited to: the current status of other armed militia in the Congo; the current situation in South Kivu Province; profiles of key individuals and corporations (especially the mining sector and private military contractors [PMCs]); additional information on Rwandan history, culture, and how it pertains to the current situation in the Congo; details of the Rwandan refugees’ plight as they escaped into Zaire in 1994; the current status of the most lucrative mining concessions in 8 Northeast Congo; and details of key minerals smuggled in the Congo and the participating networks. The reader is also shown regional, continental, and international connections between events. This is particularly important for individuals who are just beginning to study the African continent and will aid them greatly when reading news articles in the future. In the footnotes, the contemporary history of U.S. military intervention in the Congo and Rwanda is outlined in very specific detail. As an American, I feel it is necessary to acknowledge and take responsibility for the role my country has in the pain and suffering of millions of Africans. Every American should be aware of this relationship and realize many material things “westerners” have, especially in the defense, electronics and technology
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