{"id":98347,"date":"2025-06-10T19:29:25","date_gmt":"2025-06-10T17:29:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/?p=98347"},"modified":"2025-06-10T19:29:25","modified_gmt":"2025-06-10T17:29:25","slug":"arica-report-former-rebel-president-joseph-kabila-returns-to-the-drc-amid-escalating-tensions-and-civilian-massacres","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/arica-report-former-rebel-president-joseph-kabila-returns-to-the-drc-amid-escalating-tensions-and-civilian-massacres\/","title":{"rendered":"Arica Report: Former Rebel President Joseph Kabila Returns to the DRC Amid Escalating Tensions and Civilian Massacres"},"content":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za<\/a><\/p>\n

4-minute read
\n10 January 2025 | 11:45 CAT<\/p>\n

\"\"

Former DRC President Joseph Kabila returns to Goma, reigniting fears of renewed conflict as M23-linked violence escalates and calls for justice grow louder across Africa.<\/p><\/div>\n

After years in political exile, former Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) president Joseph Kabila has returned to Goma\u2014the very city where he launched his initial rebellion in 1996. His return comes at a time of extreme instability in the country, with mounting civilian deaths and a resurgence of rebel violence linked to the M23 movement.<\/p>\n

Speaking to Radio Islam International<\/em><\/a>, Jean Bwasa, an African sociologist and media analyst based at Sacred Heart College, contextualised Kabila\u2019s return as less a political comeback and more a dangerous re-emergence of past unrest. \u201cWe must understand that in terms of history, Kabila reached the Congo as a rebel\u2026 with the help of his uncle James Kabarebe who is a Rwandan Tutsi,\u201d said Bwasa<\/p>\n

Kabila ruled the DRC for over 18 years, a period many accuse of being rife with corruption, impunity, and state failure. Bwasa warned that Kabila\u2019s reappearance must be met with critical scrutiny by Congolese citizens. \u201cThis is the time where we need to unite because that country is our struggle,\u201d he urged, emphasising that the return must not be allowed to deepen the already dire situation in the country.<\/p>\n

Massacres in Goma and Beyond<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bwasa noted that the recent execution of at least 21 civilians by M23 rebels in Goma is just the tip of the iceberg. \u201cThree months ago\u2026 10,000 Congolese were slaughtered in cold blood,\u201d he claimed, decrying the lack of any effective government response under President F\u00e9lix Tshisekedi.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese numbers are not just statistics\u2014they represent lives stolen, futures crushed,\u201d he said, drawing attention to past human rights defenders like Floribert Chebeya and General Bandu Bauma, who were allegedly silenced during Kabila\u2019s regime. The return of the former president, Bwasa argued, is not a promise of stability but a haunting echo of a violent past.<\/p>\n

The Roots of the Conflict<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bwasa was adamant that the M23 and other rebel outfits, such as the Alliance of Democratic Forces (ADF), are \u201cthe emanation and creation of Mr Joseph Kabila.\u201d He described the rebels as seeds sown by the former president\u2014seeds now blossoming into chaos and bloodshed.<\/p>\n

Referencing Kabila\u2019s doctoral thesis, \u201cThe Renaissance of the Democratic Republic of the Congo: A Narrative Biographical Auto-Ethnographic Study of 19 Years of State Building, Peace Building and Economic Recovery,\u201d<\/em> Bwasa questioned what peace or economic recovery had truly occurred. \u201cWhat has he done unless embezzling the fund of the nation, becoming a multi-billionaire?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

Beyond Rwanda: A Call to Pan-African Consciousness<\/strong><\/p>\n

Criticising the ongoing DRC-Rwanda peace dialogues, Bwasa called for a broader interrogation of regional dynamics. \u201cWhy are we only speaking to Rwanda?\u201d he asked. According to Bwasa, the conflict is entrenched in a network of regional power players, extending to Uganda, Kenya, and beyond\u2014a system he described as the \u201cTutsi Empire\u201d profiting off Congo\u2019s resources.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Congo is the elephant of Africa,\u201d he said, a metaphor for the continent\u2019s wealth being pillaged through complicity and silence. He invoked Ubuntu<\/em>, calling on all African and Bantu people to stand together. \u201cIf Congo is on its knees, then all of Africa is on its knees,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n

Bwasa concluded by urging the global community to revisit the 2010 UN Mapping Report, which documented crimes amounting to genocide in the DRC and implicated Rwandan forces. \u201cJustice must prevail\u2026 Reparation and restoration of the dignity of the children of the Congo must happen,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

As Kabila resurfaces in a volatile landscape and violence escalates across the eastern DRC, the region\u2014and indeed the continent\u2014stands at a crossroads. Will it confront its past and demand justice, or will history repeat itself?<\/p>\n

Listen<\/strong> to the full Africa Report<\/em><\/a> on Sabahul Muslim with Muallimah Shakirah Hunter and Jean Bwasa, an African sociologist and media analyst based at Sacred Heart College.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za 4-minute read 10 January 2025 | 11:45 CAT After years in political exile, former Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) president Joseph Kabila has returned to Goma\u2014the very city where he launched his initial rebellion in 1996. His return comes at a time of extreme instability in the country, with mounting civilian […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":98348,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4996,28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-98347","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-africa","category-latest-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Africa-Report-1.jpg?fit=937%2C577&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pc0QIf-pAf","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-23 15:10:01","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98347","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=98347"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98347\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/98348"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=98347"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=98347"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=98347"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}