SUMMARY
FNL Ubugabo-Burihabwa (Forces nationales de libération Ubugabo-Burihabwa, National Liberation Forces - Ubugabo-Burihabwa), also known as FNL-Nzabampema, was a Burundian rebel group based mainly in South Kivu, DR Congo (Zaire), which opposed the Government of Burundi. The name Ubugabo-Burihabwa meant “we create our own dignity.” The group was formed in 2012 by former members of Palipehutu-FNL, following renewed repression and targeted killings of FNL members and other opposition supporters in Burundi.
FNL Ubugabo-Burihabwa’s stated incompatibility concerned control of the Burundian government. The group presented its armed struggle as a response to the Burundian government’s repression of the political opposition, corruption, and abuses by the ruling CNDD-FDD and its youth wing, the Imbonerakure. It claimed that FNL members had been executed by the authorities in Bujumbura without an effective international response. Although the group emerged from the FNL tradition, it later operated independently from Agathon Rwasa’s FNL party.
The group’s origins were linked to the post-war trajectory of Palipehutu-FNL. Palipehutu-FNL, led by Agathon Rwasa, had laid down its arms in April 2009 after a peace process that followed Burundi’s civil war. The former Hutu rebel group CNDD-FDD had entered the peace process earlier and won the Burundian elections in 2005. Pierre Nkurunziza, a former CNDD-FDD rebel leader, was elected president. After the 2010 elections, FNL became the main political opposition, and the government and Imbonerakure were accused of targeting FNL members and other opposition supporters. In this context, Aloys Nzabampema announced the creation of FNL Ubugabo-Burihabwa on 3 September 2012, while also claiming responsibility for an attack near Bujumbura.
FNL Ubugabo-Burihabwa operated mainly from Uvira and Mwenga territories in South Kivu Province, DR Congo (Zaire). The group maintained positions in the Ruzizi Plain, the Moyens Plateaux and Hauts Plateaux of Uvira territory, and areas along the Ruzizi River, which forms the border between DR Congo (Zaire) and Burundi. It made regular incursions into Burundi, particularly through or near Rusizi National Park and areas close to the Rukoko forest.
FNL Ubugabo-Burihabwa consisted mainly of Burundian fighters. Its strength was generally estimated at between 300 and 500 combatants. The group recruited in Burundian communities close to the Rukoko forest and in the Lusenda refugee camp in Fizi territory, South Kivu. It also recruited by force, including children.
FNL Ubugabo-Burihabwa had a military structure led by Aloys Nzabampema. It maintained camps and military positions in South Kivu and deployed many of its troops along the Burundian border when preparing operations inside Burundi. Burundian army deserters who joined the group reportedly brought weapons, ammunition, and communications equipment with them. The group’s stocks included Kalashnikov-pattern rifles, light machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades, heavy machine guns, fragmentation grenades, and improvised explosive devices made from grenades. These devices were used to discourage civilians or military forces from approaching its camps.
General Aloys Nzabampema was the group’s military commander and central figure. He was a former Palipehutu-FNL combatant who had reportedly joined the movement in 1994 and later entered the FNL general staff. He was integrated into the Burundian army in 2009 with the rank of major, but soon deserted and returned to armed activity. Isidore Nibise, also spelled Nibizi, was described as the group’s political leader, although the exact nature of his involvement remained unclear.
In January 2013, tensions within the movement led to a split between a pro-Rwasa wing under Antoine Bariyanka, also known as Shuti, and a pro-Nzabampema wing. Shuti withdrew from active command and established himself with his deputy Major Evelyne in the hills above Mboko in Fizi territory. The Nzabampema faction remained the main FNL Ubugabo-Burihabwa faction and announced a new leadership in which Nzabampema headed the military wing and Isidore Nibise headed the political wing. The FNL-Shuti faction later continued separately.
FNL Ubugabo-Burihabwa was allied at different times with local Mayi Mayi groups in South Kivu. Some of these groups were part of the CNPSC coalition. The group’s relations with Congolese armed actors were shaped by its need for rear bases in South Kivu and by local conflict dynamics in Uvira, Fizi, and Mwenga territories.
The group’s influence later declined as other Burundian opposition groups emerged and as its relationship with Burundian security actors became increasingly unclear.
