Ituri map, Democratic Republic of Congo

Ituri is a province out of the twenty-six in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which is in the northeast of the country. It was formally organised in 2015 when the former Orientale Province was broken down into four smaller provinces: Ituri, Bas-Uele, Haut-Uele and Tshopo. Ituri's capital is Bunia, and this city has developed into a big administrative and trading centre. The province is estimated to have a population of 4.5 million people with an area of about 65,658 square kilometres.
Ituri is a land of incredible natural wealth, and it is also the land of narcoleptic war. It has become in the eyes of economic interest due to its mineral resources, especially gold, which have made it a focus of competitive warfare as well. Simultaneously, Ituri consists of many communities, such as Mbuti or Efe forest communities who have harmoniously lived with the rainforest over thousands of years, and agriculturalist population groups, like the Hema and Lendu. The history of the province is that of resistance, the richness of a culture, as well as of constant battles for peace and assurance.

History

The Ituri may be very closely connected both with the native population of the area and the overall Central African political course. Some hunter-gatherer communities, like the Mbuti and the Efe, now collectively known as the Bambuti, were present in the area long before the arrival of the colonialists. These forest people have come up with a general lifestyle that would focus on hunting, gathering with and symbiotic associations and companionship with other groups near agriculturalists. The forest not only serves as their means of livelihood and refuge, but of spiritual and cultural growth and standards.

As the agriculturalists, Bantu-speaking and known as the Bila, Budu and Ndaka, along with Sudanic-speaking peoples, the Lese and Mamvu, arrived in the region, it turned into a flavorful contact between agriculturalists, whose needs depended on one another. The Bambuti traded forest products such as honey, meat, and ivory in exchange against agricultural products, iron implements, and salt. This interdependence had formed a tricky social web, which lasted centuries.

When colonialism came, this balance was shaken. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, the area was occupied by the Congo Free State under King Leopold II, who imposed slave labour and exploited its resources. The Ituri Forest turned into an object of ivory and rubber exploitation, and local populations experienced oppressive policies of the colonial regime. The region would later be restructured under wealthy colonial rule by the Belgians, and colonial powers gave preference to some populations over others, establishing the foundation of ethnic wars which would break out decades later.

Following independence in 1960, Ituri remained part of the Orientale Province, which was bigger. Nevertheless, the fact was that the rich mines in the region, especially gold, were still a target, and this drew attention together with the competition. Ituri is a region that became one of the bloodiest battlefields during the Second Congo War (1998-2003). The province was invaded by Ugandan troops, and in 1999, a Ugandan commander named James Kazini provocatively announced the establishment of a province, dubbed Kibali-Ituri, which particularly increased local tension. The war supported violent opposition between the Hema and Lendu communities, which was based on the rights of land, basis and political authority. This war, which is also known as the Ituri war, has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced hundreds of thousands more.

In 2003, the Ituri pacification commission was established with the aid of the international community (The United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC)). This resulted in an interim government and subsequently in the establishment of Ituri as a province under the constitution of 2006. Nevertheless, the violence has not reduced in the region, and armed groups have remained active in the area, and violence among communities has been escalating at intervals. Along with a number of militia commanders in Ituri, including Thomas Lubanga, who has been convicted of child soldiering, the International Criminal Court (ICC) also prosecuted him.

Culture

Ituri is a very heterogeneous culture with a very heterogeneous population. Both forest-dwelling hunter-gatherers and agriculturalist groups have their sizable homes in the province, and both hold their own place in the fine cultural mosaic of the state. Some of the most distinctive cultures are the Mbuti and Efe, which are traditionally referred to as Pygmies, but this is a term which is wearing its welcome and it is now being used as a substitute term to call them forest people or foraging through the tropical forest. Over thousands of years, these tribes have inhabited the Ituri Rainforest and, over that time, built a strong spiritual and utilitarian connection with it.

Mbuti and Efe are traditionally nomadic, spending their time in small bands in the forest and inhabiting temporary huts using the leaves of the mangongo. Their cultural perspective focuses on egalitarianism, collective decision-making and strong connections with the forest, which they see as a source and a source of spiritualism. Their cultural life revolves around music and dance, and polyphonic singing as well as rhythmic drums are important elements of rituals and celebrations. Their songs closely resemble the sounds of the forest due to their close relations with nature.

There are also the agriculturalist communities incorporating the Hema, Lendu, Budu, and the Ndaka that comprise an integral part of the cultural terrain that Ituri belongs to. They dwell in villages and practice agriculture, including cassava, plantains, and maize, as well as keeping farm animals. They have different traditions, societal organisation and artistic forms, wood carving, weaving and storytelling. The Hema and the Lendu certainly are the ones historically in the middle of the political and economic life of the region, yet their relation has been, up to now, strained by warfare.

Ituri has different religious does. Christianity was first introduced in the colonial era, and it was widely practised with both the Catholic and the Protestant religions existing. Nonetheless, traditional values are still prominent, especially among forest people who have spiritual practices with the forest and forest animals. There is also syncretism, where communities incorporated the use of Christian practices with local culture.

Huntsinger and farmer interchange of culture has been a source of Ituri life since ancient times. An example is the Bambuti, who exchange agricultural goods against products of the forest, such that there has arisen a system of interdependent relations that has determined social relations over centuries. Nonetheless, these cultural traditions still stand, despite the pressures of modernisation, invasion and migration, as a glimpse into the adaptability and strength of the Ituri people.

Language

The other characteristic of Ituri is linguistic diversity. The ethnic makeup of the province is complex, as numerous languages can be found there. The official language of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is French, with usage in administration, education and formal communication. Swahili is also said to spread mainly in the obsige province of Bunia and other urban centres and is a lingua franca; therefore, it can be used to communicate between various communities.

The Bambuki forest peoples, in their roles as natives, use dialects of language that are closely related to the languages of their agriculturalist neighbours. E.g. the Efe, like the Lese, use a language closely related to that of the Bila, the Mbuti to the Bila. These linguistic connections indicate the interdependency dating back over a long period between village communities and forest people.

Central Sudanic languages like Mamvu and Lese, and Bantu languages like Budu, Bila, and Ndaka are other languages which are spoken in the province. The two largest community groups in the province, the Hema and the Lendu, have languages in the Bantu and Central Sudanese families, respectively. Such linguistic diversity is a reflection of the cultural and ethnic diversity of the area.

Language in Ituri is not only a medium of communication, but it is also an indicator of belonging and identity. With the current difficulties of suppression of indigenous languages by French and Swahili in the schooling and media sectors, there are efforts to retain them. However, the local languages play a crucial role in daily life, oral traditions and cultural practices.

Geography

The Ituri region is dramatic and ecologically important. The province occupies a high plateau elevated between 2,000 and 5,000 meters and various communities of landscape, i.e. savannahs, heavy tropical rainforest. The Ituri Rainforest, which is among the most bio diverse in Africa, takes up much of the province. It covers about 63,000 square kilometres and consists of a great number of plant and animal species, including many that are endemic to it.

The Ituri River flows through the forest and leads west to the Aruwimi River, which is a branch of the Congo. The province has many streams and rivers that cross over it, making it a source of water for agriculture, fishing, and transportation. Its eastern side of the province shares borders with the African Great Lakes, on which is Lake Albert, forming part of the border to Uganda.

The weather at Ituri is equatorial and has good rain as well as humidity during a large portion of the year. October and November are, in general, the highest precipitation days and a period of relatively dry weather between December and February. The rainforest has a rainfall of approximately 200 centimetres per year, which supports the green vegetation of the rainforest.

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