Via The New York Times: Rioters in Congo Storm an Ebola Center as Political Unrest Grows. Excerpt:
Protesters stormed an Ebola triage center in the volatile eastern region of Congo on Thursday and set fire to parts of it in a new wave of violent political unrest, aggravated by delays in a long-anticipated election.
The violence erupted a day after the electoral commission excluded Beni and another eastern city, Butembo, from the elections set for this Sunday. Both cities are hot spots in the region’s Ebola crisis and the commission blamed the outbreak in announcing the exclusion. The town of Yumbi was also excluded, but ostensibly because of violence, not Ebola.
All three areas are opposition strongholds, raising questions about whether the exclusions are politically motivated.
Twenty one people were missing from the transit center in the city of Beni after the attack, a Ministry of Health spokesman said. The center houses patients whose Ebola cases are not yet confirmed before they are sent to a different location to be treated. Four of the missing were still awaiting test results, while the other 17 had tested negative.
The election delays have only added to the turmoil in a region already suffering from an Ebola outbreak and chronic insecurity involving no fewer than a hundred armed groups. The landmark vote has already been delayed by two years and was supposed to have been held last Sunday. But it was pushed back again by one week.
The election would, at least on paper, see the end of President Joseph Kabila’s 17-year rule. Earlier this month, Mr. Kabila left open the possibility of returning to the presidency down the road.
Most Congolese are impatient for a change in leadership. Mr. Kabila had a promising start after succeeding his father, who was assassinated in 2001, inviting foreign companies to invest in minerals like copper and cobalt and helping the economy grow during his tenure. Still, for a country with a wealth of natural resources, little of the profits filtered down to ordinary people.
The election delays have triggered violent protests over the past week and security forces have responded by firing tear gas and live ammunition into crowds. Protesters burned parts of the Ebola triage center in Beni and looted it, walking off with chairs and tables, according to the Ministry of Health.
