AFRICA/DR CONGO - A 3-day sit-in organized by lay Catholics against corruption and violence in the eastern part of the Country

Tuesday, 10 December 2019 laity   justice   violence  

Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) - "We are determined to continue the crusade for the consolidation of the rule of law", says a message sent to Fides by the Committee of Lay Coordination (CLC), an organization of lay Catholics, very active in the Democratic Republic of Congo and in particular in the archdiocese of Kinshasa, with which "the population was invited to three days of mobilization for the respect, defense and promotion of justice". The CLC organized a large sit-in, Thursday 5, Friday 6 and Saturday 7 December, in front of the Palace of Justice, in Piazza Indipendenza.
Through the sit-in, the CLC wanted to express the indignation of the population for corruption, impunity and the impotence of justice and the growing insecurity in the eastern part of the Country. During a demonstration held in October 2019, the CLC had asked for the resignation of constitutional judges who "fancifully" validated, invalidated and revalidated the results of the 2018 elections, and the suspension, as a precaution, of all those involved in a case of misappropriation of $ 15 million of public money.
"Having noticed that the expected signals are slowly coming and that at the same time the massacres of civilian populations have undergone an acceleration never touched in the northern and southern Kivu provinces, we have decided to move on to concrete actions. That is why we have just organized a big uninterrupted 3-day sit-in in front of the Palace of Justice. The objective is to obtain the resignation of the corrupt constitutional judges, the restitution of the 15 million dollars disappeared from the coffers of the State and the end of violence in Beni", said Professor Isidore Ndaywel, coordinator of the CLC on December 7.
Thousands of Catholics and members of citizen movements participated in the sit-in and the CLC said they were satisfied with the outcome of the peaceful protest, because the message passed that those with government responsibilities are not above the judgment of the population. In particular, officials of the Ministries of Justice and Foreign Affairs were visibly contested by sit-in participants held a few meters from their headquarters. The CLC and its allies reassure that if the authorities do not respond to their requests, other similar events will be organized in January. (M.B.P.) (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 10/12/2019)


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