Labour Migration, Territorial Découpage and Issues of ‘Autochthony’ in Former Katanga Province, the Democratic Republic of Congo: the Role of Urban Ethnic Associations

Since the 1950s autochthony claims have been a part of political strategies in Katanga, former province of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The booming mining industry caused massive labour migration from other provinces toward Katangan cities where ethnic mutual aid associations were founded. In recent decades democratization and globalization processes in Africa have contributed to a feeling of uncertainty to which autochthonous discourses respond by promising security for those ‘born from the soil’. Xenofobic discourses against non-Katangans, defending the interests of ‘authentic’ Katangans, led to expulsion of migrants originating from Kasaï province in the 1990s. In accordance with the Congolese Constitution, Katanga was split in 2015 into the ‘rich’ southern provinces of Haut-Katanga and Lualaba, and the ‘poor’ northern provinces of Haut-Lomami and Tanganyika. The paper focuses on the stance urban ethnic associations take towards this territorial ‘découpage’. They try to influence the distribution of resources, favouring communities they represent, and adapt to changing political or socio-economic conditions by inventing new ‘autochthon/allochthon dichotomies’. The association of Sanga opposed the merger of Lualaba and Kolwezi districts to form Lualaba province: Sanga consider themselves autochthons of mineral-rich Kolwezi and feel economically and politically discriminated by ‘foreigners’ originating from Lualaba district. The association of Bemba from Haut-Katanga, welcomed the creation of Haut-Katanga province as an opportunity for the ‘new autochthons’ regarding employment and development. I demonstrate that ethnic associations in Katanga constitute a multi-tier system, reflecting ethnic, provincial and national identities, which provides forums for inter-group negotiation and can enhance conviviality between communities. This paper argues that the Congolese territorial ‘découpage’ triggered the employment of autochthony discourses by Katangan urban ethnic associations which defend the interests of the communities they represent, claiming that ‘autochthons’ have the right to benefit from the riches of their own soil.