DRC: President Tshisekedi to visit Haut-Katanga province amid high tensions April 11-13 /update 2

Event

President Felix Tshisekedi is due to arrive in Lubumbashi, the capital of the Haut-Katanga province, on Thursday, April 11, for a first official national visit. Tshisekedi will spend three days in the province. Heightened security measures are expected in Lubumbashi and other urban centres through April 13, as are associated disruptions, including road closures, checkpoints, and increased security personnel. Related demonstrations are also likely as tensions remain high in Lubumbashi, following election-related clashes outside the provincial assembly building on Wednesday, April 10. The unrest came amid gubernatorial elections on Wednesday.

Context

DRC held gubernatorial elections on April 10. Supporters of the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) and the People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD) have clashed in Lubumbashi in the days prior to the election. 

President Felix Tshisekedi's Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UPDS) party failed to receive a majority in local elections on March 15 whereas former President Joseph Kabila's coalition Common Front for Congo (FCC) - to which the PPRD belongs - won roughly two-thirds representation in the country's senate. On election day, clashes were reported in Kinshasa and Kasai-Oriental province, with at least one person killed in the unrest.  

Advice

Individuals in the DRC are advised to monitor the situation, avoid all public demonstrations due to the risk of violence and arrest, refrain from discussing political topics in public, and adhere to all instructions issued by their home government and local authorities.