<P> In the Second Congo War, Uganda and Rwanda attempted to wrest much of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from Kabila's forces, and nearly succeeded . However, the DRC being a member of the SADC (Southern Africa Development Community) organisation, President Laurent Kabila called this regional organisation to the rescue . Armies were sent to aid Kabila, most notably those of Angola and Zimbabwe . These armies were able to beat back Kagame's Rwandan - Tutsi advances and the Ugandan forces . </P> <P> In the great conflict between 1998 and 2002, during which Congo was divided into three parts, multiple opportunistic militias, called Mai Mai, sprang up, supplied by the arms dealers around the world that profit in small arms trading, including the US, Russia, China, and other countries . Over 5.4 million people died in the conflict, as well as the majority of animals in the region . </P> <P> Laurent Kabila was assassinated in the DRC (Congo) in 2001, and was succeeded by his son, Joseph Kabila . The latter was chosen unanimously by the political class because of the role he played in the army, being the "de facto' officer in charge of the well trained batailions that defeated the Mobutu army and were fighting alongside SADC coalition forces . Joseph speaks fluent French, English and Swahili, one of the four national languages of the DRC . He studied in Tanzania and Uganda in his earlier years . He completed his military training in China . After serving 5 years as the transitional government president, he was freely - elected in the Congo to be president, in 2006, largely on the basis of his support in the Eastern Congo . </P> <P> Ugandan and Rwandan forces within Congo began to battle each other for territory, and Congolese Mai Mai militias, most active in the South and North Kivu provinces (in which most refugees were located) took advantage of the conflict to settle local scores and widen the conflict, battling each other, Ugandan and Rwandan forces, and even Congolese forces . </P>

Who created the divisions between the hutus and the tutsis