Police fired tear gas as clashes erupted in Kinshasa on Tuesday between opposition supporters and pro-government activists during a rally against a proposed constitutional change, AFP journalists saw.
Tensions were running high in several other major cities around the Democratic Republic of Congo, with police firing warning shots and making arrests in some areas to disperse protests called by the opposition.
Opposition parties have joined forces in recent months to stand against President Felix Tshisekedi’s attempt to change the constitution so he can run for a third term.
The “C64” coalition called for a day of nationwide action on Tuesday, and hundreds took to the streets in Kinshasa beneath a forest of flags bearing the colours of the main parties belonging to the movement. Riot police were deployed in large numbers along the planned march route and at the major intersections in the capital, where traffic was unusually smooth.
Clashes soon broke out after the march set off between pro-government partisans and opposition supporters.
Police intervened with volleys of tear gas, forcing protesters to retreat in disarray, with at least two of them injured, AFP journalists reported.
In Lubumbashi, a major mining centre in the southeastern DRC, activists defied a protest ban by local authorities, gathering in the city centre before police dispersed them with tear gas and warning shots.
Several people were arrested by police, according to an AFP journalist on the scene.
“We were taken aback by the large deployment of the army and police to prevent this peaceful demonstration,” said Mohamed Eyenga, provincial coordinator of the Envol opposition party and a senior figure in the C64 coalition.
“Many of our activists were unfortunately and arbitrarily arrested,” he said.
General Blaise Kilimbalimba, the provincial police commander, insisted no “peaceful” demonstrator had been arrested.
“The police have taken measures to allow every citizen to go about their activities freely,” he said.
“The situation has been calm since this morning.”
In Mbandaka, capital of northwestern Equateur province, where authorities also banned protest, around 100 activists were dispersed by law enforcement officers brandishing weapons.
About 10 people were arrested, an AFP journalist on site said.
By Agencies
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