For more than two decades, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been grappling with insecurity especially in its eastern region.

 

When the country formally joined the East African Community (EAC), in April 2022, regional leaders wanted to offer assistance. That’s why during their meeting held on July 22, 2022, in Arusha, Tanzania, the EAC Summit directed to expeditiously deploy a joint regional force in eastern DRC to restore peace and security. 

The troop-contributing countries; Burundi, Kenya, South Sudan and Uganda, deployed their contingents to eastern DRC and, despite all the challenges, made tremendous progress in efforts to restore peace and stability.

 

But they inadvertently became pawns in a campaign of hostility fueled by the Congolese government.

Propaganda against the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF) initiated by Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi himself, has continuously threatened their determined efforts to restore peace and stability.

 

Tshisekedi viewed the presence of EAC Regional Forces as an unwelcome intrusion, and made no effort to hide his disdain. His first display of aggression was directed at Kenya when he criticized the then EAC Regional Force Commander, Maj Gen Jeff Nyagah, in the presence of President William Ruto during an EAC Summit in Bujumbura, in April 2023.

 

Tshisekedi accused Kenya of failing to attack the M23 rebels, even though it was not within the EACRF's mandate. Fearing for his safety, Maj Gen Nyagah resigned from his position after being threatened.

Tshisekedi's attacks did not end there.

 

During a visit to Botswana, he baselessly accused EACRF of associating with M23 rebels.

 

"Today, in certain regions, there is a cohabitation that we have noticed between the contingents of the regional force of Eastern Africa and the terrorists of M23, which was not the plan," the Congolese President told journalists in Botswana.

 

Following the inflammatory rhetoric from Congolese leaders, three EACRF soldiers were attacked. Two Ugandan soldiers were seriously injured, and a Kenyan soldier lost his life at the hands of armed groups allied to the Congolese armed forces.

 

Adding fuel to the fire of hatred was Justin Bitakwira, a close ally of President Tshisekedi, who derogatorily referred to Ugandan and Kenyan armies as "snakes" seeking to impose the Hima Empire in DRC.

Surprisingly, Bitakwira was full of praise for the EACRF contingent from Burundi.

To date, anti-EACRF propaganda and hostility continues and it is taking a toll on EACRF soldiers.

 

On October 24, a soldier from the EAC regional force died following shelling from the Congolese national army base.

 

The venomous rhetoric against the regional force was not limited to individuals like Bitakwira.

Tshisekedi's government openly endorsed and organized anti-EACRF protests in Goma, capital of North Kivu Province, defying the peace processes initiated by regional leaders during various meetings in Luanda,  Angola and Nairobi, Kenya.

This was a clear act of hostility, with Tshisekedi hoping to provoke the deployment of SADC forces with a mandate to combat the M23 rebels.

Nonetheless, Tshisekedi's grand plan faced resistance as some SADC countries hesitated to deploy their forces, recognizing that the root causes of insecurity in eastern DRC were more complex than simply fighting a single rebel group - M23.

In a region longing for peace and stability, the battle extended beyond armed groups to combat the divisive rhetoric and hate speech being spread by Tshisekedi and his allies.

 

The EAC Regional Force is now facing the consequences of Kinshasa’s propagated hate speech, and the pursuit of peace in eastern DRC remains a distant dream.