SUMMARY
Mayi Mayi or Mai Mai or Maï Maï (Congolese Swahili for "Water Water") was not a cohesive movement but rather a number of local militias in the Kivu regions of the DR Congo (Zaire). The Mayi Mayi phenomenon although existent in the 1960s was revived at a broader front in 1992 when marginalised youths formed groups fight for protection of local villages and for a status in society. As violence escalated in the region many loose groups and formations were drawn into the fighting. Some Mayi Mayi militias have been well structured organisations with clear agendas and strong support; others more like armed gangs, followers of different warlords with very vague objectives. Even though the Mayi Mayi militias did not have a centralized structure, one can find common denominators. Most militias have in common the use of hit and run tactics; their hatred for foreign involvement in their country's security matters; the low average age of the soldiers and the close connection to the local community.
The roots of the Mayi Mayi can be found in an ancient warrior tradition from the Bahunde, Banande and Banlima ethnic groups. They believed that special potions neutralize bullets by turning them into water. The name Mayi Mayi first appeared in the Mulele rebellion of 1964 but the connection between that rebellion and today's movements are weak. Mayi Mayi should be seen more as a social phenomenon than an organisation. In the late 1990s during the war against the Kabila government of DR Congo some Mayi Mayi militias had grown considerably and in some parts they were been able to leave their hit-and-run tactics and take long term control of some territory.
Because of Mayi Mayi's multi-layered and multi-purposed nature one cannot correctly see them as part of one side in the intrastate conflict. The alliances have been shifting both over time and between groups. Media reported that the Mayi Mayi militias sided with Kabila's AFDL (Alliance des forces démocratiques pour la libération du Congo, Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo) in the war against President Mobutu. In a radio announcement in early 1997 a truce between the two parties was broadcast, and Mayi Mayi was said to have joined the alliance in December 1996. Obviously this pact did not include all Mayi Mayi. The Mayi Mayi soldiers that did help Kabila to oust Mobutu soon broke with him as it became apparent that the Rwandan Tutsi and many of the Banyamulenge were given important leadership positions in the new regime. In 1998 most Mayi Mayi fought the RCD (The Rassemblement congolais pour la démocratie, Congolese Rally for Democracy) guerrillas and their Rwandan allies. They have been a strong support for the government army, and the Mayi Mayi groups have been given both moral and material support from the government from the start of the conflict. In September 1999, four Mayi Mayi leaders were given the rank of general in the DR Congo army (FAC). One of them Sylvestre Louetcha, was appointed head of the army general staff. The Kinshasa government withdrew the support for other groups in 2001 and then a few militias instead turned to RCD for help. Mayi Mayi was a part of the Inter-Congolese Dialogue and part of the peace agreement concluded in 2003. Before 1996 and after 2004 Mayi Mayi has been treated as separate militias with separate names in UCDP data.
Mayi Mayi has been involved in the non-state and one-sided categories of UCDP organised violence.
