in the DRC, the links between Uganda and the M23 rebellion raise questions

Nestor* has not seen any Ugandan soldiers again, except for a few customs officers, since the Bunagana attack. On the night of June 12 to 13, insurgents from the Mouvement du 23-Mars (M23), an armed group from a former Tutsi-dominated rebellion, attacked the Congolese side of this town straddling the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda. “As soon as I heard the first explosions, at dawn, I ran to customs to get to safety”, explains the Congolese student, reached by telephone. About 50 soldiers from the Uganda People’s Defense Force (UPDF) walked past him before “crossing the border alongside the rebels”he says.

Also a refugee at customs – neutral zone between the two countries – during the offensive, Célestin* saw men in uniform wearing boots stamped “UPDF”. “They exchanged with the M23 through walkie-talkie radios”, indicates this resident of Bunagana. For several hours the electricity was ” cut off “ Ugandan side, report two witnesses interviewed by The world. “To facilitate the attack”analyzes one of them.

If the resurgence of the M23 and the intensification of fighting in recent weeks have initially reignited tensions between the DRC and Rwanda, openly accused by Kinshasa of supporting the rebels, the capture of Bunagana also raises questions about the role played by Uganda in the conflict.

The M23 had been coveting this strategic commercial crossroads for several weeks. On March 28 and 29, a first assault had already been launched on Bunagana, which the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) had repelled with “the support of the UPDF”, says a report by the UN Group of Experts published on June 14. But “during the second attack, they collaborated with the M23; we did not understand this change of strategy”develops Cédric*, a representative of the Civil Society of Bunagana, which brings together civic associations.

Joint military operation

Ugandan army spokesman Felix Kulayigye quickly denied UPDF involvement. “If Uganda had wanted to take Bunagana, we have an entire battalion positioned on the border that could have done so”he said on June 16 on NBS, a Ugandan television channel.

These denials did not convince Kinshasa. On June 21, Christophe Mboso, the president of the Congolese National Assembly, denounced the occupation “illegal” of Bunagana with the “Uganda’s complicity” during a symposium between the presidents of the assemblies of southern Africa. The second personage of the State had already announced in plenary, on June 14, the suspension of the process of ratification of the agreements concluded with Uganda, without specifying which were concerned.

The two countries had been in the process of rapprochement for several months. On May 31, 2021, the Congolese President, Félix Tshisekedi, had signed with his Ugandan counterpart, Yoweri Museveni, a partnership to renovate 223 kilometers of trade routes in eastern DRC, in particular the Bunagana-Goma axis, one of the largest cities in the country. The following November 30, the FARDC and the UPDF had launched “Shujaa”, a joint military operation (still in progress) to fight against the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), an armed group of Ugandan origin affiliated with the State organization Islamic (IS) and which multiplies the exactions in the east of the DRC.

“The suspicions about Uganda go back a few weeks. It all started with the activism on Twitter of the Ugandan president’s son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, influential because he is the commander-in-chief of the army. He showed his support for the Rwandan President, Paul Kagame, explains an elected parliamentarian in eastern DRC. It would not be the first time that our neighbors have sought to expand their influence in the Congo. »

At least 400 fighters

During the previous M23 insurrection, in 2012-2013, several countries and international institutions denounced the support of Kigali and Kampala. Before its defeat in 2013, the armed group had occupied several towns, including Bunanaga, thanks to the “support from Ugandan armed forces commanders”, according to a report by the UN Group of Experts published in November 2012. At that time, the political branch operated from Kampala. Its manager, Bertrand Bisimwa, lived there until January 2022.

The head of the armed wing, Sultani Makenga, also settled in the Ugandan capital for several years after the signing of a peace agreement in 2013. Then, despite the UN sanctions that have been targeting him for ten years, the general “ returned to the Congolese maquis in 2017 with “about 200 men”according to the spokesman of the Congolese government at the time, Lambert Mende.

All would have left the Ugandan camp of Bihanga, where they were confined, to establish a base on Mount Sabyinyo, in the Congolese park of Virunga. It is difficult today to estimate the number of fighters present in the ranks of the M23, but there were at least 400 at the end of March and their recruitment continues, according to the United Nations.