DRC: Joseph Kabila under threat of legal proceedings ...

DRC: the public prosecutor requires the death penalty against Joseph Kabila

ByThe Mwebantu Team

In Kinshasa, the trial trial of former Congolese president Joseph Kabila took a spectacular turn. General Lucien René Likulia, representative of the public prosecutor, requested the capital penalty against the former head of state on Thursday, accusing him of serious crimes ranging from “betrayal” to “war crimes”, passing through “the organization of an insurrectional movement”.

The high magistrate asked the military court to condemn Joseph Kabila to the death penalty, accompanied by 15 years in prison for “conspiracy”. The ex-president is tried in his absence, accused of having bonds with the rebel M23/AFC movement, active in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo and supported by Rwanda, according to the authorities.

In his indictment, General Likulia pointed out the presence of Joseph Kabila in Goma via the Rwandan territory, believing that this passage illustrated a “manifest collaboration” with the rebels. He also relied on testimonials from political actors and the statements of a convicted person to support his accusations.

According to him, the abuses committed by the M23 in the east of the country led to “enormous prejudices” to the population and engage the criminal and individual responsibility of the former head of state.

An attempt to destabilize the Tshisekedi regime

The public prosecutor goes further, accusing Joseph Kabila of having acted “in intelligence with Rwanda” in order to perpetrate a coup against the Félix Tshisekedi regime, his successor since January 2019, after a largely disputed election.

The request for death sentence comes when the DRC officially raised the moratorium on capital punishment in 2024, after having maintained it since 2003. However, no execution has taken place for more than twenty years in the country, which leaves an uncertainty of the effective application of a possible conviction.

Joseph Kabila, who directed the DRC from 2001 to 2019, has not yet reacted publicly to these accusations of exceptional gravity.

The Mwebantu Team
The Mwebantu Team

Led by Nia, the insightful editor-in-chief, Kwame, our technology expert, and Amara, the bold field reporter, the Mwebantu team weaves the vibrant narrative of Africa every day, forging a narrative bridge between the continent and the world. Their shared passion illuminates the mission of Mwebantu News, making African voices resonate on the global stage.