Kitchanga

Kitchanga, also known as Kitshanga, is a town and a camp for Congolese Internally Displaced People (IDPs) in the Rutshuru Territory of North Kivu Province in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Kitchanga is located 119 kilometers north of Goma and 10 kilometers north of Burungu. It also lies near Kizimba and Budey villages.[1][2]

Kitchanga town center destroyed after heavy fighting between the APCLS militia and the FARDC, March 2013

Subsistence farming is the main economic sector in the region. Local farmers cultivate crops such as maize, beans, potatoes, and various vegetables.[3][4][5] Livestock farming is also an integral part of the local economy. It provides a source of income, as well as dairy products, meat, and other by-products for local consumption and trade.[6][7][8] The area is also known for its mining activities, particularly the extraction of tin, tantalum, and tungsten.[9] In addition, Kitchanga hosts various service-oriented businesses and professions. These may include healthcare facilities, educational institutions, hospitality establishments such as hotels and restaurants, transportation services, and administrative offices.[10][11][12]

Since 2012, Kitchanga has been affected by the protracted conflict that has engulfed the region, becoming a site of violence and mass displacement.[13][14][15] On 20 November 2012, the March 23 Movement (Mouvement du 23 Mars; M23) seized control over significant portions of North Kivu Province, eventually capturing the provincial capital of Goma.[16][17] The M23's reign was characterized by widespread human rights abuses, including the recruitment of child soldiers, the rape and sexual violence against women and girls, and the forced displacement of civilians. Consequently, Kitchanga has become a shelter for those fleeing violence while simultaneously serving as a contested town, a rebel stronghold, and a volatile battleground where clashes unfolded.[12][18][19]

History

Kitchanga was traditionally inhabited by the Hunde people, the Bantu horticulturists who inhabit the Masisi Territory. The town was historically part of the Hunde Chiefdom, which was a system of governance led by a chief who acted as the leader and authority figure.[20]

During the colonial era, Belgian colonial empire orchestrated a "Rwandan emigration mission to the Congo." Ruanda-Urundi, having become a protectorate of the Belgian colonial empire, boasted a dense population, while the Belgian Congo, also under Belgian rule, encompassed areas characterized by significantly low population densities. The Belgian settlers favored the arrival of these Banyarwanda transplanted workers and immigrants who sought refuge in the eastern regions of the Belgian Congo as the local population had fled due to the forced labor imposed by the white farmers. The Banyarwanda were predominantly settled in strategic locations, namely Masisi in present-day North Kivu Province, Itombwe in present-day South Kivu Province, and the Vyura Mountains above Moba in Katanga Province.[21][22] Consequently, the Belgian colonizers created "atypical" chefferies for Banyarwanda, including the establishment of the Bwisha Chiefdom and Gishari Chiefdom. These lands, which span an area of 34,910 hectares (350 km2), were forcibly acquired by the colonial power in 1939 from the Bahunde chiefs, with the purpose of accommodating Banyarwanda immigrants. In 1938, Mr. Leenaerts, a Belgian administrator who had been transferred from Ruanda-Urundi, arrived in the region to oversee the welfare of the immigrants whom he had previously managed in Rwanda.[23][24][25][20]

In 1940, Chief Bideri, from Rwanda, succeeded Mr. Leenaerts, who was subsequently replaced in 1941 by another Rwandan chief named Buchanayandi. The establishment of these two chiefdoms and the appointment of Rwandan immigrants as traditional chiefs instigated ethnic tensions between the Rwandan immigrants and the Hundes, who considered the land rightfully theirs. In 1957, the Hundes reclaimed their entity of Gishari and successfully reintegrated it into the Hunde Chiefdom of Kishali. Consequently, Gishari Chiefdom lasted 17 years before being dissolved.[25][26][23][27]

Security problems (2009–2023)
IDP camp around MONUSCO base in Kitchanga, March 2013

Over the last three decades, Kitchanga has faced significant security challenges, experiencing a myriad of violence, armed conflict and general instability that have had a significant impact on the local population.[28][29][30] During the Second Congo War, Kitchanga served as a stronghold of the Rally for Congolese Democracy (RCD) with the aim of defying the Laurent-Désiré Kabila's government. Kabila's administration faced accusations of neglecting the security and well-being of Tutsis, as well as alleged collaborations with other armed factions. Concurrently, the RCD faced allegations of human rights violations, including the recruitment and exploitation of child soldiers, perpetration of sexual and gender-based violence, and forced displacement of civilians.[31]

Following the 2002 Pretoria Peace Agreement, the RCD underwent a significant transformation, reconfiguring itself as a political party and actively participating in the political process leading up to subsequent elections. RCD members failed to secure seats during the initial elections in 2006, leaving them without representation in provincial and national politics. Disenchanted by the outcome, a faction of discontented members spearheaded by Laurent Nkunda broke away from the RCD and formed the National Congress for the Defense of the People (Congrès National pour la Défense du Peuple; CNDP), later re-established as M23 to maintain influence in Kinshasa and protect their economic and security interests in the eastern region.[32][12]

In November 2012, the M23 rebels engaged in armed conflict with the Congolese army, subsequently establishing dominance over significant territories within the North Kivu Province. The group seized control of towns, villages, and strategically vital areas, notably including Goma.[16] On November 21, 2012, the M23 rebels occupied Sake and gained control of the Kirolirwe axis as they advanced towards Kitchanga.[33] In response, MONUSCO deployed "robust patrols" to safeguard the civilian population and impede the advance of the M23 and Alliance of Patriots for a Free and Sovereign Congo (Alliance des Patriotes pour un Congo Libre et Souverain; APCLS) militants towards their base in Kitchanga.[34][35] Consequently, thousands of people were displaced and sought refuge in the Mungote IDP Camp in Kitchanga amid the clashes between the militants and a combined offensive launched by the Congolese army and a United Nations-backed intervention brigade.[36][37][28]

From February to March 2013, clashes between the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) and APCLS militiamen in Kitchanga resulted in 80 fatalities, hundreds injured and nearly a hundred thousand displaced.[38] The APCLS alleged that the government had failed to fulfill its commitment of integrating its fighters into the national army. Following the clashes, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) issued a plea to halt violence against Kitchanga's civilian population.[39] Ban Ki-moon, the former Secretary-General of the UN, urged the United Nations Security Council to authorize the deployment of an international intervention brigade in the region.[40]

IDPs returned to Kitchanga after heavy fighting between the APCLS militia and the FARDC, March 2013

On March 29, 2013, clashes between the APCLS and FARDC forces resulted in the deaths of 17 APCLS militiamen and one FARDC officer in Kitobo and Muhanga. The FARDC successfully ousted the militiamen from these areas, where they had established their positions near the city of Kitchanga, located 80 km northwest of Goma in the Masisi Territory in the North Kivu Province.[41]

On May 17, 2013, the Congolese National Police (Police Nationale Congolaise; PNC) were driven out from several localities in Kitchanga by the Mai-Mai Nyatura militiamen. One of the police chiefs acknowledged that the police force was not equipped for engaging with the militiamen and admitted that they had retreated when confronted by armed group combatants. In response, civil society called for the intervention of the army to remove the militias from the villages.[42] On May 18, 2023, the FARDC dislodged the militiamen from the Mbuyi and Kashanje hills towards Mwesso and the Nyatura of Noheri from the locality of Muhongozi 9 km from Kitchanga.[43]

The resurgence of APCLS and Mai-Mai Nyatura in various villages within Masisi Territory in October 2013 led to widespread displacement of the civilian population. The IDPs were accommodated in Kitchanga.[44]

On January 29, 2014, four individuals were killed by armed bandits in Kitchanga. John Banyele, the president of the coordination of the civil society of the Masisi Territory, condemned the killings, attributing them to "unidentified armed bandits". These armed bandits were also accused of killing the national police commander in Kitchanga, as well as a farmer and a teacher.[45]

On February 9, 2014, the FARDC launched a counter-offensive against the APCLS and their Nyatura allies in the villages of Kibarizo, Muhanga, and Butare, situated approximately twenty kilometers west of Kitchanga.[46] During the afternoon, the FARDC dislodged the APCLS from Kibarizo, Muhanga, and Butare in the Masisi Territory.[47]

On August 23, 2016, the APCLS and Mai-Mai Nyatura militias reached a peace agreement. The signing took place in Muhanga and was facilitated by two elected officials from Masisi, with the assistance of the police and security services. Both militias committed to working towards peace and the development of the Bashali Mokoto chieftaincy, which had been a source of contention between them.[48]

In February 2023, the M23 rebels took control of Kitchanga after capturing several villages on the road linking the city to the provincial capital Goma. The capture of Kitchanga led to a significant displacement of more than 450,000 people. Over 500 people, including women and children, sought refuge at the MUNESCO's basement in Kitchanga.[49][50][51]

See also

References
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