FIGHTING between Congolese<br>army and Banyamulenge militias in eastern Congo’s district of Minembwe<br>(South Kivu) has driven over 20,000 civilians from their homes into<br>forests and mountain tops.
BY EMMY ALLIO & AGENCIES FIGHTING between Congolese army and Banyamulenge militias in eastern Congo’s district of Minembwe (South Kivu) has driven over 20,000 civilians from their homes into forests and mountain tops.
Local Banyamulenge politicians claim that at least 50 soldiers on both sides have died in the fighting and over 100 civilians have been killed.
The fighting pits two Banyamulenge officers against each other. Brig. Patrick Masunzu leads the government forces against his kinsman, Col. Bisogo’s militias forces.
In the five-day fighting, witnesses saw charred bodies in and outside burned houses in the areas of Mingine, Ilundu, Kalingi, Mitengo and Kamombo. Local residents who called The New Vision said there has been no humanitarian assistance since fighting broke out on January 26, neither have they seen MONUC, the UN peacekeepers.
“People have been killed, houses razed and animals looted by rampaging Congolese soldiers,†said Alex Bizimana.
“There are no aid agencies or journalists on the ground to give an account of events here. MONUC forces cannot reachremote areas.â€
MONUC military spokesperson Lt. Colonel Didier Rancher confirmed that around January 26, hostilities broke out in Minembwe between the 112th Brigade of the Congolese army and a dissident group of over 100 men, led by Major Michael Rukunda. “The reason for the hostilities is not clear. Unfortunately there were many injuries and loss of life on both sides, with five dead and around 15 wounded, although these figures cannot be exactly confirmed,†he said.
Another Munyamulenge elder, Pastor Santos Kega, said the Congolese army has within its ranks Rwandan Hutu Interahamwe militias, accused of the 1994 genocide, who have beenbased in the South and North Kivu provinces since they fled Rwanda.
There is no independent confirmation of this claim. But the fighting is likely to undermine peace talks in Kigali between a Tutsi warlord, Gen. Laurent Nkunda and representatives of Congolese President Joseph Kabila. The Banyamulenge militias owe allegiance to Nkunda. “There are witnesses to prove the presence within the Congolese army of Interahamwe soldiers from Uvira,†said Pastor Kega, who added that 600 herds of cattle had been looted by Congolese troops.
MONUC was urged to send a patrol of blue helmets to the scene to prevent any further outbreak of violence.