“Do They Fight for Us?” Mixed Discourses of Conflict and the M23 Rebellion Among Congolese Rwandophone Refugees in Rwanda

Abstract

ABSTRACTIn spring 2012 a group consisting of Forces Armées de la République Démocratique du Congo defectors in North and South Kivu mutinied and created a new rebellion group called M23 (Movement du 23 Mars). The fighting between the M23 and the government troops resulted in a new wave of refugees, partly consisting of Congolese Rwandophone Tutsis, whose interests the M23 claimed to voice. Yet little is known about how the people whose interests the M23 claimed to represent and protect perceived the armed movement’s claims. Indeed, there are many actors that talk about refugee situations and needs, from rebel movement to NGO—refugees are spoken about and for, with their own voices are shrouded in silence. Based on original field data collected from August 2012 to February 2013, this article analyzes the images of the M23 among Congolese Rwandophone refugees population in Rwanda. Examining their perceptions is particularly interesting in that the plight of the refugees and the issue of refugee return occupy a central position in M23 discourse. The article demonstrates an ambiguous perceptions of the M23, often articulated in terms of “they are the only ones we have,” strongly grounded in feelings of discrimination as citizens of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The article shows that rather than wholehearted support for the M23, the interviews reflected a wish for nonmilitary solutions to the conflict.