In the Democratic Republic of Congo, six months before the elections are held, the political climate remains in constant tension. The embassies of several countries such as the United States, Germany, France, Portugal, Japan, the Netherlands, Canada, Norway, Switzerland and Spain, have expressed their willingness to accompany the Congolese population through a statement relayed with insistence in the media.
In this joint statement, these diplomatic representations reiterated their commitment to the holding of competitive, peaceful, inclusive and transparent elections in December 2023. They underlined the need to respect fundamental democratic rights and to ensure equality of chances for all applicants.
On the other hand, security forces are called upon to respect the rights of Congolese citizens which are enshrined in the constitution, while stakeholders are encouraged to promote inclusion rather than division and condemn the dissemination of hate speech. .
This joint declaration comes after two weeks of political demonstrations and arrests in the ranks of the opposition. The diplomatic representations also took note of the internal cleaning of the electoral register by the CENI and the audit that followed. However, they note concerns about the public’s perception of independent and transparent oversight, thereby missing an important opportunity to build trust with all stakeholders.
Faced with this tense political situation, the opposition has maintained pressure on power and is announcing another march for June 21. Several political parties have already sent an information letter to City Hall announcing their intention and the route of the march.
Despite the many challenges to be met, the holding of competitive, peaceful, inclusive and transparent elections remains the key element for the exercise of democracy in the DRC, and the undersigned partners reiterate their commitment to support the Democratic Republic of Congo in this effort