Questions surrounding prison break attempt in Congo: Families of victims demand accountability

Madeleine Mbalaka, whose son was killed in the recent prison break attempt, sits outside her home in Kinshasa, Congo, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. Families of those killed in what Congolese authorities called a breakout attempt at the country's largest prison are demanding answers from the government as criticism grows over what activists call inhumane conditions in Congo's overcrowded prisons. (AP Photo/Benz Bokote)

Questions surrounding prison break attempt in Congo: Families of victims demand accountability

By JEAN-YVES KAMALE, Associated Press

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Families of victims of what authorities called an attempted prison break at Congo's biggest prison are demanding answers, while activists denounce what they say are inhumane conditions in the country's overcrowded jails. The tragedy at Makala central prison in the capital Kinshasa early Monday left 129 people dead, including some shot by guards and soldiers and others killed in a stampede, authorities said. But human rights groups and the opposition are demanding an independent investigation and accusing the government of using excessive force and covering up the true death toll. One prominent activist said more than 200 people were killed.

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Families of those killed in what authorities called an escape attempt at Congo's largest prison are demanding answers from the government, while activists denounce what they say are inhumane conditions in the country's overcrowded jails.

Officials said 129 people died, including some shot by guards and soldiers and others who died in a stampede as they tried to escape from Makala Central Prison in the capital Kinshasa early Monday. Justice Minister Constant Mutamba described the prison break as “deliberate act of sabotage” and promised a “strict answer.”

However, human rights groups and the opposition called for an independent investigation and accused the government of using excessive force and covering up the true death toll. One prominent activist said more than 200 people were killed.

Everixk Nzeu, 25, who died in the chaos, was arrested in western Kinshasa two months ago and transferred to Makal on a provisional arrest warrant, his mother Madeleine Mbalaka told the Associated Press – without trial or conviction.

“I visited my son on Sunday, he was fine,” Said Mbalaka. “But around 6 a.m. his roommates called us and told us he was dead.”

Her son left behind an 8-year-old daughter.

The family was not able to see his body, she said, adding that they went to the morgue but were sent back.

“I ask the Congolese authorities for explanations because we do not know exactly what happened,” she begged. “I ask that justice be done.”

Congolese Interior Minister Jacquemin Shabani said on the social media platform X that a preliminary assessment had shown that 24 prisoners from “Warning” Shots fired by guards as they attempted to escape the facility.

“In addition, 59 injured people were cared for by the government and several cases of rape were recorded,” he said, adding that order had been restored in the prison, parts of which were burned down during the escape attempt.

It was not immediately clear whether all 129 fatalities were prisoners, and officials did not say how the stampede occurred. Shabani also did not elaborate on the alleged rape cases at the Makal, which houses both female and male prisoners.

The European Union called on the Congolese authorities on Wednesday to “to investigate these tragic events quickly in order to establish the various responsibilities, including with regard to respect for human rights and the rule of law.”

Opposition leader Martin Fayulu compared the death toll with “Steadfast executions” and said it was a “an unacceptable crime that cannot go unpunished.”

But Emmanuel Adu Cole, a prominent prison rights activist, told AP that there were more than 200 dead, many of them shot, citing prison videos and statements from inmates he spoke to. AP could not independently verify the videos.

According to local residents, the fire in the prison started around midnight on Sunday and lasted until Monday morning.

“Shots were fired everywhere,” said Stéphane Matondo, who lives nearby, adding that shortly afterwards military vehicles arrived and the main road to the prison was closed.

Monday's tragedy highlighted the overcrowding and appalling living conditions in Congo's prisons. Makala, Congo's largest prison with a capacity of 1,500 people, houses over 12,000 inmates, most of whom are awaiting trial, Amnesty International said in its latest country report.

The facility has seen previous prison breakouts, including in 2017, when members of a religious sect stormed the prison and freed dozens of inmates.

Stanis Bujakera Tshiamala, a prominent Congolese journalist who was recently held in prison for months, spoke of his “regrettable and inhumane” conditions and the constant lack of food, water, access to sanitation and medical care.

“From the inside, Makala Prison looks more like a concentration camp than a penitentiary,” he told the AP. “The prison conditions are absolutely deplorable and inhumane. The inmates are treated like subhumans, deprived of their basic rights and subjected to inhumane living conditions.”

Congo's Deputy Justice Minister Samuel Mbemba Kabuya blamed the country's justice system for prison overcrowding, saying people are being quickly detained at the early stages of their trials. Justice Minister Mutamba announced a ban on the transfer of prisoners from Makala and promised that authorities would build a new prison, among other measures to reduce overcrowding.

However, these promises mean little to the victims' relatives. They say they are left in the dark about the fate of their loved ones.

“It is sad that prisoners die as if they were animals,” said Joyce Imongo, whose 43-year-old brother was among those who died on Monday.