My name is Jean De Dieu Mulikuza. i work with Agir pour l’accès aux droits de l’homme (ADH: action for access to Human rights) in DRC. As a result of having denounced the injustices of the Congolese state by taking legal action at the Bukavu Regional Court against the national electricity company (SNEL) for overcharging for electricity in the provinces of South Kivu and North Kivu (under the number RC 7206), i was the victim of death threats from officials and agents of this Congolese state-run company, as well as from the security services.
SNEL has about 45,000 clients across these two provinces in the East of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). the breach of the law being condemned here relates to the fact that SNEL customers in South and North Kivu pay seven times more than customers in other provinces such as Kinshasa, Katanga, Bas-Congo, Bandundu and the two Kasaï provinces. Indeed, 1 kwh costs 83 Congolese francs in the east of the DRC, whereas in the west and in Katanga, it costs only 12 Congolese francs.
Just as a reminder, as I was going home on 18 October 2008 approaching 9.30pm, I was followed to within a kilometre of my house by people in a car who I did not recognise. 20 metres from my house I decided to let them pass, as had I continued on the same path I would have found myself in a cul-de-sac. Having gone past me, they stopped ahead. as they were getting out of their car, another car appeared from the opposite direction which allowed me to quickly turn back and spend the night at a friend’s.
Some time later, three other people who I again did not know came to see me individually. the first told me he had been at a meeting where some SNEL officials were planning to attack me, because the legal action I had taken had the aim to incite a revolt of the 45,000 SNEL customers in South and North Kivu. the two others came specifically to tell me to renounce my legal action against SNEL, and that refusing to do so would be seriously dangerous. But human rights organisations who are members of the network for the protection of victims, witnesses and human rights defenders (Viwine) as well as the human rights section of MONUSCO (United Nations Mission for the Stabilisation of Congo) went to meet the suspected perpetrators of the threats against me to dissuade them.
A press release was also issued at the time.
To finish, I want to point out that in view of the insecure circumstances in which human rights defenders in the east of the DRC find themselves, I personally try to take the necessary precautions, making sure that I do not go out late at night and if, once in a while it is necessary, somebody is there to accompany me.
It should also be added that the legal action that was begun continues, with the aim of exhausting all domestic remedies. and as a result, an annulment of the judgement RCA 4081 rendered before the Supreme Court of Justice still needs to be obtained, before, if necessary bringing it before the African Commission for Human and Peoples’ Rights.
I personally try to take the necessary precautions, making sure that I do not go out late at night and if, once in a while it is necessary, somebody is there to accompany me.
