At the age of nine, Ngwiniraha Mukandekezi and her family fled from Masisi, eastern DR Congo when they were attacked by armed men in 1996. The 36-year-old mother of four, who has lived in a Rwandan refugee camp for nearly three decades, says she doesn't want her children to spend their lives in exile. Mukandekezi was among the Congolese refugees who took part in a protest march around Mahama camp, in Rwanda’s Eastern Province, calling for an end to violence against Banyamulenge, Hema, and Tutsi communities. ALSO READ: ‘We want justice’: Stories of DR Congo’s ‘tired’ refugees VIDEO: Congolese refugees protest killings of Tutsi, Banyamulenge, Hema communities “Stop Genocide,” and “The world must not look away,” were some of the messages written on the placards carried by the refugees, who denounced killings by the Congolese government, armed groups like the FDLR, Nyatura and their allies like the DR Congo army and other countries. “We are safe in Rwanda, but our relatives, who could not flee, are being killed in Congo,” said Mukandekezi, who lost her brother, two uncles and cousins. “When we want to go back home, we hear that the killings have not stopped. We want world leaders to take action against the Congolese government to stop the massacre of our people. Countries like the USA must do something for our children to go home.” ALSO READ: Inside Kinshasa’s plan to hire American mercenaries to fight M23 In the fighting with M23 rebels, the Congolese government forces and their coalition of armed groups like the FDLR, a militia linked to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, and forces from Burundi and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) have been accused of killings targeted at Tutsi communities in North Kivu. ALSO READ: FDLR integration into DR Congo army must be addressed – Kagame UPDATE: Congolese refugees march around Mahama camp in #Rwanda's Eastern Province calling for an end to genocide against Banyamulenge, Hema and Tutsi people in eastern DR Congo. They urge the Congolese government, militias like FDLR and their allied countries to stop the... pic.twitter.com/xN23GtWSFp — The New Times (Rwanda) (@NewTimesRwanda) March 6, 2024 The FDLR, a UN-sanctioned terrorist group linked to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, has been integrated into the Congolese army. Rwanda has for years asked the Congolese government to end its collaboration with the FDLR, which not only threatens DR Congo’s security but has launched attacks on Rwanda for more than two decades. ALSO READ: UN confirms FDLR active in DR Congo, warns of genocide The group, which was founded by remnants of Interahamwe and the former Rwandan army, has spread an anti-Tutsi ideology in eastern DR Congo and helped to create new militias. ALSO READ: DR Congo’s Rwandophone question: What US govt, SA, Tanzanian leaders have said Kamanzi Muhire fled the recent fighting in Kilorirwe. “The FDLR chased us from our ancestral land,” said Muhire, who now lives in Mahama Refugee Camp. “It’s very hard to survive there; they killed everyone who has facial features of a Tutsi. They look at your height and nose. The killings are perpetrated by the Congolese government and FDLR, Burundian forces and Wazalendo.” He said he wanted the international community to denounce the Congolese government for working with the FDLR and persecution of the Banyamulenge in South Kivu, Hema in Ituri and Tutsi in North Kivu. “They have killed our relatives, stolen and eaten our cows, and took over our land. We want to return to our homeland,” he said. Eastern DR Congo has been volatile for nearly 30 years. The provinces of South Kivu, North Kivu and Ituri are home to more than 130 armed groups that are accused of atrocities and human rights violations. Chantal Rutazarira Umutoni fled the conflict in 2012. As the 37-year-old reminisced about her lost home in Kitshanga, she said she wishes to see her in-laws she takes care of go back to DR Congo to build their lives in a peaceful community. “Here in the camp, they go to school, but the conditions here aren’t suited for education. If I were in my homeland, I would be working to pay their school fees; they could even go to university. My only wish is to see them go back home.”
