The UN in turn condemned, Tuesday, May 23, “the disproportionate use of force by the police”, Saturday in Kinshasa, during a demonstration of the Congolese opposition, of which a candidate denounced a “dictatorial drift after being prevented from traveling to the west of the country.
Seven months before a presidential election that promises to be tense, the Episcopal Conference of Congo (Cenco) on Monday condemned the “despicable and savage repression that the police and their accomplice militia [had] inflicted on May 20 on demonstrators, including minors found in their path”. The European Union (EU) also condemned “this violent crackdown” and the United States expressed “concern” at “indications of disproportionate use of force by security forces”.
On Tuesday, the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Monusco) also “condemned the disproportionate use of force by the police”, “welcomed the arrest of the police officers involved in the incident against a minor” and called on the authorities to “respect the right to freedom of assembly and peaceful demonstration”.
Moïse Katumbi’s convoy blocked
At the same time, the camp of Moïse Katumbi, one of the opposition presidential candidates, deplored that he was prevented on Tuesday from going to the province of Kongo-Central (west), that he had planned to roam until the end of the week. Citing security reasons, the governor of the province had asked the candidate, late Monday evening according to his team, to postpone his activities for two days and to limit them to a single place.
“We told the police that we were committed to not holding a public demonstration for 48 hours,” Olivier Kamitatu, spokesman for Moïse Katumbi, told reporters. But the police did not let the candidate’s convoy pass, which turned around and returned to Kinshasa. “No one can prevent a citizen, whoever he is, from moving freely in his country. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is not private property,” the spokesperson lambasted. This episode “removes the last doubts that could still exist about the dictatorial drift in which we are immersed”, he added.
The opposition is planning a new demonstration Thursday in Kinshasa in front of the headquarters of the National Electoral Commission. The presidential election is scheduled for December 20 and Félix Tshisekedi, in power since 2019, is a candidate for re-election.
