14 02 12 Urgent Call for International Action to Uphold Democracy and HumanRights in the DRC
organizations, are deeply troubled by the post-election crisis in
the
Democratic Republic of the
Congo (DRC). We believe
the international community should urgently
strengthen its engagement towards
the electoral process and its aftermath in the DRC.
The
European Union election
observation mission, EurAc, the Carter Center, and national
election
observation missions, most
notably the Catholic Church and AETA, as well as donor
governments
including the United States, the
UK, and France, have all stated that the elections held on
November
28, 2011, were deeply flawed and
marred by widespread irregularities. Permitting these
election
results to stand without serious
attempts to rectify them or to correct the process that led to
the
flaws will be a serious blow to
building democracy in the DRC and is likely to lead to
instability.
In order to prevent further
violence and to promote democratic legitimacy, we call on
the
international community to take
the following steps immediately:
1. Insist that any solution to
the Congolese crisis must be based on respect for
democratic
principles. We strongly encourage
all international actors to stand by this principle and
this
approach in their efforts to
resolve the crisis.
2. Recommend a thorough reform of
the Congolese Election Commission (CENI). We
believe
that the statement issued by the
Catholic Bishops of Congo (CENCO) on January 11,
2012,
clearly describes the problems
created by the elections and offers important
recommendations. We fully endorse
the Bishops' conclusion that the present Congolese
Electoral Commission has lost its
credibility, as further demonstrated by the early
termination of the international
electoral technical assessment mission conducted by
IFES
and NDI. We believe that for the
CENI to enjoy the credibility it needs to carry out its
work,
it should be reconstituted with
universally respected members and equitable
representation from all
parties.
3. Strongly and publicly condemn
attacks by the security services to suppress citizens’
rights
and demand accountability.
Congolese citizens, opposition supporters and others have
been
killed, illegally detained,
disappeared or otherwise harassed by state security forces
during
the electoral campaign and in the
period following the announcement of the result.
The
abuses continue. The leading
opposition candidate—Etienne Tshisekedi—is now
effectively
under house arrest. Other
opposition candidates have also been threatened and
intimidated. The exercise of
fundamental rights and freedoms, including the freedom
of
expression and the freedom of
assembly, are being violated by the police and other
security
forces in what appears to be an
effort to repress peaceful protest against the
controversial
election results. The
international community should insist that the Congolese
authorities
uphold the rule of law, ensure
citizens’ rights, regardless of their political affiliation,
and
arrest those responsible for the
illegal acts described above.
4. Support the right to peaceful
protest. Congolese civil society has been deeply engaged in
the
electoral process and has
scheduled a march on February 16, 2012, to call for
justice,
democratically legitimate
institutions, and to commemorate the 1992 “March of
Christians,”
when Mobutu’s troops killed and
wounded dozens of unarmed peaceful demonstrators.
We
are concerned that against the
backdrop described above, the government may seek to
stop
the march, including possibly
through the use of force or other illegal tactics.
The
international community should
reiterate both publicly and privately to Congolese
government authorities that the
right to assemble is a fundamental right enshrined in
the
Congolese constitution and urge
Congolese authorities not to use force to impede
peaceful
protests.
We believe that Congo is at an
important juncture in its efforts to move towards democracy.
Timely
and constructive international
involvement is needed to help move events in a positive
direction.
Africa Europe Faith and Justice
Network
European Network for Central
Africa
Eastern Congo
Initiative
Enough
Project
Human Rights
Watch
Humanity
United
Open Society
Foundations