Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) - "The riots that precede the capture of the cities by the M23 are a constant", explains a local source in Bukavu to Fides, referring to what happened to Bishop Sébastien Joseph Muyengo Mulombe of Uvira, who was robbed yesterday, February 20, along with two of his collaborators (see Fides, 21/2/2025) by alleged soldiers of the FARDC (Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo).
The Fides source points out that the uniform worn does not always correspond to the actual affiliation to the regular army. "In Kamanyola, according to the testimonies we collected, a large group of soldiers in FARDC uniforms had arrived. When some M23 commanders arrived, these soldiers took off their Congolese army uniforms and it became apparent that they were wearing M23 uniforms or even uniforms of the Rwandan army (Rwanda Defense Force-RDF).
"The M23 has now entered the city," said the source on the situation in Uvira, "their trucks were seen." The conflict involves the forced recruitment of children and young people. "We have received news that an armed group, which we do not know which it is, has entered a school in Uvira to kidnap students and then recruit them into their ranks," reports the source. Meanwhile, in Uvira, during the advance of the pro-Rwandan forces, riots and incidents broke out between the fleeing FARDC soldiers and the "Wazalendo" self-defense groups, which left dead and injured (see Fides, 20/2/2025). "The latter," says our source, "wanted to force the fleeing FARDC soldiers to stay and fight with them, or at least to give up their weapons. This led to firefights with those who refused to give up their weapons. Here too, there is a suspicion that these are militiamen wearing M23 or RDF uniforms under the uniform of the Congolese army."
"So the advance continues and Burundi is on high alert because Uvira is on its border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. If nothing is done at the international level, the Rwandan forces and their local allies will continue to advance because the Congolese civil and military institutions are too weak and infiltrated by their opponents or at least incompetent," reports the Fides source.
"Finally, the civilian population is tired of this war, and perhaps they are not so hostile to a change," says the source. In fact, the M23 presents itself as a stabilizing force in the territories it conquers. The source warns: "We are still in the phase of friendly behavior; but we have seen in previous wars the true behavior of these forces, which, although they had different names, are essentially the same."
"I remember the Lenten letter of the then Archbishop of Bukavu, Archbishop Emmanuel Kataliko, in 1999, in which he addressed the suffering faithful, telling them that God is not far away, because Jesus Christ is this suffering people, he is in the heart of the people who are experiencing cruel pain. A people who are being deceived today, because this war is accompanied by a great deception," concludes the source. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 21/2/2025)
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