This archive report was first published on 22 September 2019.
Published on September 22, 2019, by AFP.
Thirty-six activists from DR Congo's pro-democracy Lucha movement have been arrested for staging a protest against the country's branch of Indian telecoms operator Airtel.
The activists, who were calling for better services at lower prices, were arrested in the eastern city of Goma for making 'defamatory statements' against the Congolese arm of Airtel.
According to Lucha spokesman Steward Muhindo, the activists were also demanding that Airtel use the GPS function on its phones to help locate kidnapped people, a common problem in Goma.
Abduction is a scourge in Goma, the capital of the North Kivu province which is riven by conflict between armed groups.
After the arrests on Wednesday and Thursday, 13 of the activists have been transferred to the city's central prison while the other 23 have been sent to the prosecutor's office.
A group of 36 Congolese human rights organisations condemned the arrests, calling it 'deplorable' that the young people who remind Airtel of its obligations are physically attacked, arrested and tortured each time.
President Felix Tshisekedi has touted an improvement in the country's human rights since he took office in January, but the arrests have raised questions about the government's commitment to protecting the rights of its citizens.
