In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), incidents and political violence are on the increase in the Katanga region, in the south of the country. Timothée Mbuya, human rights defender in Lubumbashi, calls on the authorities to react.
Thursday, January 19, a march by the party of Moïse Katumbi, Together, was dispersed with tear gas as it intended to denounce remarks deemed xenophobic by two ministers of the national government.
Earlier in the week, further east, the citizens’ movements also demonstrated, but to denounce the apathy of the provincial authorities who, too, decided to repress the procession.
Added to this, the antennas of political parties targeted, this week, again in Lubumbashi and Kasumbalesa.
So many incidents and violence deplored by Timothée Mbuya, a prominent human rights defender in Lubumbashi. He calls on the authorities to punish those responsible and create reconciliation bodies as the elections approach.
So far, we have yet to see the authorities take the necessary action, including suspending police officers. We do not see Justice doing its job. No one is arrested among all these people who are, unfortunately, making the situation worse.
Timothée Mbuya, human rights defender in Lubumbashi.