This dyad belongs to the conflict Congo: Government

Summary of conflict Congo: Government

The start of the armed conflict in Congo in 1993 corresponds to the initiation of the democratization process in the country. As ethnic and regional elites scrambled for political power, militia groups were mobilized and tensions soon exploded. Initially relatively low-scale in intensity, the fighting escalated in 1997 when former president Denis Sassou-Nguessou and his Cobra militia managed to re-capture power. Over the following years his rule was contested by three rebel groups and the conflict raged on and off until 2003, when a peace agreement was signed with the last group active – the Ntsiloulous.

The government of Congo met with Ntsiloulou members on 17 January 2018 for the first time since a ceasefire was signed in December 2017 marking an end to the renewed conflict that broke out in April 2016. In October 2018 it was reported that as a result of the ceasefire agreement 8000 weapons had been destroyed and 5600 ex-combatants had been registered in the Pool region.

Background to the conflict

The Republic of Congo has over the years suffered from continuous rivalry and antagonism within the political class. The political culture in the country has not promoted peaceful negotiations and discussions, but problems have generally been solved through violence. The rivalry within the political class is predominantly regional, but also ethnic in character since the North-South antagonism roughly corresponds to the division between the central Laris, the southern so-called Niboleks and the northern Mboshis. During the period of one-party rule that followed independence, this rivalry and antagonism remained muted, but with the democratisation process in the early 1990s tension resurfaced. Political parties were created by appealing to ethnic and regional loyalties and soon three main blocs could be discerned. PCT (Parti Congolais du Travail) was led by former president Denis Sassou-Nguessou and drew most of its support from the northern Mbocho group. MCDDI (Mouvement congolais pour la démocratie et le développement intégral), for their part was relying chiefly on the votes of the numerous Lari population, from which its leader, Bernard Kolelas, came. The third political party was UPADS (Union Panafricaine pour la démocratie sociale), led by Pascal Lissouba and mainly drawing support from the Nibolek province. The latter won the county's first democratic elections in 1992.

In May 1993, following a turbulent first year of multi-party politics, a re-run of legislative election was held. This was won by Lissoubas UPADS, but the opposition refused to accept the results, arguing that the election should be nullified due to irregularities. What started out as a massive campaign of civil disobedience soon turned into violence along political and ethnic lines. The three main parties subsequently all created armed militias: MCDDI set up the Ninjas, PCTs the Cobra militia and UPADS, the "Réserve Ministerielle", the "Aubevillois" and the "Zoulous". UPADS three groups were later consolidated as the Cocoyes. President Lissoubas main reason for creating the militias was his tenuous control of the armed forces, FAC (Forces Armées du Congo), with elements within the latter remaining loyal to former president, turned-opposition leader, Denis Sassou-Nguessou. The loyalty of the armed forces remained a constant concern during the conflict, regardless of the party in power.

The first phase of the conflict (1993-1994)

The re-run of the legislative election, held in May 1993, and won by Pascal Lissouba’s party UPADS resulted in escalating political violence in the capital. The opposition refused to accept the results, arguing that the election should be nullified due to irregularities. In the quickly deteriorating situation, the main parties created militias to beef up their security. Simultaneously, and to some extent linked to this, Brazzaville experienced ethnic cleansing, where zones within the city were created with homogeneous populations. Through the summer months and into the fall most violence was perpetrated by neighborhood mobs. However, in November fighting broke out in the Bakongo district between the army and the Ninja militia, loyal to Bernard Kolelas and the party MCDDI. Bakongo was mainly inhabited by Laris from the Pool region and in the politically and ethnically polarised Congolese context the district was subsequently viewed as a Ninja stronghold. In December also the Cobras joined the conflict, fighting in the Mpila district of Brazzaville.

Negotiations were initiated almost instantly as the violence took a more organised form in November 1993. Subsequently, on 26 November, an agreement was reached by the Prime Minister, Joachim Yhombi-Opango and MCDDI leader Bernard Kolelas to end the violence. Under the agreement the Prime Minister was to order the security forces back to barracks while Kolelas was to call for calm. However, the fighting continued and in January the following year, Gen. Ngollo, the national mediator, hosted new negotiations with the parties. On 30 January a ceasefire was signed between MCDDI and President Lissoubas party, UPADS, in which both sides agreed to disarm their militias and also undertook to put into place an intervention force, charged with monitoring the truce. This ceasefire was largely observed and the conflict remained muted the following three years. During these years of calm, negotiations were held on a number of occasions, mainly to try to achieve a consensus on the disarmament and integration of the militias into the army. However, even if a number of accords were reached, the militias were never fully disarmed, and only a fraction of their troops were integrated into the army. On the political front President Lissouba managed to gradually build improved relations with Kolelas and his MCDDI, using a decentralisation programme to increase the other parties stakes in the political system. This rapprochement effectively marginalized PCT and relations between the two camps remained tense.

The conflict’s second phase: “La guerre de Brazzaville” (1997)

After over three years of uneasy calm, fighting erupted once more in June 1997. Presidential elections were to be held, and tensions were running high. Early in the morning on 5 June government troops surrounded PCT-leader Denis Sassou-Nguessou’s residence in the Mpila district of northern Brazzaville, stating that they were looking to disarm his illegal Cobra militia. Facing unexpectedly hard resistance they were forced to withdraw and the Cobras subsequently started putting up barricades around the areas under their control. This was the start of the second phase of the conflict, commonly referred to as “la guerre de Brazzaville”.

Throughout June and July 1997, following the renewed outbreak of fighting, both outside mediators and the Congolese opposition leader Bernard Kolelas attempted to encourage meaningful peace talks between the two parties, but to no avail. Occasional ceasefires did take hold, but none lasted for more than a few days. In September, the mediation efforts of Kolelas were interrupted, when he accepted an invitation from President Lissouba to become prime minister of a new government of national unity. On 14 September African leaders organised a new summit meeting in Libreville. Both sides made presentations to the assembled dignitaries, but no significant progress was made.

Through all this, Brazzaville was the scene of fierce fighting and systematic artillery bombardment that left the city wrecked. Until October the fighting was concentrated to the capital where the three militias during the years of relative calm had created their own zones of de-facto influence. The Cobras were initially outgunned and the war appeared to be won when Bernard Kolelas and his Ninja militia joined the government side in September. However, the following month battle-hardened and heavily armed Angolan troops joined the conflict on the side of the Cobras, completely shifting the balance of power in the conflict. Long-time opponents of president Pascal Lissouba due to his support of Angolan rebel groups UNITA and FLEC the Angolan government saw an opportunity to cut off both groups from their rear bases by removing Lissouba from power. Also Chadian troops arrived in Brazzaville around this time, lending their support to Sassou’s war effort in order to ensure francophone interests in Central Africa. Sassou was France’s president of choice and during his earlier time in power the French oil company Elf-Aquitaine secured important agreements over oil concessions and the company came to control 80 % of the country’s oil production. With Lissouba in power oil deals started to be made with a US-based oil company – Oxy – something that led to French outrage. Sassou was thus seen as a better option when it came to promoting francophone interests than Lissouba.

In late October 1997, Sassou-Nguesso, with Angolan help, managed to take control of the entire capital Brazzaville, forcing the Cocoyes and the Ninjas to flee. As he declared himself new President, former President Lissouba and Prime Minister Kolelas went into exile.

The conflict’s third phase: the roles are reversed (late 1997-1999)

After Denis Sassou-Nguessou’s Cobra militia had seized power in late October 1997, aided by Angolan troops, the remnants of former President Pascal Lissouba’s Cocoye militia and Prime Minister Bernard Kolela’s Ninja militia fled the capital. Through the rest of the year there was sporadic fighting in the areas around Brazzaville, as the troops loyal to the new regime continued to pursue the militias. The Cocoyes eventually hid and regrouped in their native Nibolek region, while the Ninjas remained in Pool, the region surrounding Brazzaville. The Cobras, the new army, made up of Sassou loyalists and Angolan and Chadian troops persisted in their hunt for the fleeing militias. Under the name “Operation Colombe II” these forces made their way south and west, carrying out gross human rights violations against the civilian population. By March they had reached Nibolek and fighting erupted yet again against the Cocoyes, who initially claimed some successes.

In the Pool region the situation had become increasingly complicated since Ninja founder Bernard Kolelas had fled the country. With the link to the political leadership cut, divisions arouse among the fighters, who were fleeing for their lives. At this time a new rebel outfit appeared in the region; the Ntsiloulous. Founded by a charismatic preacher named Frédéric Bitsangou, often referred to as Pasteur Ntoumi, sometime in the first half of 1998, the Ntsiloulous were originally not an armed group. The group had in the past rather been a spiritual movement run by Ntoumi who saw himself as a prophet sent by God to liberate the Lari people from the oppression of President Sassous government. Formed in Brazzaville, the Ntsiloulous, led by Ntoumi, entered the Pool via Kinshasa. In Pool, Ntoumi was able to attract many former Ninja fighters to his movement, by using his religious preachings. Thus, by mid-1998 the Ninjas were no longer the sole representatives of the Lari people, but saw fierce competition from the Ntsiloulous. Over the following months the latter gained in influence at the cost of the former and by the last months of the year the Ntsiloulous had become the main rebel group in Pool. In late December the group launched an attack on Brazzaville and fought bloody battles with the government forces. After three days of fighting the rebels were forced to withdraw. In the wake of the attack, Cobras went on a rampage in the capitals southernmost quarters Bacongo and Makélékélé, inhabited mainly by Laris and therefore perceived as Ninja and Ntsiloulou. After the failed attack on Brazzaville, Ntoumi's focus shifted to consolidating the area under his control, which meant an intensification of the group's attempts to co-opt the few remaining Ninja units in Pool. By the spring of 1999, he had reached his goal, and the Ntsiloulous was the only remaining rebel outfit claiming to represent the Lari population. Those Ninjas who refused to join Ntoumi subsequently fled the Pool region.

Meanwhile, in January 1999 the Cocoyes launched a major attack on the town of Dolisie, which it temporarily occupied, whereby the hostilities also escalated in the Nibolek region. Fighting subsequently continued in the countryside throughout 1999, with the Ntsiloulous and the Cocoyes having initial successes, but with government and Angolan troops slowly gaining the upper hand.

Following four days of intense negotiations between representatives of the government and some smaller groupings of Cocoye and scattered Ninja militias, a cease-fire agreement was signed in Pointe-Noir on 16 November 1999. In December President Bongo of Gabon was designated the official mediator and the same month he hosted further discussions in Libreville, Gabon. Again an accord was signed, this time by representatives of the a Cocoye-Ntsiloulou (Conseil National de la Résistance: National Resistance Council). This agreement called for an immediate cessation of hostilities, the disarmament of the militias, the integration of former fighters into the armed forces and the collection of weapons from these groups. The accord also guaranteed the free circulation of people and goods throughout the country, and allowed for former civil servants to resume their posts. Also stipulated in the accord was the launching of a national dialogue, a "Dialogue National sans exclusif". This process was to lead to the drafting of a new constitution and to a series of elections to return the country to normal, multiparty political life. The dialogue was held, as stipulated, in March 2001 and a new constitution was adopted. However, opposition parties and spokespersons for the militias criticised the outcome as being biased towards the government, offering few real concessions. The Ntsiloulou leader Ntoumi, was the most vehemently opposed to the format of the national conference and in the end he refused to take part.

The fourth phase of the conflict: The re-emergence of the Ntsiloulous (2002)

In the two years that followed the 1999 accord, around 30 000 former fighters left their armed groups and the security situation in the country improved significantly. However, the fact that Ntsiloulou leader Ntoumi remained holed up in Vindza, his stronghold in Pool region, together with some 1500 armed men was a constant worry.

In late March 2002 tensions exploded and fighting re-erupted between government troops and the Ntsiloulous. The main reason for the fighting was internal power rivalries within President Denis Sassou-Nguessou’s government. Attempting to normalise the political and social life in the country, the president had tried to curb the influence of, and withdraw the special benefits that had been given to former Cobra leaders. In an attempt to maintain the status quo, these warlords responded by provoking an armed conflict with Ntoumi by having hundreds of government troops enter Ntsiloulou-controlled territory.

The remains of 2002 and the first three months of 2003 saw low-scale fighting consisting mainly of guerrilla attacks and government counter-insurgency tactics in the Pool region. Only at one point was Ntoumi able to seriously threaten Sassou’s regime; when his Ntsiloulous launched a surprise attack on Brazzaville’s Maya-Maya Airport in June. Caught off guard, the government was forced to turn to the former Cobra militia to be able to fight off the attack. After heavy fighting, the Cobra elements, supported by Angolan troops and army artillery fire, were able to push the Ntsiloulous back into the bush.

In January 2003, roughly ten months after the latest outbreak of fighting, negotiations commenced between the government and the Ntsiloulous. Very little is known about the proceedings, due to its secretive nature, but in March the negotiations resulted in the signing of an agreement, dubbed "Accords of reaffirmation of the 1999 accords". The agreement provides for an amnesty and for the integration of Ntsiloulous career soldiers into the national armed forces. The Ntsiloulous for their part agreed to lay down their arms, to end all efforts to undermine the authority of the state and to allow the free movement of people and goods through the Pool region. However, none of the rebels main political demands, i.e. the re-opening of the national dialogue and the return of exiled political leaders, were met.

The fate of the peace process after the 2003 agreement

While the government and the Ntsiloulous were able to reach an agreement in March 2003, its implementation was plagued by difficulties and little was done to ease the transition to peace. During the symbolic opening of the disarmament process, in January 2004, Ntsiloulou leader Pasteur Ntoumi issued a demand for the creation of a government of national unity, indicating that he would not endorse the process if this demand was not met. The government rejected the request, thus stalling the demobilization even further.

In a string of secrete talks the following year Ntsiloulous representatives and government officials discussed the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of Ntsiloulou fighters and the creation of a government of national unity, attempting to break the impasse. The negotiations, however, stranded when Ntoumi once again refused to disarm and demobilize his fighters unless his movement was given posts within the government. The stalemate at the negotiation table also increased tensions on the ground. In both March and October 2005 Ntsiloulou rebels and security forces clashed in the Bakongo and Makélékélé districts of southern Brazzaville, resulting in at least 11 deaths. The immediate cause for the hostilities was the government’s desire to oust Ntsiloulou fighters from the capital. In October 2005, the political landscape changed dramatically with the return to Congo of former Prime Minister Bernard Kolélas, founder of the Ninja militia, from which most Ntsilioulous were drawn. Kolelas had lived in exile since President Sassou-Nguessou’s coup in 1997 and his return, and subsequent reproach with Sassou-Nguessou, was widely seen as an effort by the President to sideline Ntoumi’s Ntsiloulou faction.

After the October 2005 fighting, the security situation improved significantly in the country. Despite this, the implementation process remains stalled, partly because Ntoumi continued to reassert his demand that he be given a post in the government. Even if the government rejected these demands, they did not use arms to pacify the Ntsiloulous. Some commentators have suggested that this was due to Sassou’s preference to keep a situation of no war, no peace in Pool, as a way to prevent the appearance of a strong, democratic opposition in the region. This argument can find support by the fact that the government gave both money and trucks to Ntoumi in order for the Ntsiloulous leader to uphold his control over Pool.

In September 2007, Ntoumi attempted to return to Brazzaville, to take up his seat as the General Delegate in Charge of the Promotion of Peace and Post-Conflict Reconstruction; a seat he had been granted by President Sassou in May of that year. However, his return to Brazzaville was blocked by government troops, claiming that he was bringing too many former rebel fighters with him into the capital. A clash ensued, leaving a few rebels dead and Ntoumi subsequently returned to the Pool region. A little over two years later, on 28 December 2009, Ntoumi finally arrived in Brazzaville, accompanied by elements of his personal guard, and took up his post. 

After Ntoumi’s return to Brazzaville, the peace process seemed to gain some momentum. In March, the government and Ntoumi jointly stated that the main objectives of the 2003 peace accords had either been reached or were being worked on, pointing to the successful disarmament of many ex-combatants, the building of roads and the free movement of people and goods. Furthermore, after years of no state authority in Pool, security forces moved into the region in October 2010, among other things aiming to identify areas for the construction of police stations. Ntoumi, for his part, participated in the local elections under the banner of his political party, CNR (Conseil national des républicains: National Council of Republicans), in September 2014. He was subsequently elected as a local councilor in Mayama in Pool region.  

Presidential elections and the resumption of fighting

In the run-up to presidential elections, the political and security situation became increasingly tense. Under the constitution, President Sassou-Nguessou was banned from seeking a third term, due to age and term limits. In March 2015, he announced a future referendum on changes to the constitution that would make him eligible to run in the 2016 elections. On 20-21 October 2015, just before the referendum, there were widespread protests in Brazzaville, with thousands of people taking to the streets to oppose Sassou-Nguessou’s attempt to stay in power. When the marchers refused to disperse, the police fired warning shots, and later shot straight at the protesters, killing an unclear number of them. The demonstrators erected barricades and burned tires and police stations were attacked in opposition strongholds.  Nevertheless, the controversial referendum took place on 25 October, and according to official results, over 90 % voted in favor of the constitutional changes. The voter turnout was reported to be high, at more than 70 %. However, the opposition termed the referendum a constitutional coup d’état, claiming that only 10 % of the people voted.

On 20 March 2016, presidential elections were held amidst a media blackout, claimed by the government to be a measure aimed to prevent unofficial election results from circulating and causing unrest. On 24 March, Sassou Nguessso was announced as the winner, with 60 % of the vote. Rejecting the outcome, the opposition alleged fraud and called for civil disobedience. 

On 4 April, as the Constitutional Court endorsed the election results, violence erupted in Brazzaville; there was gunfire on the streets, a local mayor’s office and two police stations were set ablaze and heavily armed men attacked an army barracks. Twelve of the attackers were killed, as was three soldiers and two civilians. The government blamed Ntoumi and his Ntsiloulous, subsequently firing him from his position as the General Delegate in Charge of the Promotion of Peace and Post-Conflict Reconstruction. Ntoumi, who had supported opposition leader Guy Brice Parfait Kolelas in the presidential election, went underground, denying any involvement in the violence. However, in October, Jean Gustave Ntondo, Ntoumi's spokesperson, admitted to the 4 April attack, saying that there needed to be a consensual political solution, and that it was a lack of this that prompted the Ntsiloulous to react in April. 

Following the Brazzaville fighting, the government carried out bombings in Pool, targeting Ntoumi causing many people to lose their lives. Furthermore, a land offensive was launched against a number of villages in the region. After a tense calm, the Pool offensive continued in September. The Ntsiloulous, for their part, carried out a number of attacks on government forces in the area.  Information on the situation in Pool remained limited, however, given that the region is difficult to access.