Thirty-seven defendants, including three Americans, tried for the “attempted coup” which the army of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) said it had foiled in May, were sentenced to death by a military court in Kinshasa on Friday, September 13.
“The court pronounces the harshest sentence: the death penalty”repeated for each of the convicts Major Freddy Ehume, president of the court which has been sitting since June at the Ndolo military prison, where the accused are incarcerated.
The death row inmates were found guilty of criminal conspiracy and attack, but also of terrorism, except for one of them. Among the thirty-seven, six are of foreign nationality. They are three Americans born in the United States, a Belgian, a British and a Canadian. The last three also have Congolese nationality, obtained by naturalization. Defense lawyers have already announced their intention to appeal. They have five days to do so.
Fourteen of the fifty-one defendants were acquitted, the investigation having demonstrated that they had not “no connection” with the case.
Read also | In the DRC, the army denounces “an attempted coup d’état” after a shooting in Kinshasa
Add to your selections
The announcement of the sentences, which lasted more than four hours, was followed by an outcry from the audience, including relatives gathered under the large tent erected in one of the prison courtyards.
The prosecution had requested the death penalty for fifty defendants, the last of whom was declared to be suffering from a medical condition in a medical report. “psychological disorders”.
The trial provided little detail about the motivations of the members of the operation, which was clearly poorly prepared, and its possible sponsors.
End of the regime
On May 19, late at night, in Kinshasa, in the upscale Gombe district, several dozen armed men in fatigues attacked the home of a minister, Vital Kamerhe, who has since become president of the National Assembly. Two police officers assigned to protect him were killed. The attackers then invaded the Palais de la Nation, a historic building housing the offices of the President of the Republic, Félix Tshisekedi. Located near the Congo River, the place is deserted at night.
Follow us on WhatsApp
Stay informed
Receive the essential African news on WhatsApp with the “Monde Afrique” channel
Join
The members of the commando had filmed themselves brandishing the flag of Zaire, the name of the DRC under the reign of Mobutu, the dictator overthrown in 1997, and declaring the end of the regime of the current head of state, in power since 2019 and re-elected in December 2023. The flag in question and several dozen assault rifles were presented during the trial as exhibits.
The operation ended with the intervention of security forces who, according to the army, arrested about forty attackers and killed four others, including the leader of the group, Christian Malanga, a 41-year-old Congolese living in the United States. The army spokesman quickly spoke of “coup attempt nipped in the bud.” The DRC government, for its part, later mentioned a “attempt to destabilize institutions” of the country. Vital Kamerhe’s supporters, for their part, spoke of an assassination attempt.
Read also | Article reserved for our subscribers DRC: Who is Christian Malanga, the man behind the failed coup?
Add to your selections
Human rights activists have denounced “opacity” interrogations of the alleged putschists. Throughout the trial, the accused confined themselves to blaming the alleged leader of the commando for the events. They had all pleaded not guilty and their lawyers had called for acquittal.
The DRC government lifted a moratorium on the death penalty in March that had been in place since 2003 amid a Rwandan-backed armed rebellion in the east of the country.
