In a correspondence, the Attorney General at the Court of Cassation, Firmin Mvonde, instructed the prosecutor at the Kinshasa-Gombe High Court to prosecute anyone making “gratuitous assertions” on the publication of the conclusions of the report on the death by Chérubin Okende because, he indicates, “the “gratuitous assertions” constitute false rumors and are repressed by the law”.
This decision does not go down well with some leaders of civil society. The latter consider that this goes once morest the rule of law advocated by the head of state.
“We believe that the point of view of the judicial authorities of the Republic does not seem to fit with the values of democracy as well as the values advocated by the current regime of the rule of law. After receiving information on the facts which contributed to the death of our compatriot, the results were published and this can only provoke comments. Freedom of expression is recognized for all Congolese by the Constitution of the Republic in articles 22, 23 and 24,” declares Jonas Tshombela, coordinator of the New Civil Society of Congo (NSCC).
For him, trying to silence people, in the name of a principle that is not very well understood, frustrates public opinion who think that their freedom of expression and thought are being trampled on.
“We think we have the right. A point of view does not call into question what is presented because it is not a decision of the courts, it is only the result of an investigation carried out by the courts for the sake of transparency. We believe that we must try to balance things while respecting the principles of the rule of law,” adds Jonas Tshombela.
Carlos Mupili Kabyuma, national president of the DRC’s Supreme Society Council, believes that criticizing the country’s judicial investigations is part of an exercise of law recognized in the constitution.
“The announcement of the PG threatening to prosecute all people who question the conclusions of the judicial investigations into the death of Chérubin Okende only astonishes us as human rights defenders because we have this culture here at home” , he maintains, referring to the case of human rights defenders Floribert Chebeya and Fidèle Babala whose judicial decisions were “contested”.
Mr. Mupili Kabyuma underlines that the President of the Republic has treated the justice system of the DRC as sick, and this means that he is exercising his right recognized in the constitution, that of freedom of expression and opinion. “Why don’t we arrest the President of the Republic in the name of the separation of powers, but instead we will intimidate ordinary citizens if we criticize the investigations? », he adds.
Died on July 13, 2023, in his vehicle parked along Avenue Produits-Lourds, Chérubin Okende was national minister of Transport and member of Moïse Katumbi’s Ensemble pour la République party.
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2024-03-06 08:45:50
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