DR Congo bans reporting on the ex-president

The Congolese authorities has banned the media from reporting on the actions of former President Joseph Kabila and interviewing members of his social gathering.

This comes after Kabila returned to the Democratic Republic of Congo final month amid heightened tensions between himself and the federal government, led by his successor, President Félix Tshisekedi.

The authorities are pushing to prosecute Mr Kabila amid accusations of treason and alleged hyperlinks to the M23 rebels which have been combating the military – one thing he has beforehand denied.

Breaches of the ban may lead to suspension, mentioned the top of DR Congo’s media regulator, Christian Bosembe.

Responding to the announcement by the regulator, often called the the Supreme Council of Audiovisual and Communication (CSAC), an M23 spokesperson mentioned the media shops in elements of the nation underneath its management wouldn’t abide by the ban.

There was no quick response from Kabila, nevertheless, the secretary of his social gathering, Ferdinand Kambere, rejected the ban, describing it as “arbitrary” on X.

Kabila was final week seen within the japanese DR Congo metropolis of Goma, which is underneath M23 management.

He has been extremely vital of the federal government after the senate voted to carry his immunity over his alleged help of the M23 group.

DR Congo’s neighbour, Rwanda has been accused of backing the insurgent group, however Kigali denies this.

Kabila, who has not but been charged with any crime, launched a scathing assault on the Congolese authorities final month, describing it as a “dictatorship”.

A authorities spokesperson on the time rejected Kabila’s criticism, saying he had “nothing to supply”.

Reacting to the announcement by the CSAC, activist and president of the African Affiliation for the Defence of Human Rights, Jean-Claude Katende, mentioned the ban constituted an “abuse of energy”, in keeping with native media.

In the meantime, political analyst Ambroise Mamba indicated on X that the ban may very well be self-defeating as a result of it may pique individuals’s curiosity to seek out out about Kabila’s actions and actions.

Since returning to DR Congo after two years of self-imposed exile, Kabila’s social gathering has been posting his actions on-line, which embrace visiting civil society teams and native spiritual representatives in Goma.

Further reporting from BBC Monitoring.