Congolese opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi is preparing to swear himself in as president, setting up a confrontation with incumbent leader Joseph Kabila, who was inaugurated for a new term earlier this week. A Tshisekedi adviser tells VOA that Friday’s swearing-in ceremony in Kinshasa will proceed, despite a government threat to arrest the opposition leader. The […]
Presidential Showdown Looms in DR Congo
Posted December 23rd, 2011 at 12:35 am (UTC-5)
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UN Appeals for Aid to Fight DR Congo Cholera Outbreak
Posted November 19th, 2011 at 4:55 am (UTC-5)
The United Nations is appealing for emergency funding to help the Democratic Republic of Congo battle a cholera outbreak that has infected more than 17,000 people. The U.N.’s humanitarian division says $5.5 million is urgently needed from donors to respond to cases in eight of the DRC’s 11 provinces. Four provinces along the Congo River […]
DR Congo Candidates Urged to Avoid Hate Speeches
Posted October 28th, 2011 at 2:25 pm (UTC-5)
Political candidates in the Democratic Republic of Congo are being urged to avoid hate speech as they campaign for upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections. Campaigning for the November 28 poll opened on Friday. Human Rights Watch told VOA that since March, the organization has documented dozens of cases of “apparent ethnic hate speech and incitement […]
HRW Urges DR Congo Candidates to Stop Hate Speech
Posted October 28th, 2011 at 6:50 am (UTC-5)
Human Rights Watch is calling for political candidates in the Democratic Republic of Congo to refrain from inciting violence during the country’s election campaign, which begins Friday. The international human rights watchdog says it has documented dozens of recent instances in which candidates used “apparent ethnic hate speech” in order to incite violence, primarily against […]
Human Rights Watch Urges DR Congo Candidates to Stop Hate Speech
Posted October 28th, 2011 at 3:00 am (UTC-5)
Human Rights Watch is calling for political candidates in the Democratic Republic of Congo to refrain from inciting violence during the upcoming election campaign. The international human rights watchdog says it has documented dozens of recent instances in which candidates used “apparent ethnic hate speech” in order to incite violence, primarily against opposition candidates and […]
Nearly 1,000 Prisoners Escape DR Congo Jail
Posted September 7th, 2011 at 1:35 pm (UTC-5)
An official in the Democratic Republic of Congo says gunmen have attacked a jail in the southeastern state of Katanga, killing two people and allowing nearly 1,000 prisoners to escape. Katanga’s interior minister, Dikanga Kazadi, says eight assailants attacked guards at the prison in the city of Lubumbashi on Wednesday, in a bid to free […]
Nearly 1,000 Prisoners Escape DR Congo Jail
Posted September 7th, 2011 at 11:10 am (UTC-5)
An official in the Democratic Republic of Congo says gunmen have attacked a jail in the southeastern state of Katanga, killing two people and allowing nearly 1,000 prisoners to escape. Katanga provincial minister Dikanga Kazadi said eight assailants attacked guards at the prison on Wednesday in a bid to free a jailed militant. He said […]
Congolese Colonel Surrenders Following Mass Rape Accusations
Posted July 8th, 2011 at 11:40 am (UTC-5)
A Congolese colonel accused of leading his troops on a multi-day rampage and mass rape has turned himself. A military spokesman for the Democratic Republic of Congo said Friday that the colonel, known as Kifaru, surrendered Thursday with about 100 of his men. Some DRC officials accused Colonel Kifaru and his men of pillaging Nakiele, […]
Congo Rape Inquiry Suspended After Reprisals
Posted July 6th, 2011 at 9:35 am (UTC-5)
An investigation into mass rapes in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been called off after some of the victims were attacked. The United Nations said Wednesday that a judicial inquiry had spoken to about 150 victims and witnesses but that some of those who spoke had suffered from reprisals. At least 387 women, men, […]
UN Says 150 Women Raped in DRC
Posted June 23rd, 2011 at 9:25 pm (UTC-5)
The United Nations says more than 150 women in the Democratic Republic of Congo were raped during a two-day attack in South Kivu province this month. In a statement Thursday, the U.N.’s special representative on combating sexual violence, Margot Wallstrom, blamed the attack on undisciplined Congolese security forces. She said former rebels in Congo are […]
