In the Democratic Republic of Congo, six days after the death of at least 129 prisoners during an escape attempt at Makala, the country’s largest prison, the time has come to count the victims. The toll is still uncertain as the identification of prisoners, including those who died, is long and difficult. Officially, the authorities are still talking about 129 dead, shot by the police, or suffocated, trampled during the chaos that befell the Kinshasa prison on the night of September 1 to 2. However, no escapes have been reported. An inter-service security commission has been set up to investigate this tragedy.
With our correspondent in Kinshasa, Pascal Mulegwa
In RDCthe prison archives of Article In Kinshasa, the authorities have to identify the thousands of prisoners in the prison one by one. The families of those who died in the tragedy have been asked to identify their loved ones.
A process that will take time, some prisoners coming from neighboring provinces, others having been in prison for years and having lost all contact with their families. Since Thursday, September 5, a trial has also opened against about thirty prisoners accused of rape and vandalism during this escape attempt in Makala.
The violence also targeted female prisoners.
- RFI
