On Saturday June 10, the Mzee Laurent Désiré Kabila Foundation issued a press release announcing a night attack on its offices, located in the Commune of Gombe. According to the Foundation, the assailants, who appear to be agents of the security services and an unidentified military commando, smuggled and illegally entered the building. They forced the entrance doors and the various doors of the offices before searching and scattering their contents.
The Mzee Laurent Désiré Kabila Foundation was founded in 2001 in memory of the third President of the Democratic Republic of Congo and National Hero, Mzee Laurent Désiré Kabila. According to Jaynet Kabila, president of the Foundation, this is the second time that the offices of the Foundation have been victims of such an illegal and clandestine attack. The Foundation had a similar incident in 2022, where an element of the Congolese National Police (PNC), Deputy Commissioner responsible for guarding the Foundation, was kidnapped and brutally beaten.
The LDK Foundation has strongly condemned these barbaric and criminal acts which intentionally violate articles 12, 16, 29, 31, 34 and 37 of the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Congo which enshrine the protection of guaranteed rights and the inviolability of homes. For this reason, the LDK Foundation calls on the authorities to investigate and bring to justice those responsible for these despicable acts.
The DRC is currently facing growing political tensions, with presidential elections approaching. This attack on the Mzee Laurent Désiré Kabila Foundation is a serious example of how political instability and violence can have a negative impact on organizations and individuals working for democracy and peace in the country.
It is essential that the authorities take swift and effective measures to ensure the safety of all citizens and their right to express their political opinion peacefully. The Mzee Laurent Désiré Kabila Foundation and other civil society organizations play a crucial role in promoting democracy, human rights and peace in the DRC, and their work must be protected for the good of all the Congolese