Aubin Minaku released after 296 days in detention in Kinshasa
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Kivu Morning Post
Former National Assembly president and PPRD vice-president Aubin Minaku was released on 10 November 2026 after 296 days in detention at a secret location in Kinshasa, and placed under house arrest. He had been abducted in January by armed men from the National Cyber Defence Council, according to his lawyer Me Jean Mbuyu.
The former president of the National Assembly of the Democratic Republic of Congo and PPRD vice-president, Aubin Minaku Ndjalandjoko, regained his freedom on Tuesday 10 November 2026 after 296 days in detention in Kinshasa. He left his place of detention to return home, where he has been placed under house arrest, his lawyer Me Jean Mbuyu confirmed to Jeune Afrique.
The release comes 11 days after the definitive dissolution of the PPRD, the party of former president Joseph Kabila, by the Council of State on 30 October 2026. Several PPRD officials remain detained, including Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, the party’s permanent secretary, while Marie-Ange Mushobekwa, a former human rights minister and FCC official, welcomed Minaku’s release on X and called for the release of Shadary and Dunia Kilanga.
Aubin Minaku was taken from his home on the night of 17 to 18 January 2026 by armed men from the National Cyber Defence Council, a specialised service attached to the Congolese presidency. His case was reportedly referred to the General Military Prosecutor’s Office in August, while he is the subject of alleged accusations of endangering state security amid the political conflict between Félix Tshisekedi’s government and Joseph Kabila’s camp, which Kinshasa accuses of supporting the AFC/M23.
Aubin Minaku’s release comes after his placement under house arrest in Kinshasa, a step that now constitutes his new detention regime.
