Land conflicts: the evil that plagues Congolese lands

When we talk about the DRC, we often hear about the deadly conflicts taking place in certain regions, notably Kasai or the Kivus. The land issue plays an important role in the cohesion and social peace of the country, but what is a land conflict? Can we equate all land-related problems with ethnic disputes, or would that be a simplistic shortcut?

Nowadays, when we talk about the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), we often hear about the democratic problem as well as the deadly conflicts taking place in certain regions, notably Kasai or the Kivus. Newspapers often explain this violence by referring to ethnic and land conflicts which have been the daily life of Congolese people for decades. ^[1]For example, see “ DRC: the army regains control of a strategic locality in the East, 7 dead », July 16, 2017.. The land issue indeed plays an important role in the cohesion and social peace of the country, but what is a land conflict? Can we assimilate all problems linked to land to ethnic disputes, or would this be using a simplistic shortcut which would obscure a much more complex land problem situation in the DRC? Couldn't the international community help resolve such a complex problem with which the Congolese authorities are having so much difficulty? Land conflict, what exactly are we talking about? We are going to talk a lot about “land” in this article, but what is it? In our view, land conflicts are all conflicts that are linked to parcels of land – its soil and its subsoil – and which involve at least two parties with opposing claims to these parcels. In the DRC, this type of conflict has appeared in abundance for decades. The idea generally underlying the mass appearance of land conflicts, such as in the DRC, is that land has become a commodity subject to strong competition for its access and exploitation. The reasons for this are the scarcity of land, the presence of natural resources in high demand, and increasing demographic pressure. ^[2]SEVERIN MUGANGU MATABARO, “The land crisis in the east of the DRC”, Annuaire L'Afrique des Grands Lacs, 2007-2008, p. 385.. In the case of the DRC, such an approach, although partially correct, is certainly not enough to completely address the land issue. It is clear that when we take a little interest in it, the land issue in the DRC reveals an impressive diversity of situations which raises different questions: who are the actors in these land conflicts? what are the causes and factors underlying them? And finally, what are the consequences and why should we be concerned? We will focus on all these questions through a specific case, namely the land conflicts in the territory of Fizi which is located in the south of the province of South Kivu. It is reported that more than 75% of cases before the courts concern land disputes ^[3]SHAMAVU HAMIBANGA DESIRE, Study on the principles, criteria, and indicators for taking into account public participation in decisions likely to have an impact on… Continue reading. Through this concrete case we will highlight the complexity of land conflicts in the DRC. However, we also believe that there is a structural problem with the framework and that avenues of action exist, particularly with regard to Belgium's role in cooperation and development aid for the Congo. Fizi and its recurring land conflicts ^[4]The data concerning this case study were mainly taken from a recent survey carried out in the field by the NGO Search for Common Ground. See Search for Common Ground, … Continue reading The locality of Fizi is not immune to the land problem in the DRC. In a survey it carried out, the NGO Search for Common Ground identified different causes of land conflicts in this territory. She notes in particular the conflicts linked to access to resources and their exploitation but also land conflicts between breeders and farmers. These conflicts between farmers and herders represent a threat to the peace and security of the local populations of Fizi. The NGO also feared that these conflicts would ignite the locality. Unfortunately, this was the case as, later in the year, violence broke out in Fizi territory, forcing more than 80,000 Congolese to relocate. ^[5]“ Eastern DRC: 80,000 displaced in six days of fighting in Fizi », July 12, 2017.. We will focus on the issue of conflicts between farmers and herders in Fizi, this type of land conflict being one of the most frequent in the DRC. ^[6]GILLIAN MATHYS and KOEN VLASSENROOT, “Not just a question of land”: Land disputes and conflicts in eastern Congo, Rift Valley Institute, October 2016, p.. Every year, at the same time, breeders return to the town of Fizi to graze their animals. To this end, they enter into agreements with local authorities; for a fee, they can occupy certain parts of the territory. However, farmers denounce abusive agreements that do not take their fields into account. In addition, breeders often violate the terms of the agreements, encroaching on farmers' crops. Farmers also accuse local authorities, customary or not, as well as certain higher political and administrative authorities, of complicity with breeders. The antagonism between farmers and herders reveals underlyingly the opposition between poor and rich, the farmers being the peasants and the herders being the military, political and economic elites. These elites are also often compared to large land concessionaires. We are talking about large land concessionaires compared to farmers who practice small-scale agriculture. ^[7]Ibid., pp. 2 and 4.. These land disputes can very quickly deteriorate from the moment farmers decide to use weapons to take justice into their own hands. It even happens that peasants band together and form self-defense militias to protect their land. ^[8]Self-defense militias are armed groups formed by local populations who intend to protect their common interests against those who threaten them.. Ranchers, in response to this threat, hire guards who are equipped with firearms. In certain cases the regular army must intervene to prevent clashes and an increase in violence between farmers and breeders. We therefore see here that land conflicts can indeed be precursors of much more violent conflicts. ^[9]GILLIAN MATHYS and KOEN VLASSENROOT, op cit., p. 1.. These land conflicts, in addition to increasing insecurity, also accentuate the phenomena of impoverishment of the rural population and food insecurity. Firstly, it is often the farmers, and therefore peasants, who are relieved of their land. Typically, livestock will eat and devastate farmers' crops. In some cases, they will no longer have access to arable land to grow their crops. Consequently, all this leads to the loss of their main source of income and no longer allows them to support their families. ^[10]Ibid., p. 4.. What are local and state authorities doing? In these land conflicts, the involvement of various authorities, all claiming to be competent in land management, often results in a second conflict – this time about power – between these authorities. On the one hand, there are customary chiefs who are considered competent in land management, by virtue of customary practices. On the other hand, there are land services, centralized or provincial, which have land jurisdiction under Congolese law. ^[11]BRUNEAU JEAN-CLAUDE, “Land issues at risk in Congo (DRC): theoretical context and deviant practices”, in Bulletin of the Association of French Geographers¸ 89th Ed., 2012-2013, p. … Continue reading. This power conflict is therefore caused by the existence of multiple land tenure regimes – legal regimes and customary regimes – which overlap and create inconsistencies. The absence of a single and harmonized land tenure system is considered one of the main factors favoring the emergence of land disputes ^[12]AN ANSOMS, KLARA CLAESSENS and EMERY MUDINGA, “Land grabbing by elites in Kahele territory, DRC”, in Africa of the Great Lakes, Yearbook 2011-2012, pp. 208-209.. Indeed, despite the adoption of the land law of 1973 ^[13]Law No. 73-021 of July 20, 1973 on the general property regime, land and real estate regime and security regime as amended and supplemented by Law No. 80-08 of July 18, 1980. which does not formally designate them, the customary chiefs continued to ensure the land management of their territory according to customary practices. From then on, they entered into competition with the various administrative authorities of the State legally responsible for land management ^[14]An Ansoms, Klara Claessens and Emery Mudinga, op cit., p. 207. . This conflict between land management authorities has the effect of giving rise to or escalating land conflicts. Indeed, only Congolese elites know and master Congolese land law. Farmers not having access to the law, they are not able to follow the official circuit set up by the legal regime and will therefore instead refer to customary authorities. ^[15]Séverin Mugangu Matabaro, op cit., p. 386.. However, from a legal point of view, it is the titles obtained in due form from state services which will predominate and the losers – the peasants – will be forced to leave their ancestral lands. ^[16]Ibid., p. 387.. Farmers' lack of access to legal land tenure is explained by different factors. First of all, there is the lack of efficiency of administrative and judicial procedures. These procedures take a long time and are very expensive, farmers cannot in fact afford to follow them. Then, the elites are also favored because they know the different mechanisms whereas the peasants have no knowledge of the procedures and their progress, which reflects a certain lack of popularization of the land law. Finally, state authorities are often corrupt and practice clientelism, favoring certain parties in a completely arbitrary manner. ^[17]Gillian Mathys and Koen Vlassenroot, op cit., pp. 1-3.. “Clientelism is a relationship between individuals of unequal economic and social status (the “boss” and his “clients”), based on reciprocal exchanges of goods and services and established on the basis of a personal link usually perceived in the terms of moral obligation”, JEAN-LOUIS BRIQUET, “Clientelism”, Encyclopædia Universalis, accessed August 28, 2017. Civil society and mediation: alternative method of conflict resolution? The methods of resolving land conflicts are generally similar in all provinces of the DRC. The parties to the conflict can appeal either to state, administrative or judicial authorities, or to customary authorities to resolve their conflict and decide who has legitimate claims. However, we have seen that these bodies are generally unreliable because they are biased and act on the basis of clientelist practices. ^[18]Ibid., p. 3.. Furthermore, farmers, often not having the means to use these conflict resolution methods and feeling betrayed by the authorities, also use violence to support their claims, for example through self-defense militias. In this context, mediation and arbitration by third parties have emerged as alternative methods of peaceful resolution of land conflicts. These third parties who will play the role of mediator or arbitrator can be state or non-state in nature. ^[19]Arnold Nyaluma Mulagano and Joyeux Mushekuru Mugeni, The conciliation chambers in the territory of Fizi: Between citizen justice and illegal practices, April 2016, RCN Justice and Democracy, … Continue reading. These methods are notably the prerogative of civil society. NGOs, often playing the role of mediator, are there to bridge the gap between the different parties to the conflict and try to get them to find a compromise. This tool – mediation – is widely used in the DRC and particularly in South Kivu and Fizi where conciliation chambers have appeared. ^[20]Ibid., p. 7.. However, mediation players are sometimes criticized for problems of transparency and/or standards used. Some also denigrate the fragmentation of this method, each local body putting its own system in place, sometimes even going so far as to impose this system in certain localities, thus leading to overflows. ^[21]Ibid., pp. 13-18.. However, given the diversity of situations, it seems important to us that mediation processes are adapted to concrete cases. If mediation has proven that it can be effective between ordinary individuals, it will on the other hand be relatively ineffective when one of the parties involved belongs to the powerful Congolese elites. ^[22]Gillian Mathys and Koen Vlassenroot, op cit., p. 4. . In view of the criticism surrounding mediation, we believe that this alternative method of conflict resolution is a real plus but would benefit from being somewhat institutionalized. ^[23]ARNOLD NYALUMA MULAGANO and JOYEUX MUSHEKURU MUGENI, op cit., pp. 23-24.. In particular, it should certainly be part of discussions concerning land reform in the DRC. Land reform in the DRC, a pipe dream? The national land reform project was launched in 2012, with the subsequent creation of the National Land Reform Commission (CONAREF). However, since then the situation has not changed. No concrete action or legislative modification has been adopted by the State since the announcement of the reform ^[24]Ibid., p. 7.. Despite everything, in August 2017, the Congolese state again held conferences between the different actors in the land issue in the DRC to move forward his reform project . In our eyes, the pursuit of such a project, however, implies that a certain number of questions must be asked: what are the guidelines that such a reform should follow in order to be effectively adopted and implemented? How to involve all the actors concerned by the land issue in the reform process? How can we be sure that actors with less weight will be listened to and taken into account? Will farmers have easier access to land tenure or, in other words, will it be made available to them? Will a certain transparency be displayed by state authorities? What role can civil society – national and international – play? What roles can our governments – Belgian and European – play in helping the development of the DRC in relation to its land issues? Supporting Congolese land reform, an action that is more than feasible and possible! In view of the consequences of impoverishment of the population and food insecurity, the question of land reform takes on a crucial aspect for the socio-economic situation of the DRC. Indeed, the establishment of a fair and equitable land regime and policy would make land use planning more effective, reduce social inequalities and improve the economic situation of small households through maximization from production ^[25]SHAMAVU HAMIBANGA DESIRE, op cit., p. 16.. However, we have noticed that the land issue in the DRC is not so simple to resolve. There is a real plurality of causes, actors and factors which results in a diversity of situations. However, we have also demonstrated that certain elements are in fact common to all land conflicts in that they are structural and occur at a more state level. From there, a global approach could help resolve or, at the very least, alleviate the mass of land conflicts in Congo. However, local realities should also be taken into account ^[26]GILLIAN MATHYS and KOEN VLASSENROOT, op cit., p. 7.. Such an approach is already advocated by civil society and has been launched by the Congolese state. This is the national reform of land tenure in the DRC. However, standards and guidelines must be imposed and followed if such a reform is to be effective. Unfortunately, it seems that this reform project is stalling. From this observation of failure of land reform and the land issue in general, we are obliged to address another more latent problem in the DRC which is the lack of transparency and good governance. ^[27]BRUNEAU JEAN-CLAUDE, op cit., p. 484.. In this context, Belgium, as a supporter of development, can help by supporting the DRC in its reform project and by encouraging its political elites to actually implement this reform in a spirit of transparency and good governance. When we analyze the land issue in the DRC, it is mainly a question of reconciling diversity and unity, namely the different local realities through a common institutional framework. An increase in the decentralization of power in land governance would be an interesting avenue to explore at this level. ^[28]Shamavu Hamibanga Désiré, op cit., p. 18; Séverin Mugangu Matabaro, op cit., pp. 409-411.. Our Belgian company could provide advice on the continuation of negotiations and the search for a compromise that would suit all the players involved in the land issue. After all, don’t we say that the Belgians are the kings of compromise? It should also be added that Belgium, like other European countries, can have a major role to play with regard to national or international companies and development finance institutions that invest in the DRC. As citizens, we can push the Belgian state to demand more transparency and impose greater social responsibility on these foreign investors. ^[29]Rights and Resources Initiative, Land Tenure and Investments in Africa, Synthesis Report, 2016.. Finally, on the basic democratic problem, we believe that Belgium can and must, through diplomatic channels, encourage the Congolese authorities to organize democratic elections. Guillaume De Smet, intern at the Justice and Peace Commission.

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