Emergency rule used to crush dissent – Amnesty

A year since the DRC Government enacted a state of siege in the North Kivu and Ituri provinces, the number of civilians killed by armed groups has doubled, Amnesty International says in a new report. It said the state of siege – similar to a state of emergency – has been used as a tool to crush dissent, with two human rights activists killed by security forces and dozens of activists arbitrarily detained on trumped-up charges. Amnesty’s director for east and southern Africa, Deprose Muchena, commenting on the findings in the report titled DRC: Justice and Freedoms under siege in North Kivu, said the state of siege was characterised by lawlessness from state actors. ‘In total disregard of the law, defence and security forces have been given broad powers that are not justified by the stated purpose of the state of siege, which they have used to silence anyone who demands accountability for the state's actions in the conflict-stricken provinces,’ he added. President Felix Tshisekedi initially introduced the measure to combat armed groups and protect civilians but the number of civilian casualties from armed conflict in the region has more than doubled.

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General António Guterres has urged authorities in the DRC to investigate deadly armed group attacks in the Ituri province on Sunday. It said at least 38 civilians, including women and children, were killed in the attacks carried out by the Co-opérative pour le développement du Congo at the Blakete-Plitu mining site. More civilians were displaced and reported missing when the attackers set fire to nearby Malika village, where they also reportedly raped six women. The UN mission in the country conducted a medical evacuation on Monday, transporting severely injured civilians to medical facilities in the provincial capital, Bunia. The UN chief has also called for all armed groups in the DRC to halt their ‘callous attacks’ on civilians.