In a press release published on November 21, the British Embassy in the Democratic Republic of Congo calls on the authorities to guarantee fundamental freedoms during this electoral campaign period. The UK calls on authorities to bring hate speech to justice and to allow “political opposition and civil society organizations to function”.
“We call on all political leaders to lead and encourage respectful and peaceful campaigns. As set out in the DRC’s constitution and laws, the fundamental rights to freedom of movement and assembly, as well as freedom of the media, must be supported. Violence and hate speech must be condemned and investigated, and those responsible brought to justice. The UK has engaged with the Government, political parties, media, civil society and the international community throughout throughout the pre-electoral period. We encouraged the government to allow the political opposition and civil society organizations to function,” said the press release from the British Embassy in Kinshasa.
Britain will support CENCO and ECC election observers in their election observation missions.
“As part of our work with IFES, we have provided technical assistance and training to the CENI. Through funding from the Carter Center, we support the independent national election observers of the ECC and CENCO. With reporters without borders, we contribute to the capacity and safety of local journalists during the election period.
The electoral campaign is underway, the main presidential candidates are in deep Congo campaigning. The European electoral observation mission is already present in the DRC.
This article is originally published on actualite.cd