Bukavu residents slowly get back to life as M23 rebels tighten grip on city

Rwanda-backed rebels have tightened their grip on Bukavu, a day after seizing the second major city in eastern Congo whose residents appeared resigned to their fate under the new rulers.

On Sunday, M23 rebels captured the city of 1.3 million people after it was abandoned by Congolese forces. Bukavu lies 101 kilometres south of Goma, which was captured by the rebels in late January.

On Monday morning, people gradually started coming out again while the rebels patrolled major intersections in the city.

"People are still scared to go out because of the insecurity, so it's not business as usual yet," David Balezi, a shopkeeper in Bukavu, told The Associated Press.

Bukavu's border crossing to Rwanda was closed on Monday morning, as were most shops and stores, while traffic gradually picked up again.

"Now we thank God that the situation is OK, even if we don't know what's coming. Whatever happens, we will live with it," David Munyaga, a resident of Bukavu, said.

On Monday, Erasto Bahati Musanga, the rebel-appointed governor of North-Kivu province, announced that Goma and Bukavu’s ports will reopen Tuesday.

Protest against MONUSCO

In rebel-controlled Goma, hundreds of protesters gathered to call for the departure of the UN peacekeeping force in Congo, known as MONUSCO, and the withdrawal of troops from the Southern African Development Community (SADC), which includes countries ranging from Congo to South Africa.

The protestors organised a sit-in in front of the MONUSCO headquarters in Goma, with some brandishing signs and chanting slogans calling for the resignation of Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi.

"The war does not end in Congo, why? They have nothing to do here, they should leave," Bauma Sukali, a protester, said.

Another protester, Fiston Nsabimana, said: "Tshisekedi is not able to ensure peace, let him leave power."

M23 have now captured more territory than all other rebellions since the end of two major wars that ran from 1996 to 2003. These advances have also handed them control of some of the region's vast and valuable mineral deposits.