Bujumbura – Uvira : arrests of Congolese raise concerns

SOS Médias Burundi

Bujumbura / Uvira, June 3, 2026 – Several Congolese nationals have been arrested in recent months in the city of Uvira, in South Kivu, as well as in Bujumbura, the commercial capital of Burundi, located just a few kilometers from the city of Uvira, before being transferred to Kinshasa. Others have left the region for refuge in Tanzania, Uganda or even Bukavu, according to various local sources.

These arrests involve individuals suspected of expressing critical views on the security situation in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) or publishing analyzes related to governance and military operations in the region.

Among the people cited is Alexis Ngwega, presented as a political analyst, arrested in Bujumbura before being transferred to Kinshasa. For his part, Ir. Jean-Pierre Zembezembe, known for his interventions in several community radio stations in Uvira, was interrogated in Beni, in the province of North Kivu, still in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, while carrying out administrative procedures related to obtaining a passport.

But Muzingwa, a human rights defender, was also arrested in Uvira before being transferred to Kinshasa, then released subsequently, according to information gathered.

Other local figures are also concerned, notably Maître Mega d’Uvira as well as comedian Kiroka, known for his critical stances towards certain local authorities and members of the civil society.

Meanwhile, humanitarian Babunga Benjamin Watuna was arrested in Bujumbura, the commercial capital of Burundi, on Tuesday, May 26, 2026 by Burundian intelligence services, according to security sources who confided in SOS Médias Burundi.

Since February, several Congolese have thus been interrogated in Uvira and Bujumbura, some being accused of alleged collaboration with the AFC/M23. Voices within the civil society denounce arrests targeting people because of their opinions or positions.

Human rights organizations call on relevant authorities to ensure respect for fundamental freedoms, particularly freedom of expression and the right to a fair trial, and to ensure that any prosecution is based on elements established by the judiciary.

At the time of publishing this article, the relevant authorities had not yet officially communicated about all these cases.

These arrests take place in a context of strengthened security cooperation between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Burundi. According to Congolese security sources, several refugees suspected of links to the M23 rebel movement or collaboration with Rwanda have already been arrested in Burundi by intelligence services, before being handed over to Congolese authorities. Some were then transferred to various prisons in the Congolese capital, Kinshasa, as part of this bilateral cooperation.

A still active regional conflict

Since August 2022, tens of thousands of Burundian troops have been deployed in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo alongside the DRC Armed Forces (FARDC) and allied groups engaged in operations against the M23.

The rebel movement, which has become active since late 2021, controls several strategic areas of North Kivu and South Kivu. He is now associated with the Congo River Alliance (AFC), led by Corneille Nangaa, former president of the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) of the DRC.

Kinshasa regularly accuses Rwanda of supporting the M23, while Kigali rejects these accusations and says for its part that the DRC and Burundi support the Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda (FDLR), a Rwandan Hutu armed group whose members have been accused of participating in the assassination of Tutsis in 1994.

Despite denials from various parties, several UN expert reports have evoked the presence of Rwandan military personnel alongside M23 rebels in eastern Congo.

After the withdrawal of the M23 from the city of Uvira last January, and more recently from several localities in the Rusizi plain, the Burundian army has proceeded with new deployments of troops to South Kivu across Lake Tanganyika.

The fighting continues to cause significant displacement of civilian populations to neighboring countries and areas deemed safer, despite multiple diplomatic initiatives aimed at restoring stability in the Great Lakes region.