US sanctions Kinshasa's police chief

After issuing a warning in May that it would impose sanctions against the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the US has acted.

The Obama administration sanctioned Kinshasa’s police chief, Celestin Kanyama, for what it termed as violence and murder of civilians.

This means that all assests belonging to Kanyama are frozen and Americans are barred from doing any business with him.

The US further accused the police force of creating a “climate of fear” in the country as it gears for presidential elections later this year.

The Congolese government through Bernabe Kikaya Bin Karubi, a diplomatic adviser to president Joseph Kabila, said that it regrets the decision taken by the US arguing that the police were maintaining public order.

He was quick to add that the DRC will continue with its relations with the US but fears that there is hard- line stance taken by western powers against president Joseph Kabila and the people of the country.

According to Kikaya, the way to diffuse rising political tension in the country is via consensus, uniting all the Congolese people and agreeing on an electoral system that will determine the future of the country.

Agencies