25 November 2008
Kinshasa — Security forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo have killed some 500 political opponents over the past two years, with the full knowledge of the highest echelons of power, according to Human Rights Watch. The Kinshasa government rejected the allegations.
A 96-page report, 'We Will Crush You': The Restriction of Political Space in the Democratic Republic of Congo, also reported the detention of 1,000 people and claimed many of these had been tortured.
"The brutal repression against perceived opponents began during the 2006 elections that carried President Joseph Kabila to power, and has continued to the present," said Anneke van Woudenberg, senior researcher in the Africa Division of Human Rights Watch, at the report's launch in Kinshasa.
The report alleged that Kabila himself set the tone and direction of the abuse by giving orders to "crush" or "neutralise" the "enemies of democracy", implying it was acceptable to use unlawful force against them.
"Efforts to build a democratic Congo are being stifled not just by rebellion [in the east] but also by the Kabila government's repression," Van Woudenberg said.
"While everyone focuses on the violence in eastern Congo, government abuses against political opponents attract little attention," she added.
Marie Frechon/UN
United Nations Special Envoy for peace was flown in to help resolve the crisis in the DRC.
The report said several organs of state security, including the paramilitary Republican Guard, a "secret commission", the Simba police battalion, and the intelligence services, had been used to crack down on perceived opponents in Kinshasa and in Bas Congo province.
Government spokesman Lambert Mende rejected the idea that any killings or other human rights abuses could be attributed to the government.
"We in DRC have so many enemies these days. We are a victim of our [resource] wealth. Everyone is taking away our riches, everyone wants to prove that the DRC government is incapable of managing the country and that it must therefore be dismembered, and for that, justification must be found," the spokesman added.
[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations ]
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I dont quiet get the comparison here. The situation in Congo is a rebelion sponsored by external entities(Countries and Companies) to loot and destabilize Congo. In the Philipines, occupiers Japanese were routed by the Americans whose general came to inspect the troops afterwards. At any rate, we Congolese want Nigerians to remember that during the Biafra war(Obasanjo then was a general in Nigerian Army), we had no other questions than supporting the integrity of Nigeria.The Congolese army did not have time to question the motives of the rebelion or try to accomodate any of their demands. We fought alongside Nigerians and helped set the country free of any secession. We expect the same attitude from the rest of Africa.
This picture of Gen. Obasanjo should be isolated, and transformed into a bronze casting and erected somewhere in the Congo. As much as I have criticized Obasanjo and his failings while he was the Nigerian President, there is one thing certain: His soldier persona has never changed.His gaits are still very much the same as a trained military man. The only difference here is that he is wearing a national attire which symbolizes Nigeria. This time, it shows how far we've come; that we, as Nigerians can point the way forward from killing ourselves, to solving Africa's internal problems through dialogue. As for my criticisms of Obasanjo either as the former President or as a civilian with political affinity to the ruling party in Nigeria, that is what democracy and free speech is all about. We can agree to be disagreeable for the love of our country, as long as we are not consumed by dissent.This picture of Obasanjo reminds me of General McArthur stepping down from a helicopter in the Phillipines during the 2nd WW after the defeat of Japan and the liberation of the Phillipines from Japan's Imperial Army. May all Africans seek peaceful resolutions to their problems rather than mercilessly killing each other, and holding their various economies ransom in perpetuity for the payment of weapons they purchased from foreign governments. It is time we woke up and stop mortgaging the future of our young generations, because we are unable to reason with each other.