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In Kananga, UN Joint Human Rights Office intensify sensitization on people’s rights and responsibilities in preparation to upcoming elections

In Kananga, UN Joint Human Rights Office intensify sensitization on people’s rights and responsibilities in preparation to upcoming elections. Photo MONUSCO/Laurent Sam OUSSOU

 

Kananga, 31-Jul. -18: UN Human Rights Joint Office organized in July a number of sensitization sessions on people’s rights and responsibilities for the different actors to compete during the electoral period.

With the opening of the office to receive the candidatures for the provincial and national elections including the presidential election, DRC has fully entered the electoral period. To defuse the tensions experienced during this period, UN Joint Human Rights Office’s focus is more on the capacity-building for the key actors.

So, on 27 July, in Kananga, UN Joint Human Rights Office sensitized 37 FARDC junior and senior officers including 3 women on human rights and sexual violence. The session focused on the foundations of human rights, military operations aspects relating to human rights, commanders’ responsibility and banning of sexual violence and other forms of violence against women. At the end of the session, participants made a commitment to protect and ensure respect for their rights in the Kasaï province.

On 24 July, UN Joint Human Rights Office wound up a two-day workshop on capacity-building on basic fundamental rights and political freedom during the electoral period in favor of the media organizations in the Kasaï Centrale province. Attended by United Nations Police (UNPOL) and Child Protection Section, the session focused on the following themes: Understanding the concept of freedom and legal framework before organizing public protests in DRC, use of force by the police as well as child protection against manipulation and exploitation for political purposes during the electoral time. Altogether, 24 men and 16 women participated in this activity.

On 23 July, those media professionals addressed the issues on human rights and elections, the right and responsibilities of journalists during the electoral period and the legal framework for the practice of journalism.

On 2 July in Kananga, UN Joint Human Right Office sensitized 33 FARDC members including three women on human rights, with a special focus on the right to decent life, physical integrity, freedom including freedom of expression.

The purpose of the workshop, said the organizers, was to capacity-building workshop was to provide useful guidance for safe elections in full compliance with the human rights.