Kinshasa, 21st May 2016 – The Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General and Chief of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), Maman Sidikou, is deeply concerned about the increasing political tensions in the DRC. He notes, in this respect, that increasing the number of judiciary proceedings and actions likely to shrink the political space will only exacerbate the tensions and make it even more difficult to hold the political dialogue insistently called for by President Kabila. He urges strict respect for the rule of law and the fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Constitution.

The Special Representative reiterates that only a genuinely inclusive political dialogue, Constitution-abiding, will help Congolese actors to successfully overcome the current challenges, more particularly the ones relating to the electoral process. The current situation and the dangers weighing upon it need patriotic reawakening both on the part of the majority as well as the opposition, to place the interests of the country above any other consideration.

The Special Representative recalls, pursuant to the UNSC Resolution 2277, that the United Nations stands resolutely with the AU and its appointed facilitator, the former Togolese Prime Minister Edem Kodjo, to facilitate the launch of the political talks. He further expresses the United Nations’ readiness to assist the CENI in organizing free and transparent elections to mark a new step forward in the advancement of the democratic process in the DRC.