DRC Urged to Resolve Situation of Imprisoned Politicians

An IPU team has visited two opposition politicians in prison as part of a human rights mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The team from IPU’s Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians discussed with Pierre Jacques Chalupa and Diomi Ndongala latest efforts to end their imprisonment. Sixty-four-year-old former MP and opposition party leader Chalupa, who is in need of urgent medical treatment, appeared to be in reasonable condition at the meeting on 13 June. Sentenced to imprisonment in October 2012 for falsifying documents to gain Congolese nationality despite having been elected an MP and living his whole life in the country, he has served half of a three-year sentence and meets the conditions for “anticipated release” under Congolese law. IPU is urging the authorities in the DRC to release Chalupa and to favourably resolve the issue of his citizenship. In Ndongala’s case, the mission is calling for a court decision ordering the MP to be put under house arrest instead of in detention, to be respected. IPU is also urging Ndongala’s trial to take place as soon as possible and for it to fully respect international fair trial guarantees. The IPU team concludes its mission on 14th June after final meetings with the authorities. The mission headed by the president of the Human Rights Committee, Malian MP Kassoum Tapo, is investigating alleged human rights cases involving 33 MPs and former MPs in the DRC. A full report of the mission’s findings on all of the cases will be presented to the authorities and the IPU Committee.