Security forces and protesters battled on Monday in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the unrest led to at least 17 people killed, the UN mission to the country said.
Three police officers were among those killed in the fighting, which took place in the capital, Kinshasa, and elsewhere, according to the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or MONUSCO.
Citizens took to the street to protest the national electoral commission failure to announce a timetable for the presidential election, due to take place in November, and those demonstrations turned violent.
Opposition leader Martin Fayulu had called on the government to abide by the constitution and for current President Joseph Kabila to step down on December 19.
He posted a message on Twitter last week saying protesters should stage a sit-in in front of the elections commission on Monday. A delay in the elections would allow Kabila to stay in power beyond the end of his second term, violating the constitution.
World condemnations
The head of MONUSCO urged everyone “to exercise maximum restraint.”
“I call on the Congolese authorities to ensure that national security forces respect fundamental freedoms, and for the use of nonlethal force in crowd control in their response to protests. I also call on all concerned political leaders and their supporters to desist from undertaking any further acts that could continue to exacerbate the situation and heighten tensions,” said Special Representative of the Secretary General Maman Sambo Sidikou.
UN Secretary Ban Ki-moon, the United States, France, former colonial power Belgium and the African Union also condemned the violence and called on the government to set an election date.
“The timetable must be made available as swiftly as possible and the elections held with as little delay as possible,” the French Foreign Ministry said.
“Today’s events underscore the need for a truly inclusive dialogue process aimed at reaching consensus on holding presidential elections as soon as technically feasible and guaranteeing the country’s first democratic transition of power,” said US State Department spokesman John Kirby.
President Kabila succeeded power from his father, Laurent Kabila, in 2001 after he was assassinated.
The central African nation hasn’t had a peaceful transition of power since gaining independence in 1960.