Throughout 2024, Congolese awaiting asylum decisions were sent back from Mayotte to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), despite the armed conflict in the east. Some eventually gained asylum due to the severe humanitarian crisis. A notable case is that of Olivier S., expelled with his family on June 25, 2024, now living in fear in Goma.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is enduring one of the world’s gravest humanitarian crises, with nearly 7 million internally displaced people and refugees, as per the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) semi-annual report. The situation is especially dire in the eastern provinces of South Kivu and North Kivu, where violence is escalating.
Olivier S., a family man from Goma, the capital of North Kivu, reached out to his French lawyer, Graziano Pafundi, in late November. In his message, he details a life of constant dread: threats of arbitrary arrests and forced recruitment by the M23 armed group, backed by the Rwandan military. This group is advancing against the DRC’s armed forces, triggering massive population displacements with each gain.
Olivier S. is considering escape to Uganda to evade these dangers. He had fled the DRC in 2024 with his wife and two minor sons, navigating the Comoros archipelago by kwassa-kwassa boat to reach Mayotte. Detained upon arrival, they filed an asylum claim from the Pamandzi administrative detention center on Petite-Terre island.
Despite the initial rejection of their application and an appeal to the National Court of Asylum, the family was deported on June 25, 2024, via charter flight to Goma, along with twelve other Congolese. This expulsion occurs amid thousands fleeing the fighting, highlighting the challenges of asylum processes in French overseas territories.
