SUMMARY
Geographically, the Basonge inhabited areas along rivers such as the Lukenye and across the savannah and forest–savannah transition zones. They were organised in extended kinship units grouped in village based chiefdoms ruled by customary leaders. Most Basonge were small scale agriculturalists cultivating cassava, maize, groundnuts and other staples, often combined with fishing, hunting and local trade. In some localities, Basonge households also engaged in artisanal mining or wage labour in nearby towns, but the local economy remained largely subsistence oriented.
Traditional authority among the Basonge was centred on hereditary chiefs, sometimes bearing titles such as mulopwe, who exercised moral, ritual and administrative authority at the local level. These chiefs oversaw land allocation, mediated disputes and presided over communal rituals. Succession generally followed family lines but typically involved consultations among elders and spiritual advisers. In Basonge Bambembele, communal mobilisation during recent violence was closely associated with the leadership of chief Mukandila, a Songe customary chief. According to provincial and national reporting, conflicts with neighbouring communities escalated after he issued orders that contributed to violent confrontations, and he was arrested and imprisoned in 2023 for inciting ethnic violence. After his release in 2024 he again played a role in triggering tensions by prohibiting members of the neighbouring Bena Nkoma community from accessing their fields and thereby threatening their livelihoods.
The Basonge operated within provincial and territorial governance structures in Kasai Central. Their relations with the Congolese state were mediated through customary chiefs, territorial administrators and provincial politicians. Land and boundary disputes with neighbouring communities, and the status of Basonge customary authority in areas such as Dimbelenge, frequently brought them into contact and sometimes into conflict with state institutions. Following renewed clashes in 2024, the provincial assembly of Kasai Central created a commission to investigate the origins of the land-use dispute between the groupements of Basonge Bambembele and Bena Koma.
The Basonge was not linked to and armed groups but rather mobilised youth into self defence and attack groups aligned with customary structures. In Dimbelenge territory, long running disputes over land and agricultural fields between Basonge Bambembele and neighbouring communities, including Bena Nkoma of the Bakwa Luntu, periodically escalated into violent confrontations involving killings, the burning of houses and population displacement.
