Islam is a minority religion within theDemocratic Republic of the Congo, where the large majority of the population is affiliated withvarious Christian denominations and sects. It was first introduced to theCongo basin from theEast African coast during the 19th century and remains largely concentrated in parts of Eastern Congo, notably inManiema Province. Most Congolese Muslims areSunni and follow theShafi‘i andMaliki schools ofjurisprudence (fiqh). Though estimates vary, it is generally believed that between one and ten percent of the country's population identifies as Muslim.
Islam was spread to the Congo in the 18th or 19th century byAfro-Arab traders, such asTippo Tip orRumaliza, from theEast African coast as part of the slave trade which increasingly drew coastal traders into the interior in search ofslaves andivory.[1] Although the Traders did not expressly intend to spread their religion or culture, many African peoples adopted the ideas they brought and theSwahili language was often associated with them.[1] Their main stations wereKasongo,Kabambare, andNyangwe. Later on they went northward and they reachedKirundu andBoyoma Falls around 1882–1883. These traders were in search of ivory and slaves, as well as other goods like copal, gum, palm-oil, parrots, etc.; they also introduced new goods in the area like fabrics, coffee, certain kinds of fruit-tree, etc. Progressively, their commercial network gave them more and more political power, and their influence became ever stronger. The local population was composed of various Bantu-speaking kingdoms and chiefdoms. Part of the local population was attracted to the culture of the newcomers and adopted some of their customs: they started to dress like them, they converted to Islam, they adopted the Swahili language. They were calledWangwana in Swahili, as opposed to theWashenzi (lit. 'savages') of the local Bantu population.[2]
With the expansion ofEuropean colonial rule into the eastern Congo under the auspices of theCongo Free State, European colonistscame into conflict and defeated the Arabs in the 1890s, largely ending this process. UnderBelgian colonial rule (1908–60), Muslims were distrusted and considered a potential source of sedition andChristianity, especiallyCatholicism, was promoted by the state.[1] Congolese people who had adopted Swahili culture were referred to asarabisés (lit. 'Arabised'). Islam suffered general repression during this period.[3] The arrival of theQadiriyya, a branch ofSufism, fromTanganyika, in the 1920s, was particularly repressed by the colonial government.[1]
The independence of the Congo in 1960 brought greater religious tolerance and allowed the Muslim community to organise publicly for the first time.[1] Muslim communities received foreign support, notably fromMuammar Gaddafi in the 1990s whose regime inLibya financed the construction of mosques in Eastern Congo.[4] Since the end of theSecond Congo War, the Congo's Muslim community has been increasingly united with the emergence of a national leadership.[1]
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Islam is a significant religion within the modern-day Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is particularly prominent in the east of the country. The highest concentration of Muslims is estimated to be inManiema Province and especially the cities ofKasongo andKindu where they represent 80–90 percent and 25 percent of the population respectively. The second largest concentration of Muslims is inKisangani where they make up 15 percent of the population.[1] Besides indigenous Muslims, the population also includes recent immigrants fromLebanon,India,Pakistan and other parts of the African continent.
Congolese Muslims are represented at a national level by the Islamic Community of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Communauté islamique du République démocratique du Congo, or Comico) which succeeded the Islamic Community of Zaire (Communauté islamique du Zaïre, Comiza) founded in the 1970s. However, the religion has little political influence in national politics and are underrepresented in its institutions. In the2006 general elections, just four Muslims deputies and three senators were elected out of 500 and 108 respectively.[5]
Violence between Muslims and other religious groups in the Congo, especiallyCongolese Christians, has been attested inNorth Kivu since 2014 in connection with theAllied Democratic Forces insurgency which originated in neighbouringUganda.[6] TheAllied Democratic Forces, whose political ideology is based onIslamism, is widely suspected of having perpetrated theBeni massacre in August 2016. It was reported in 2019 that the Pakistani contingent of theUnited NationsMONUSCO force was reported to have financed the construction of new mosques in the region, contributing to an "islamisation" of Eastern Congo.[4]
The vast majority of Muslims in the Democratic Republic of the Congo identify themselves asSunni, following theMaliki school ofjurisprudence (fiqh). 10 percent areShia and six percent areAhmadi.[7] Congolese Muslims are frequently divided between Sufis andSalafists as well as along local ethnic, geographical, and generational lines.[1]
Recent estimates of the proportion of the Congolese population who self-identify as Muslim vary considerably and range between approximately one and 10 percent. According to the political scientistAshley E. Leinweber, it is generally estimated that around 10 percent of the national population identifies as Muslim.[1] In 2012, thePew Research Center estimated the figure at 12 percent.[8] However, another Pew estimate in 2007 put the figure at just 1.4 percent.[9] An estimate by the USDepartment of State put the figure at 5% in 2015, and theCIA World Factbook at 1.3%.[10][11]
Media related toIslam in the Democratic Republic of the Congo at Wikimedia Commons
