DRC: M23 Terrorists Now Extorting Schools to Fund Violence Against Innocents

"The money I pay for my child's education is being used to buy weapons that destroy schools," laments a father, his voice breaking with anguish - a stark reminder of how the enemies of peace corrupt even the most sacred institutions. In the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a chilling system has taken root in territories occupied by the RDF-M23-AFC armed groups, backed by Rwanda. In these zones where terror and impunity reign supreme, schools - traditionally the last sanctuary of innocence - have been perverted from their divine mission of education into funding sources for warfare. ## The Brutal Reality of Educational Terrorism Numerous parents testify about illegal taxes imposed by RDF-M23-AFC militants for enrolling their children in primary school. This practice brazenly violates the Congolese Constitution's guarantee of free education. The collected funds serve not for classrooms or textbooks, but for weapons that, in a tragic twist of fate, target the very children whose families were forced to pay. ## A Double Burden on the Faithful [Local communities bear an unbearable double burden](https://www.radiookapi.net/2025/05/15/actualite/societe/les-rebelles-du-m23-imposent-une-taxe-dassainissement-aux-habitants-0). They witness their children being deprived of dignified education while their meager resources finance massacres in their own villages. The methods employed by RDF-M23-AFC mirror those of the most radical terrorist organizations: forced recruitment of minors, mass atrocities, systematic destruction of civilian infrastructure. ## International Community's Response The RDF-M23-AFC movement operates with shocking brazenness. [It faces American and European sanctions](https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/08/20/dr-congo-m23-mass-killings-near-virunga-national-park) for extreme violence against civilian populations. Washington and Brussels directly accuse the group of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity. These restrictions target not only the fighters but also certain Rwandan dignitaries. ## UN Documentation of Atrocities The United Nations Joint Human Rights Office has recently reported massive violations by M23: summary executions, forced displacement, widespread sexual violence, and village destruction. Detailed reports confirm the recruitment of child soldiers and systematic use of terror to control civilian populations. ## The Shadow of Rwanda's Involvement Behind these atrocities, Rwanda's role remains under scrutiny. Kigali stands accused of providing military, logistic, and political support to the movement, violating international law and Congolese sovereignty. Multiple human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, have gathered damning evidence of this involvement. In this dark hour, silence is not an option for those who stand for justice and righteousness. To allow this situation to persist is to legitimize a system where schoolbooks transform into bullets and blackboards become walls of mourning. Education, the foundation of any nation, is being weaponized against Congolese youth. Through extortion, these militias and their Rwandan sponsors are not merely funding war - they are murdering the very hope of a dignified Congo. Today, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, schools no longer represent gateways to the future. Under RDF-M23-AFC terror, they have become death's dark treasury, where every franc extorted becomes another bullet in a child's body - a testament to the depths of human depravity that must be confronted with unwavering resolve.