Presidential communicators held over digital offences in DR Congo
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Actualité.cd
Congolese Justice Minister Guillaume Ngefa says several people presented as presidential communicators are being held at Makala prison in Kinshasa for offences linked to digital technology. Other proceedings are under way and the number of prosecutions could increase, according to remarks he made at a government briefing reported by Actualité.cd.
Several people, including individuals presented as communicators for the presidency of the Democratic Republic of Congo, have been sent to Makala central prison for offences linked to digital technology, State Minister for Justice Guillaume Ngefa said on Thursday. He was speaking at a press briefing held with Minister of Communication and Media Patrick Muyaya Katembwe, according to Actualité.cd.
Guillaume Ngefa said prosecutors were increasingly taking up offences committed on social media on their own initiative. The number of people facing prosecution could increase, as the authorities assess registered cases every week. Two trials have already been held at Makala in a mobile courtroom, according to the justice minister, who said the law would be applied regardless of political affiliation.
The minister also said some cases could be selected to set an example, with the aim of making social media a space that respects rights and cultural values. The announcement follows the suspension of new admissions to Makala on 21 October and the arrest of a UDPS official after calls for violence on 23 October.
