Massacres in the DRC: anger of civilians, violent repression

Protesters targeted a UN camp on Friday in Beni in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo where police violently dispersed their anger over the killings attributed to ADF militiamen.

Dozens of protesters ripped barbed wire protecting a camp from the UN Mission in Congo (Monusco) at the entrance to Beni-ville, an AFP correspondent said.

They denounce the helplessness of the UN and the Congolese army against the massacres of ADF militiamen, who have killed more than 60 civilians in the region since early November, including at least seven in Beni on Wednesday.

Congolese security forces fired live ammunition and tear gas to try to disperse the protesters, according to the AFP correspondent.

Dozens of young people threw stones and pieces of wood at the security forces before attacking the Monusco base.

All activities were paralyzed in other parts of the city for the second day in a row.

In Butembo, 54 km from Beni, protesters barricaded roads and burned tires. The shops and markets did not open and taxis and buses did not circulate in solidarity with the inhabitants of Beni.

« Ten people were arrested. The police will interrogate them separately so that they tell us what they were doing on the public road this morning, « said Butembo Mayor Sylvain Kanyamanda.

MONUSCO not yet solicited
« One can not cry compatriots killed by disturbing public order. In a few moments, the order will be restored, « he assured.

The Congolese army announced on October 30 military operations against Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) bases, which have killed more than a thousand civilians in the Beni region since October 2014.

The Congolese army has not requested for the moment the reinforcement of the blue helmets of Monusco. The UN cooperation is limited to information exchanges and medical evacuations.

Originally, the ADF are Ugandan Muslim rebels hostile to President Yoweri Museveni, settled in eastern DRC since 1995.

A quarter of a century later, they no longer attack neighboring Ugandan borders and claim none of their massacres in the DRC. Their recruitment extended to other nationalities of neighboring Swahili-speaking countries (Tanzania …).