Positive public reactions about our Campaign to mitigate the presence of refugees in DRC. Let us Recognize refugees

With one objective: To mitigate the presence of refugees and mobilize the host communities to participate in the refugee protection.

Refugees are not a problem but they have problems, we call upon DRC Government to put in place necessary reforms in the refugee sector for more trust and credibility. This is key message of Joyceline

Background information

Not much is spoken about refugees in the Democratic Republic of Congo yet they do exist, it is rare for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Congolese National Commissioner for Refugees to avail information to the public about refugees in DRC. Actually actors within the refugee regime claim that refugee issue in DRC is sensitive, okay what makes it sensitive and can we address it? Until when should it be left sensitive? And should we leave it like that and how does it help refugees? Others claim that refugee issues in DRC is complex, then what? Can we make it easier for other people to understand? How does this complexity contribute to the protection of refugees? Can ignorant local and host communities protect refugees?

Basing on that background we strongly believe that refugee protection is based on a strong and well informed host community where the very first protection of refugees is rooted. That is why we are engaging the entire population to know more about refugees in the Democratic Republic of Congo, what is expected from the host communities in order to advance refugee protection and create better opportunities for refugees.

The first week of our social media campaign in DRCongo

I invite people to participate in this campaign, your support can make a difference by offering relief aid,comfort and hope to refugees in DRCongo. This is the key message from Christian

Today is the first week of our Campaign we launched on Social Media in order to engage Congolese and other people of good will about refugees in DRC. We are making posters and then share them on social media at least one each day. The intention is to help our audience to know more about refugees and then give their views.

While our Campaign has gained support, positive reactions and provoked discussions in various WhatsApp groups, we have also received messages threatening us and Congolese asking us questions what about Internally Displaced Persons, in some groups some people has called us “Rwandans” especially when we spoke for the protection of Rwandan refugees. These are anyway mere messages. The phone numbers of people who have been negative are generally those from Rwanda.

We want to now to continue the Campaign

We planned to have this campaign just for one week and should involve few people who should share their messages, but we have been over whelmed by many requests from Congolese who have sent us their messages in solidarity with refugees and their Photos in order to publish them. So this Campaign will continue until all messages are done.

This is alone is a clear sign that the allegations which have been fabricated over the years that Congolese people are hostile against refugees are wrong and not accurate. This alone brings down the arguments that refugees should remain anonymous in DRC because the host communities may attack them. Now we should continue to empower the communities to improve the protection of refugees where they live together through activities such peace, conflict resolution and pacific cohabitation between refugees and host communities.  

Meeting with a delegation of Rwandan Refugees

As a result of this Campaign, on Saturday May 9^th, 2026 a Delegation of Rwandan refugees visited our offices in Kinshasa in order to exchange on issues their facing. They welcomed our campaign and thanked us for raising up the situation of refugees and urged us to continue the good work, and claimed that they are now convinced that they have allies in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

They also indicated to us how they live in anonymous and in secrete because they fear the regime of Rwanda may come to kill them and also fear the host communities in which they are living that they may attack Rwandan refugees because of the current war between DRC and Rwanda. This one said “The problem is that local population may not know who is a Rwandan refugees and who is a spy from Rwanda, they call of us Rwandans and in that way there are risks to be attacked by the local population here in Kinshasa”.

This other one also said “my wife is a Congolese but she does not know that I’m a refugee from Rwanda, I have lived in my area for 13 years now but no one knows that I’m a Rwandan refugee and I do not want them to know because they can attack me”.

This woman indicated to us “Now the challenge of hiding also is becoming a problem, we have children who ask us questions, we changed their names and gave them Congolese names so that others may not know they are Rwandans but now they ask questions: Where is our village? Who are our Grand-Parents and all other relatives, can we go and visit them?”

Then this other one also said “you see here in DRC the refugee status has no value, there is no reason why Rwandan refugees should yearn for it, because there are not protection measures attached to it. Actually in most cases UNHCR officers have participated in forced repatriations of Rwandan refugees, these staffs have provided information to Rwanda about refugees, and some among these UNHCR staffs are actually Rwandans who are used as spies”.

 In our reactions we intended to argue and shared with them the reality that it may be difficult for Rwanda to come to Kinshasa, pick a refugee and send him or her to Kigali, and encouraged actually to share information with us and the government authorities about people they think are spies from Rwanda, in the same way share information about people they think are at risk. We shared with them how a strong community bondage can help in the protection of refugees and this what we should promote. The fear they have about local population is based on their worst experience in 1998 when again Rwanda backed rebels attacked the Capital Kinshasa, which we may not base on now, and gain this happened because the host communities were not educated so much about the difference between refugees and Rwandan Migrants or Spies. We all agreed that host communities have no clear information about refugees and should be part of our focus.

While we may not be certain if people within UNHCR and CNR who are perceived as Rwandans are Spies, we are so much preoccupied about the selection of people who are working in these institutions who may raise issues of neutrality and trust, and we are also preoccupied about the position of these institutions towards refugees’ especially Rwandan refugees.  UNHCR and CNR in DRC are not institutions refugees feel free to go towards but to run away, this fades the whole mandate of protection.

Official reactions

We have not yet received any official reactions to this Campaign and it is not design for official purpose, however some Actors of the Civil Society have shown their support. In the same way the Campaign has not yet attracted the mainstream media but again more activities focusing on the media will be organized.

Conclusion

Let us help the host communities to get information about refugees and hold the host community responsible for refugee protection rather than hiding them about the presence of refugees in their communities. Let us help refugees to feel free so that they can explore their potential rather than living in fear, pretense and hiding.

Please join us and let us do this together with you.

Thanks