Felix Tshisekedi - The African Mirror

Mar

2023

Congo President Tshisekedi brings in former VP Bemba in reshuffle ahead of election

STANIS BUJAKERA and SONIA ROLLEY DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi has appointed the country's former vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba, who was detained for over 10 years for war crimes, as the country's defence minister in a sweeping government reshuffle. His appointment was part of an overhaul of the 57 members of government, which the president's spokesperson said was "urgent and necessary", in an announcement on Congo's national television late on Thursday. No further details were given. The reshuffle, which was more extensive than observers had predicted, came ahead of an expected presidential election on December 20, in which…

Mar

2023

By The African Mirror

Congo president says unrest in east could disrupt elections

NEWS

DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi said that a conflict with rebels in the east of the country could disrupt preparations for general elections scheduled for December 20. Congo's electoral commission started registering voters on February 17 in North Kivu province, parts of which are occupied by the M23 rebel group, a Tutsi-led militia that has been waging an offensive against Congolese troops for almost a year. The fighting has displaced hundreds of thousands of people, raising concerns about the state's ability to prepare for the parliamentary and presidential elections later this year. "The persistence of the war in the east…

Feb

2023

By The African Mirror

East African regional leaders demand ceasefire in eastern Congo

NEWS

CLEMENT MANIRABARUSHA EAST African regional leaders on Saturday renewed their call for an immediate ceasefire by all sides in the conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo that pits the country's military against a rebel group it has accused Rwanda of supporting. At a summit in Burundi's capital Bujumbura, the leaders of the regional East African Community (EAC) bloc called for an "immediate ceasefire by all parties," according to a communique issued at the end of the meeting. The M23 rebel group has seized large areas of eastern Congo's North Kivu province in a rapid onslaught since October 20…

Jan

2023

By The African Mirror

Congolese president says M23 rebels have not withdrawn as agreed

NEWS

CONGOLESE President Felix Tshisekedi on Tuesday said the M23 rebel group had not fully withdrawn from areas it seized in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, accusing the militia of faking an agreed pullback of its forces. Regional leaders brokered an agreement in November under which the Tutsi-led group was meant to withdraw from recently seized positions by January 15 as part of efforts to end a conflict that has displaced at least 450,000 people and sparked a diplomatic crisis between Congo and neighbouring Rwanda. "Despite the international pressure, the group is still there," Tshisekedi said during a panel session…

Jul

2022

By The African Mirror

East Congo clashes resume after de-escalation agreement with Rwanda

NEWS

CLASHES broke out in eastern Congo between the military and M23 rebels, a civil society and a rebel source said, a day after the presidents of Congo and Rwanda agreed to de-escalate diplomatic tensions over the insurgency. The M23, which Congo accuses Rwanda of supporting, began a major offensive in the eastern borderlands at the end of March, seizing an important border post and other towns despite army efforts to stop its advances. Rwanda denies backing the M23 and has in turn accused Congo of fighting alongside another armed group intent on seizing power in Kigali. Rwandan President Paul Kagame…

Jul

2022

By The African Mirror

Congo and Rwanda to meet for talks amid tensions over rebels

NEWS

STANIS BUJAKERA and CLEMENT UWIRINGIYIMANA DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi will meet his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame for talks in Angola this week, officials said. There were no details on what they would discuss, but the neighbours have been at diplomatic loggerheads since a surge of attacks in eastern Congo by the M23 rebel group - which Kinshasa accuses Kigali of backing. Rwanda denies supporting the rebels and has, in turn, accused Congo of fighting alongside insurgents - a face-off that has raised fears of fresh conflict in the region. The meeting is likely to occur on Tuesday…

Apr

2022

By The African Mirror

Democratic Republic of Congo’s parliament votes out economy minister

NEWS

DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo's parliament voted to remove Economy Minister Jean-Marie Kalumba from his post, blaming him for the soaring price of basic goods and mismanagement of the fishing industry, among other issues. The minister has 48 hours to present his resignation following the vote of no confidence. He was nominated to the post last year by President Felix Tshisekedi. The motion signed by lawmakers laid out a raft of complaints including a lack of a policy to support local fishermen and frequent gas shortages driving up transport prices. Kalumba could not immediately be reached for comment. Congo's former prime…

Dec

2021

By The African Mirror

Changes at DRC state mining company

NEWS

DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi has announced a high-level shake-up at state mining company Gecamines, replacing board chairman Albert Yuma, a close ally of Tshisekedi's predecessor. Albert Yuma. Picture: Wikimedia Commons After coming to power in 2019, Tshisekedi re-appointed Yuma but named his own loyalists to senior positions in a bid to assert more control over Gecamines, which has minority stakes in most of Congo's largest copper and cobalt projects. Under Yuma's leadership, the company faced repeated allegations from local and international watchdogs that its money was used to fund then-President Joseph Kabila's political interests. Yuma and Kabila…

Sep

2021

By The African Mirror

Car-exhaust drug craze alarms Congo’s capital

NEWS

BENOIT NYEMBA A new craze for a drug derived from crushed vehicle exhaust filters is rattling authorities in Kinshasa, triggering a campaign to stamp out the concoction and a related rash of car part thefts. In August police rounded up and paraded nearly 100 alleged dealers and users of the drug "bombe", which means powerful in the local Lingala language, following a call to action by Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi. "This social phenomenon calls for collective responsibility by the whole nation," Tshisekedi told ministers at a weekly meeting. In an abandoned shack in a suburb of Kinshasa,…

Sep

2021

By The African Mirror

Police beat journalist, fire tear gas during Congo election protest

MEDIA FREEDOM

POLICE beat a journalist and fired tear gas to disperse a small crowd in Democratic Republic of Congo's capital Kinshasa during an opposition protest over alleged election meddling, eyewitnesses said. Around 20 protesters gathered in response to a call by opposition leader Martin Fayulu and were met with stiff resistance from police. Police beat and temporarily detained Patient Ligodi, a journalist working for Radio France International, while he was interviewing Fayulu. "They threw me to the ground and started to hit me," Ligodi said in a video shared on social media. Video shot by broadcaster France 24 showed Ligodi being…