The city of Tshikapa, in the province of Kasaï in the Democratic Republic of Congo, was shaken this Friday, June 9 by a demonstration organized by the citizen movement Lutte pour lechange (LUCHA). This demonstration was intended to protest against the increase in the cost of connection to the Régieso, which had recently increased by 100 dollars.
However, the demonstration was violently repressed by the Congolese national police (PNC), on the orders of the town hall. Local sources said several protesters were arrested and taken into custody.
The town hall had indeed banned the demonstration for political and social reasons, arguing that the current context did not allow its organization. Rising drinking water bills have exacerbated tensions in the town of Tshikapa, where the population has already been facing a humanitarian crisis for several months.
It is important to emphasize that the province of Kasai is one of the areas most affected by the political crisis that the DRC is currently going through. Clashes between the regular armed forces and local armed groups have caused the death of thousands of people and caused the displacement of more than a million people.
This demonstration is therefore part of a tense socio-political context, where demonstrations are often violently repressed. The security situation in the DRC remains worrying, with violence persisting in several provinces of the country