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Stability has yet to reach the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a country which has known incessant bloodshed, conflict, corruption, and poverty since the 1970’s. After 18 years in power, DRC’s leader, Joseph Kabila, has announced an election in which he ultimately lost to to Felix Tshisekedi, who took power in January 2019. Many argue, however, that Tshisekedi’s victory resulted from fraudulent elections, as his opponent, Martin Fayulu, was projected to win by a landslide. The growing assumption is that Tshisekedi had made a deal with Kabila, allowing him and the elite to remain involved in the country’s affairs.
Furthermore, while DRC’s government and financial elite have looted the country’s natural resources (through the support of greedy Western governments and corporations), the local population has been thrown into a growing humanitarian crisis- as poverty and disease ravage Congolese people across the country. Freedom of speech and dissent have been utterly stifled by the regime, and killings, abuse, and intimidation of journalists and political activists has been rife.
As Western governments and corporations gain from DR Congo’s corrupt regime, they are reluctant to exert any pressure on its authorities to adopt Democratic principles of governance. It is up to the people of the world, therefore, to raise their voice and join the Congolese people in their demand for justice.
Front Line Defenders (FDL), an NGO that monitors and supports human rights activists across the globe, has placed one of its focuses on the situation in DRC. FDL regularly publish and track cases of individuals harassed and arrested by the authorities in DRC for their humanitarian work and expression of dissent.
FDL also provide financial and medical aid to such local activists who face abuse or prosecution by the government.
Please visit their website to learn more about the situation unfolding in the DRC, and make sure that the country’s freedom fighters are supported by the international community.
Image credit: Front Line Defenders website
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