EU Expresses Concern About Violence Ahead Of DR Congo Election

The European Union on Tuesday, warned against hate speech and violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo a day ahead of elections.

The EU gave this warning in a statement on Tuesday, amid fears that political tensions could boil over.

Forty-four million Congolese are registered to vote in Wednesday’s presidential, parliamentary, provincial and municipal elections, in a country ravaged by conflict in its east.

“The EU expresses its concern about the hate speech, violence and incidents that have marked the last few days of the campaign,” the EU said.

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“Serious human rights violations and abuses have been recorded according to the United Nations, and it is up to the authorities to launch investigations in order to prosecute the perpetrators.”

President Felix Tshisekedi, 60, stands a healthy chance of securing re-election against a divided opposition in the country roughly the size of continental western Europe.

The election campaign has taken place in relative calm, a feat in a country whose first peaceful transition of power since independence in 1960 occurred in 2018.

But Bintou Keita, the head of the United Nations peacekeeping force in the country, said Monday there had been an “escalation of violence, acts of vandalism and destruction of campaign materials as well as hate speech”.

In a report published on Saturday, Human Rights Watch warned of electoral violence that “risks compromising the holding of the vote”.

The NGO said it has documented clashes between supporters of rival parties since early October that have led to “assaults, sexual violence and at least one death”.

The EU said in its statement that “efforts to divide the population on the basis of ethnicity or origin and any comments inciting violence are unacceptable.”

The bloc recalled “the responsibility of the authorities to ensure an inclusive, free, transparent and peaceful electoral process.”

Last month, the EU cancelled its deployment of election observers to DR Congo for “technical” reasons.

Several sources told AFP that authorities had refused to allow the observers to use satellite equipment, allegedly over fears it would be used to manipulate the presidential poll.