Luddites in the Congo?

Abstract

The expansion of industrial mining in the war-ridden eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has provoked resistance from those depending directly and indirectly on artisanal mining for their livelihood, and has been faced with violent actions from politico-military entrepreneurs. By analyzing the interplay between armed and social mobilization against industrial mining in the Fizi–Kabambare region, this paper sheds new light on the relations between industrial mining, resistance and militarization. It argues that the presence and practices of industrial mining companies reinforce the overall power position of politico-military entrepreneurs. This occurs both directly, by efforts to co-opt them, and indirectly, by fueling dynamics of conflict, insecurity and protection that crucially underpin these entrepreneurs’ dominance. At the same time, due to the eastern Congo’s convoluted political opportunity structure for contentious action, politico-military entrepreneurs enlarge the scope for social mobilization against industrial mining. They offer a potential counterweight to repressive authorities and provide collective action frames that inspire contentious politics. Yet they also harness popular resistance for personal or particularistic purposes, while extorting the very people they claim to defend. These complexities reflect the ambiguous nature and versatility of both armed and social mobilization in the eastern Congo, which transcend socially constructed boundaries like the rural/urban, state/non-state and military/civilian divides.

Key words:

• resistance
• large-scale mining
• militarization
• social movements
• armed conflict
• Democratic Republic of the Congo

Acknowledgements

A special thanks to Michiel van Meeteren for his contributions to the development of this piece.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Funding

This paper partly draws upon research funded by the Swedish Research Council [grant number 348-2013-145] and the Research Foundation-Flanders (FWO) [grant number 3G098012W].

Notes on contributors

Judith Verweijen

Judith Verweijen is an FWO Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Conflict Research Group of Ghent University, Belgium.