The Democratic Republic of Congo is preparing for the general elections scheduled for December 2023. However, a few months before the polls, the political atmosphere is tense and a section of the Congolese opposition has organized a series of demonstrations against the electoral process. They accuse the organizers of preparing a new electoral hold-up in favor of the current President Tshisekedi. The first demonstration organized on May 20 was repressed by the police, which sparked negative reactions internationally.
The criticism was further amplified with social media where videos showing the disproportionate use of force against peaceful protesters, including against a minor, were widely shared. Faced with the real impact of social networks on the country’s politics, markets and security, the former coordinator of the National Monitoring Mechanism of the Addis Ababa Framework Agreement and newly appointed roving ambassador of President Félix Tshisekedi, Claude Ibalanky, proposed to restrict access to social networks in the name of national security.
Limiting access to social networks is not a new measure in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the government had already ordered the shutdown of the internet on several occasions under former President Joseph Kabila. Authorities can order Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to limit access to their subscribers or block all Internet access. Faced with the growing involvement of social networks in the politics and security of countries, many questions arise about the need to regulate this environment.
The debate on the use of social networks is important in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where freedom of expression is already undermined. However, social media can also be an important tool for journalists and activists to expose abuses of power and human rights violations. Limiting access to social media could therefore be a threat to democracy and human rights in the DRC