The return of ancestral lands designated for nature conservation to the Batwa people of Kahuzi-Biega

Envisioned as a form of reparations, the restitution of ancestral lands designated for nature conservation presents both theoretical and technical obstacles. Drawing on the case of the Batwa people of Kahuzi-Biega in South Kivu, this study aims to identify these obstacles and the means to overcome them. To achieve this, the authors analyze national legislation and public policies in light of the African human rights protection system. The study reveals that the Congolese land tenure system grants exclusive state ownership of the land and subsoil. Individuals and communities can only claim secondary rights. On this basis, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) transformed the Batwa’s lands into a national park, expelling them without consultation or compensation. After a long legal battle, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights ordered the “reintegration of the Batwa into their ancestral territory.” This reintegration could clash with existing nature conservation legislation and public policies. This study concludes that the African human rights protection system recognizes the land ownership of local communities as a right predating the state and its legislation. On this basis, it condemns the denial of the Batwa’s ancestral rights