The "Pygmies" living in the vicinity of the Kahuzi-Biega National Park are in peril..

Information bulletin issued by Programme d’Intégration et de Développement du Peuple Pygmée au Kivu (PIDP-Kivu)

March 1998

The Bambuti "Pygmies" were the first inhabitants of the Kahuzi forest, which is an extension of the tropical rainforest, situated in the Kabare district of South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo, 25 km from the town of Bukavu. The Kahuzi-Biega forest was made a national park in 1970. The government of the time forcibly evicted all the "Pygmies" living there, without compensation or resettlement on alternative lands. As a result, these unfortunate people came to live in the villages around the park - Muyange, Cibuga, Combo, Kamakome, Mulangala, Tshibati, Lushasha, Buhama and Muziku.

Our province has taken in thousands of Rwandan refugees. After the war of liberation of our country, some refugees were able to return home except for the Rwandan militia known as Interahamwe and the ex-armed forces of the former Rwandan president Habyarimana (Forces Armées Rwandais (FAR)) These are establishing themselves in the interior of the Kahuzi-Biega forest and wish to make an alliance with the Mai-Mai, an opposition movement which is against Tutsis. The Mai-Mai object to the existing power structure, the involvement of the Tutsis known as Banyamulenge in public affairs, and their access to high positions at governmental and provincial level. Another aim of the Mai-Mai is to make the Rwandan militias and the ex-armed forces of Rwanda go back to Rwanda. As these two movements have no external funding, they are becoming bandits, pillaging and burning the tiny huts of the "Pygmies" living around the park, due to the lack of food and other materials. These attacks and looting are forcing a massive displacement of "Pygmies" into the Bantu villages a little further away from the Park. More than 525 "Pygmy" are living very difficult lives as they are no longer in their own homes.

Some of the authorities have erroneously labelled the "Pygmies" as Mai-Mai, because they live very close to the forest and other live deep in the forest, and due to their lack of cleanliness as the Mai-Mai are also very dirty. We managed to obtain food and other goods through the assistance of the International Red Cross Committee, but they had only reached 200 "Pygmy" families when the military authorities halted the humanitarian assistance on the grounds that it was supporting the Mai-Mai. Mr Kapupu [the chairman of PIDP] was accused of being the head of the Mai-Mai and arrested for four hours during the distribution of aid to the families. Given the state in which these "Pygmies" find themselves we are asking for urgent aid to support the displaced families. This should be channelled directly via PIDP-Kivu as international agencies (UN High Commission for Refugees, CARITAS and the International Red Cross Committee) are not authorised to penetrate into the interior of the province, except for development agencies (UNICEF, OXFAM and Save the Children) and local organisations.