THE detained son of slain Congolese independence leader Patrice Lumumba has begun a hunger strike to force the authorities to tell him why they arrested him. Francois Lumumba, who was arrested at his home in the Democratic Republic of the Congo capital Kinshasa on Saturday, began his fast on Wednesday. Francois Lumumba has emerged as a critic of President Laurent Kabila, who toppled veteran dictator Mobutu Sese Seko in 1997. Kabila has effectively banned political activity with a law imposing tough conditions on party registration. Patrice Lumumba, a charismatic nationalist politician, was the country’s prime minister on independence from Belgium in 1960 and remains a national hero. He was murdered in 1961 in mysterious circumstances in between two coups led by Mobutu. Francois Lumumba was transferred into the custody of the national security agency ANR on Monday. He has been denied visits since then.