#Minembwe#DCProtest#Banyamulenge#Tutsi
Statement by Mahoro Peace Association (MPA)
Denouncing Discriminatory and Dangerous Remarks by Steve Mbikayi
5/1/2026
Mahoro Peace Association expresses its strongest indignation regarding the statements made by Mr. Steve Mbikayi(@Cartesien243 ), Member of DRC Parliament, during his interview on the Kinshasa Television RDC YouTube channel, hosted by Mr. Marius Muhunga, titled: “Washington, Constitution, war: Steve Mbikayi says what many dare not say.”
Mr. Mbikayi questions the Congolese nationality of members of our association, systematically labels them as “Rwandans,” and claims it is difficult to distinguish a Munyamulenge from a Rwandan. These statements constitute dangerous stigmatization and collective discrimination aimed at delegitimizing the legitimate claims of a Congolese community by portraying it as foreign.
It is precisely against this policy of targeting and harassment that we organized our peaceful march in Washington, D.C. Mr. Mbikayi claims there is confusion between Rwandans and Banyamulenge. There is no confusion. What exists is a long-standing pattern of denial, discrimination, and dehumanization of the Banyamulenge people in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Even more alarming is his assertion that the Banyamulenge are “the most privileged.” We ask: what privilege is he referring to?
1. Is it the thousands of Banyamulenge who have been killed over decades simply because of who they are?
2. Is it the more than 450 Banyamulenge villages burned to the ground?
3 Is it the over 500,000 Banyamulenge livestock stolen, destroying entire livelihoods?
4. Is it the hospitals and schools that have been reduced to rubble?
5. Is it the civilians, men, women, and even soldiers, killed, burned, and subjected to unspeakable brutality including cannibalism?
6. Is it the Banyamulenge churches that have been desecrated and destroyed?
7. Is this what Mr. Mbikayi calls “privilege”?
We call it what it is: genocide.
Mr. Mbikayi’s claim that President Tshisekedi was the first to recognize the Banyamulenge as Congolese citizens is equally false and deeply troubling. The Banyamulenge are indigenous to the DRC, their ancestors were born, lived, and are buried there. Their citizenship is enshrined in the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Congo long before the current administration. Their identity is not a political concession, it is an inherent and constitutional right
We regret that the government in Kinshasa continues, through its representatives, to instrumentalize this discriminatory rhetoric in an attempt to discredit our actions.
We call on the U.S. senators and members of Congress whom Mr. Mbikayi plans to meet including @RepJoeWilson to be misled by such conflations, and instead to prioritize constructive dialogue based on facts.
We respectfully call on Mr. Marius Muhunga (@MariusMuhunga) to grant Mahoro Peace Association a right of reply in order to restore the truth and present our perspective.
Respectfully submitted,
Douglas G. Kabunda,
President, Mahoro Peace Association (MPA)
@SecRubio, @US_SrAdvisorAF, @USAmbUN@SenatorRisch@RepJoeWilson@senatefrc@HouseForeignGOP@RepBrianMast@RepRonnyJackson@RepSaraJacobs@ChrisVanHollen@SenTedCruz@SenOssoff@SenGillibrand@MarshaBlackburn@SenatorHeinrich@BasedMikeLee@StephenM@IsokoUSA@DougGasore@JulianPecquet @koulibavvvvl
@MariusMuhunga
@CNN@MSNOWNews@UN@ruberwazarias you see "These refugees" but we see humans ,familes, americans. You were supposed to be the party of family values and christians.
Refugees coming to the U.S. should be screened for cultural “software incompatibility.”
Where’s the gratitude from these refugees?
Where’s the loyalty to the U.S.—their adopted country?
Comments section down below and hate prove that they are victims. "Go back to rwanda, they are not Congolese, deport them to atlantic, and other negative comments just proved their point.
32 Years On: Honoring Rwanda’s Resilience
As Rwanda marks the 32nd anniversary of the Genocide against the Tutsi, we stand in solidarity with the people of Rwanda to honor the memory of the victims, pay tribute to the survivors for their remarkable resilience, and commend the Government of Rwanda for its extraordinary achievements in restoring national unity.
While the genocidal forces were completely defeated in Rwanda, they have since spread their hateful ideology throughout the Great Lakes region. As a result, the genocide against the Tutsi continues beyond Rwanda’s borders, particularly in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). State-sponsored hate speech targeting this community remains widespread, and targeted massacres carried out by a coalition of FARDC forces, Mai-Mai militias, the Burundian defense forces, and the FDLR are routinely trivialized.
The silence of the international community demonstrates that little has been learned from the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. Paradoxically, individuals who deny this genocide operate freely, while those who stopped it face sanctions. We call for concrete actions to end impunity for genocide and for immediate measures to protect the lives of innocent civilians.
As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, ‘In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.’ @US_SrAdvisorAF@SecRubio@StateDept@YolandeMakolo@mkainerugaba@KagutaMuseveni@WilliamsRuto@PaulKagame
@FabrizioRomano 3000% on you but you gave us the wrong reasons.
Its on you because you rested players at the wrong time. Bellingham is not tired, Vini is never tired and on form, why bench him?
Brief: Your wrong decisions.
For months, Kinshasa rulers fed its citizens a wishful lie that Washington would “punish Kigali.”
They have been everywhere chanting accusatory slogans that Rwanda invaded DRC, that it aided and abetted M23, that it was stealing minerals and all sorts of nonsense and therefore it must pay. It was repeated so often it almost sounded like policy.
That itself wasn’t enough, bags full of money were carried everywhere for whoever was willing to toe their narrative. Billions were poured into lobbying firms and contracts were signed.
Flights were constantly airborne and people like Therese Kayikwamba Wagner, Foreign Affairs Minister and Patrick Muyaya, the regime’s mouthpiece turned Washington into a second residence, knocking on every door that could echo the word sanctions.
Then reality hit .
When White House senior officials examined demanded sanctions linked to the broken Trump brokered peace deal, they realized Rwanda was all clean and had legitimate grievances, it did what serious states would do. In fact, it was found to be the most reliable and strategic partner in EastAfrican regional politics.
Read More: https://t.co/kcjkSpjkU9
Who Will Hear the Cry of the Banyamulenge?
For more than eight years, the Banyamulenge people have been hunted, displaced, and killed in silence.
Since 2017, our villages have burned. Our cattle—our only source of life—have been stolen. Our children have grown up knowing only fear, hunger, and exile. Those who speak for us are threatened into silence. Those who kill us walk freely.
We marched peacefully to Capitol Hill in 2019, believing the world would listen. It did not.
Today, Minembwe is under attack. Bombs fall where farmers once lived. Drones fly above homes that no longer exist. Civilians are running with nothing but their lives. There is no food, no medicine, no humanitarian aid.
We ask simple questions:
Where is the United Nations when civilians are slaughtered?
Where is the international community when a minority is erased?
Where is the United States when human life is sacrificed for mineral deals?
We do not want power.
We do not want politics.
We do not want minerals.
We want what our ancestors had: land, cattle, peace, and dignity.
If the world remains silent, history will remember that the Banyamulenge cried for help—and no one answered.
@SecRubio@POTUS@UNOSAPG@UN@PaulKagame@onduhungirehe@CNangaa@hrw@PatrickMuyaya@AlJazeera@CNN@FoxNews@ABC
𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐰𝐞
On Friday, February 7th, the Banyamulenge community organized protests to demand a reassessment of the American decision directing AFC M23 to withdraw from Uvira. This decision has placed the Banyamulenge community in jeopardy. Joining us for further insights is Dr. @AlexMvuka, a political analyst and researcher.
@USAmbRwanda@SecRubio@US_SrAdvisorAF@MofaQatar_EN
Authorities and humanitarian organizations must act urgently to protect vulnerable communities and restore security.
Silence will only allow more suffering, Protection and peace are needed now.
#SaveMulenge
Following the withdrawal of M23 from Uvira, Banyamulenge civilians are now being targeted. Homes and churches are being destroyed, looted, and innocent families are under attack.
Civilians must not pay the price for conflict.
@LusalaLand53860@JKapitene Well said @LusalaLand53860 attacking his excellency and Rwanda will not fix poor leadership, corruption, bad economy and tribalism in DRC. Citizens should look past ethnicity and our difference but focus on the issues.