Forces loyal to Jean-Pierre Bemba, the losing candidate in the presidential election in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), on Tuesday fired at police who were trying to break up a protest against the election results.
Police fired tear gas at about 200 supporters of Bemba to prevent them getting too close to the Supreme Court, which is studying Bemba’s challenge to the outcome of the ballot, an Agence France-Presse photographer witnessed.
When the protesters ran away, in the direction of Bemba’s nearby official residence, his security guards came out and fired at the police, the photographer said.
Bemba, who is one of the DRC’s four vice-presidents, formally contested the outcome of the vote on Saturday after the Independent Electoral Commission announced it had been won by incumbent President Joseph Kabila.
The Supreme Court has seven days to rule on the challenge to the results, which gave Kabila just over 58% of the vote, compared with Bemba’s 42%.
International election observers have said the irregularities noted during the ballot are insufficient to overturn Kabila’s 2,6-million vote lead or invalidate the DRC’s first democratic presidential poll in over four decades.
But there are fears there could be violent protests by Bemba’s supporters, particularly when the final official results are announced.
The administrative district, where both the Supreme Court and Bemba’s residence is located, witnessed clashes in August between rival supporters of the president and his deputy in which at least 23 people died.
Violence flared there again on November 11, this time between street youths, Bemba’s military guard and the police.
Concern remains high in the diplomatic community over the presence of Bemba’s 1 000-strong armed security detail in the centre of Kinshasa. Bemba’s forces have refused to leave the capital, despite an agreement to that effect on November 13. — AFP