Leiden University Student Repository

Tuyisabe, Joseline (2021)

Barriers to belonging: The case of the Banyamulenge

Master thesis | International Relations (MA)

For many years, the Banyamulenge, a semi-nomadic community living in South Kivu, aspired to have a demarcated territory that was under their authority. This aspiration was realized in September 1999 when the Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD) created the ‘’territory of Minembwe’’ granting the Banyamulenge the opportunity to be autonomous after many years of marginalization and subjugation to the customary chiefs of other ethnic communities. This thesis looks at the ways in which the Banyamulenge’s territorial aspirations arose by exploring the concepts of ‘’belonging’’ and ‘’autochthony’’. Furthermore, by documenting the Banyamulenge’s historical trajectory in the Congo this thesis aims to contextualise the creation of Minembwe and analyse the impact of its creation.

Banyamulenge

belonging

autochthony discourse

territory of Minembwe

Author

Tuyisabe, Joseline

Faculty

Faculty of Humanities

Specialisation

Global Conflict in the Modern Era

Supervisors

Duijvesteijn, I.G.B.M.

ECTS Credits

15

Language

en