At least four people were killed and 60 others arrested early on Monday during violent protests in the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) over rumours of a government plan to delay the country’s first democratic elections since independence in 1960, authorities said.
”According to some sources on the ground, four people were shot dead and 60 demonstrators arrested,” said Information Minister Henri Sakanyi.
But local residents said five demonstrators were shot dead, two uniformed members of the security forces died after being burnt alive and many people were hurt during clashes between demonstrators and security forces.
The stone-throwing protesters took to the streets of Kinshasa early on Monday, setting up barricades and burning tires on a main thoroughfare near the city’s airport, causing the cancellation of all outgoing domestic flights.
The protest was triggered by remarks by the president of the Independent Electoral Commission, Apollinaire Malu, last week indicating the elections should be completed by October instead of June.
Traffic was held up in the morning, as police deployed in the capital to rein in the protest, as leaflets were thrown into the streets calling for a popular protest on Monday at any plans to delay the June elections.
In some parts of the city, soldiers were asking all passers-by to return to their homes.
It was not clear whether the demonstrators belonged to any political movement.
The DRC, which emerged in 2003 from five years of war, is scheduled in June to hold its first democratic and free vote since achieving independence in 1960, as part of the transition process towards democracy.
Under peace accords to end the war, which embroiled the armies of more than half a dozen other countries on rival sides in the vast DRC, rebel movements and opposition politicians have joined a transitional government headed by President Joseph Kabila.
The former rebels of the Congo Liberation Movement (MLC) on Monday called for respect of the election timetable.
”The MLC calls for the holding of the election within the agreed timetable in line with the Constitution,” said its secretary general, Olivier Etsu.
Interior Minister Theophile Mbemba Fundu made a televised appeal on Sunday for the population to refrain from ”uncivic actions”, while warning political leaders against any attempt to ”manipulate” the population.
The east of the country remains largely in the hands of former rebels. Unrest among the many militias and ethnic groups has been used by some politicians and ex-rebels as a reason for delaying the vote.
Several thousand United Nations peacekeeping troops are deployed in the east as well across the rest of the country. They are currently engaged with DRC troops in a campaign to disarm the militias and stabilise the region. — Sapa-AFP