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By: Robert Patrick Fati Gakwerere
In a recent and controversial move, a notorious character, Manzi Ngarambe Willy was appointed as the Diaspora Chief Coordinator of RDF-M23. Manzi Ngarambe Willy, a Rwandan national residing in Canada, is a nephew of the ICC-convicted war criminal Bosco Ntaganda, also known as “Terminator.” During his ICC hearing, Ntaganda repeatedly asserted that he was not Congolese but Rwandan, born in 1973 in Kinigi, Rwanda. Recently, the RDF-M23 group has appointed the infamous nephew, Manzi Ngarambe Willy, as their new Diaspora Chief Coordinator.
Standing alongside Willy in a recent photo shared below, is Col Innocent Zimurinda, the RDF-M23 commander, who himself has been repeatedly cited in United Nations reports for committing severe human rights atrocities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Col Zimurinda’s involvement in the DRC conflict is notorious, characterized by multiple allegations of human rights violations. Reports from various United Nations sources detail his role in mass killings, the use of rape as a weapon of war, and the recruitment of child soldiers, practices that have devastated communities Eastern DRC.
Significantly, Col Innocent Zimurinda was implicated in the 2008 Kiwanja massacre, where approximately 150 civilians were killed. This incident occurred during his tenure with the National Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP) and later under the integrated command of the Forces Armées de la République Démocratique du Congo (FARDC). His record includes not only orchestrating massacres but also leading operations that resulted in the forced displacement of thousands, creating severe humanitarian crises.
The continuous allegations against Col Innocent Zimurinda have led to international calls for his arrest and prosecution by various human rights organizations and the United Nations. Yet, the complexity of the regional conflict and the intertwining of political and military interests pose significant challenges to achieving accountability and justice.
The presence of human rights abusers under Criminal Paul Kagame’s mineral war in DRC, underscores the critical need for international vigilance and intervention to address the ongoing human rights issues in the DRC, particularly as figures like Col Innocent Zimurinda continue to hold positions of power within conflict-driven groups like the RDF-M23.
