Skip to content

7 min read

Congolese protest for end to President Kabila's presidency, 2016-2019

Summary

This began the nonviolent protest movement to remove President Kabila from office and prevent him from remaining in power for a third term. [source: nv-database]

Tactics used

Tactics used

Background

Following the assassination of his father, Joseph Kabila took power and the position of President of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on 26 January 2001 [source: nv-database]. He subsequently won re-election in December 2011, with charges of an illegitimate election surrounding the outcome [source: nv-database]. On 17 January, 2015, students began mass protests over an announcement that President Kabila would remain in power until the government completed a census. [source: nv-database]

What happened

This began the nonviolent protest movement to remove President Kabila from office and prevent him from remaining in power for a third term. Beginning on 21 August 2016, the opposition party (UDPS) and “Rassemblement” (gathering), alongside the Party for Reconstruction for Democracy and the Commitment for Development and Leadership Party, called for a strike to protest the decision to delay the November 2016 elections. The DRC constitution prohibited President Kabila from running for a third term. The opposition, led by protestors supporting Moise Katumbi as well as other leaders, called for President Kabila to step down, hold elections, and ensure a fair transfer of power. The opposition, led by 83-year-old Etienne Tshisekedi, called for nationwide protests against President Kabila after the Commission électorale nationale indépendante (CENI)stated that elections would not be held until 2017. This delay in holding the election resulted in President Kabila remaining in power. Tshisekedi called for protests and condemned President Kabila’s abuse of power, speaking on the need for nonviolent action he said, “…the people to [sic] mobilize as one to stop this umpteenth abuse of authority by observing a dead city strike this Tuesday August 23.” After Edem Kodjo, the former Premier Of Togo, was asked to step in as a mediator between Rassemblement and President Kabila’s administration, the African Union (AU) called for a meeting between the opposition and President Kabila to discuss his removal from office and for fair elections to be held. The opposition stated they would only agree on the conditions if Kodjo stepped down as mediator and the government released all political prisoners. Through sustained protests led by Rassemblement, security forces killed nearly 50 protestors on 19 September 2016 who were marching peacefully and holding signs decrying the Kabila regime. The government claimed that security forces only killed 17 protesters, as well as one police officer. In light of the deaths and security force crackdown on protests, opposition leaders from Rassemblement spoke out against the violence and committed themselves to further protests and action against the government. “We will keep up the pressure … and announce more street actions and more demonstrations until Mr. Kabila is removed from office,” Martin Fayulu, a parliamentarian and leader of an opposition party, told The Guardian. “[Taking to] the street is a right of popular expression in the face of a power that cannot be heard or seen,” said Ève Bazaïba, another major opposition politician. On 28 September, the United States placed economic sanctions on Kabila personnel in response to the deaths of protestors on 19 September. The initial stage of sanctions targeted senior officials, including Major General Amisi Kumba and John Numbi, a former senior police official responsible for severe crackdowns on protestors. The Kabila administration delayed elections until April 2018. Rassemblement called for more protests and a “dead city” strike, which resulted in protestors remaining in their homes, leaving the city of Kinshasa empty aside from security forces personnel. “The people will take over,” said Tshisekedi. “Kabila has performed a coup d’état against himself by signing that agreement [to delay elections], because he made an oath to protect the constitution.” said Valentin Mubake, Tshisekedi’s political adviser. Mubake continued stating, civil war was “a predictable consequence” of the government’s delaying tactics. “We’ve decided we’ll just keep going. If they kill us, well, we’re ready to die, and those behind us will come up in our place,” said Kalala Tshinyama, a resident of Kinshasa. “Mobutu killed people, but he didn’t finish all of us off. Kabila won’t kill all of us either.” In a presidential decree read on state television on 17 November, President Kabila announced that opposition leader Samy Badibanga would serve as the country’s next Prime Minister  following a deal for a transition of power between Rassemblement and the Kabila regime aimed at calming political tensions. On 12 December, the EU placed additional sanctions on seven senior Kabila administration officials for use of disproportionate force on civilian protestors. The Kabila administration announced a social media blackout on 15 December 2016, presumably to prevent further protests by the public; however, they did not provide a reason for this decision. Ignoring the blackout, Rassemblement organized another protest on 18 December, where security forces killed nearly 40 protestos. With increasing turmoil and further protests, President Kabila’s administration and the Rassemblement bloc came to an agreement on 31 December, which confirmed elections would happen in late 2017. In the meantime, President Kabila  appointed a Prime Minister from the opposition. This decision quelled protests as the government began to direct logistics and plan the upcoming election. On 1 February 2017, Tshisekedi passed away, setting up the country for more turmoil as there was no real leader able to take on the mantle to unify the opposition. His son, Felix, became the next leader of the opposition. On 15 February, the budget minister, Pierre Kangudia, stated that the government lacked the necessary funds to hold the election that year. At that point, the US and other European countries expected to partially fund the elections. Rassemblement called for a general strike on 3 April, which led to an empty city and massive economic losses. “The people’s response to our ‘dead cities’ call shows they do not support the President,” said Augustin Kabuya, a spokesman for UDPS, the largest opposition party. “We hope the president is listening to the people and does what is right.” President Kabila and his administration further intensified the conflict by banning any and all political protests and increasing security forces on the streets. Soon after the strike, President Kabila named Bruno Tshibala Prime Minister. [source: nv-database]

Key people & organizations

  • Moise Katumbi Etienne Tshisekedi Felix Tshisekedi* Martin Fayulu Samy Badibanga Bruno Tshibala
  • “Rassemblement” Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS), Forces of Union and Solidarity (FONUS), Lumumbist Progressive Movement (MLP)

Outcome

Verdict: partial.

GNVAD scoring: 3 out of 6 points Survival 0.5 out of 1 points Growth 1 out of 3 points Total points 4.5 out of 10 points [source: nv-database]

Felix Tshisekedi was elected president but he actually had turned into a puppet of Former President Kabila [source: nv-database]

Lessons

  • Sustained nonviolent action by organised workers or citizens can extract concessions from entrenched political or economic opponents. [source: nv-database]
  • Internal organising across multiple sites or sectors amplifies pressure on a single opponent. [source: nv-database]
  • External solidarity — regional, transnational, or movement-led — broadens a campaign’s reach and durability. [source: nv-database]

Sources

Disclaimer: Included as a teaching example of campaign craft, not as endorsement.

Sources & verification

  • nv-database — grounding: primary — license: link-only (CC-BY-NC-ND-3.0)
  • Verified 2026-07-04 against RAW/congolese-protest-end-president-kabilas-presidency-2016-2019.md.

Last verified: 2026-07-09