Member of civil society in Kwilu Ngongo
Cases- Location of case in SG report
- 2019-030-001
- Relevant SG report
- Year of the report
- 2019
- From Country
- Country Geolocation
Latitude: -4.038333
Longitude: 21.758664
- Country Geolocation (linked Cases)
- Congo, Democratic Republic of the
- From Region
- Type of record
- Unnamed individual/group/organization
- Was the victim a foreign national?
- No
- Was the victim a minor?
- No
- Type of rights defended
- Civil/political rights
- Was the victim a civil servant, member of the security forces or of the judiciary?
- No
- Reported trigger of reprisal
reported and publicly denounced an incident to the UN Joint Human Rights Office (UNJHRO) of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), where two men had been arrested, stripped and walked naked in the street mid-day on the order of a police officer. After UNJHRO brought the incident to the attention of the relevant authorities, criminal proceedings were initiated against the police officer involved.
- Engagement with UN body
- UN Peace Operation / Political mission
- Dates of engagement
- January 2019
- Type of attempted engagement
- Submission of information to UN
- Dates of mentioned reprisals
- 8 February 2019
- Location of mentioned reprisals
- Kwilu-Ngongo
- Reprisal information
On 8 February 2019, during a public meeting in Kwilu-Ngongo, the deputy administrator of the Mbanza-Ngungu Territory announced the suspension of the defender from his functions and appointed an interim chairman of the civil society organization. The local authority refused to give the floor to the defender in question during the meeting, calling him a whistle-blower and an informant of the UNJHRO. The decision was later announced through the local community radio, threatening legal proceedings against the defenders in case of non-compliance.
- Types of reprisals suffered
- Defamation / Defamation campaign
- Profession-related reprisal
- Threats/Intimidations (incl. "fear of reprisal")
- Alleged/likely perpetrators
- State actors
- Was the reprisal based on new legislation?
- No
- Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?
- No
- Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?
- No
- Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?
- No
- Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?
- No
- How many times has the case been followed up in subsequent SG reports?
- 0