UN rights chief condemns violence in DR Congo prisons, says conditions are getting worse By Reuters
Written by Sonia Rolley
PARIS (Reuters) – Prison conditions in the Democratic Republic of Congo are worsening, as cases of torture and sexual violence are reported in facilities under the intelligence service, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has said.
Congo's overcrowded, violent and unsanitary prisons came under the spotlight last month after more than 260 inmates were sexually assaulted while trying to escape from the Makala Central prison in the capital Kinshasa.
At least 129 people died when guards used live fire on inmates trying to escape from the prison, which official figures say has a capacity of 1,500 inmates, but which housed more than 15,000 people.
High Commissioner Volker Turk said during a human rights forum on Tuesday that Congolese prisoners are being held in “deplorable conditions” without access to lawyers or contact with their families.
“In the detention centers run by the intelligence services, in particular, many prisoners suffer from other abuses, including sexual violence”, he told the UN Human Rights Council.
Representatives of the UN Human Rights Office have been repeatedly denied access to Makala and the Intelligence Service, said department spokesperson Seif Magango on Tuesday.
“We have not been able to enter Makala prison even though there are many letters written to the relevant authorities. We still cannot enter the detention centers,” he told Reuters.
A spokesman for Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi did not respond to a request for comment. A spokesman for the Congolese military, which oversees the intelligence unit and detention centers, said he had not been informed of Turk's comments.
When he came to power in 2019, Tshisekedi promised to close down the intelligence services, which had long been known to mistreat prisoners.
After last month's recess, Tshisekedi ordered an investigation and review of Congo's largest prisons to reduce overcrowding.
