SUMMARY
The Sud Kivu Province in the DR Congo (Zaire) is an area affected by many different but also intertwined conflicts. Many of them have been explained by the question of identity: are Rwandophones – i.e. speakers of Kinyarwanda and Kirundi legitimate members of the Congolese nation? Ethnic groups in the area, claiming to be autochtone to the land, have perceived Rwandophones as foreigners. Between the same communities, conflicts have arisen between agriculturalists and pastoralists, especially during the transhumance period (the seasonal movement of people with their livestock). Livestock has often caused damage to the farmers’ land; thereby conflicts have evolved over the access to and control of land. Furthermore, local conflicts over the local governance have been intermingled into the mix. At the same time, the different ethnic groups have supported and joined different armed groups and militias over the years supporting different sides in the many conflicts over governmental power that have been ongoing in the DR Congo (Zaire). Similarly, different Congolese armed groups have also at times allied themselves with Rwanda, Burundi or different rebel groups challenging the Rwandan or Burundian governments. All of this has led to re-emerging conflicts between different armed groups in the region.
The conflict between Mayi Mayi Biloze Bishambuke and Twiganeho should be understood in this context. Mayi Mayi Biloze Bishambuke was a Mayi Mayi coalition including armed groups from the Bafulero community, considered as autochtone to the region. Twiganeho was a militia from the Banyamulenge community perceived as rwandophone and foreigners to the region. In 2018, there was an escalation in the violence on the high-plateau and the different groups fighting for the communities residing there fought more and more in broad coalitions. The two groups, Mayi Mayi Biloze Bishambuke and Twiganeho, has been at the center of this development but they have often clashed as part of broader coalitions.
The non-state conflict between Mayi Mayi Biloze Bishambuke and Twiganeho is first included in UCDP data in 2021. On 24 January 2021, Mayi Mayi Biloze Bishambuke fell into a Twiganeho ambush in the Fizi territory, DR Congo (Zaire) fatalities from the event made the conflict pass the 25 fatalities threshold.
