Opposition in Zaire Vows to Defy Kabila’s Rally Ban

KINSHASA, Zaire — The new regime of self-proclaimed President Laurent Kabila seemed headed for collision Tuesday with members of the country’s radical opposition. Defying the government’s ban on political demonstrations, opponents of Kabila’s alliance vowed to stick to plans to hold one rally today and another Friday.

The marches have been called to protest Kabila’s exclusion from his new Cabinet of opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi, who has a huge core of support among Kinshasa’s 5 million people. “Kabila should respect the people’s wishes and include the candidates we want,” said Jerry Dikala, 25, a supporter who gathered with others outside Tshisekedi’s home. “Instead, he’s bringing in another dictatorship.”

The new government, which overthrew dictator Mobutu Sese Seko in a seven-month civil war, has taken a hard line, warning would-be protesters to respect the new law.

“We won’t allow anything which is not necessary,” said an obviously irritated Bizima Karaha, the new administration’s foreign minister. “There’s no need for marching, so why should people march?”

Karaha accused the opposition of trying to sabotage the country’s progress. “We cannot have democracy if there is no peace,” he said. “We cannot have development if there is no peace. So anybody who wants to create instability is an enemy of democracy, is an enemy of development, is an enemy of progressive forces.”

U.S. Reps. Tom Campbell (R-San Jose) and Donald M. Payne (D-New Jersey), visiting Tuesday to offer U.S. assistance in rebuilding Zaire--which Kabila has renamed the Democratic Republic of Congo--said Kabila’s government is justified in prohibiting rallies.

“I think the government has to be concerned about stability,” said Payne, a member of the House subcommittee on Africa. “I don’t think it’s unreasonable for the government to say at the present time, ‘We should have a suspension temporarily of demonstrations.’ ”

Since its conquest of Kinshasa on May 17, Kabila’s Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo-Zaire, or ADFL, has attracted many foes. The de facto president has alienated several would-be supporters. And many Kinshasans are disappointed that the man who liberated them from Mobutu has kept a low profile.

State radio has announced that Kabila, who has yet to address the nation, will be formally sworn in as head of state Thursday. He arrived in darkness last week from Lubumbashi in the country’s southeast, annoying hundreds who had lined up to witness and celebrate his victorious entry into the capital.

“If he continues this way, he will not last long,” said student and Tshisekedi supporter Annie-Patience Utumba, 24. “We are no longer the people who Mobutu led for 30 years. Our eyes are open. We are ready to get involved in deciding the future policies of this country.”

Alliance leaders explain that Kabila is being kept out of the public eye due to concern for his safety in the capital, where tension is thick and emotions run high. In addition, they say, his first national address is still being written.

Kabila is also being accused of including too many foreigners in his new Cabinet. Critics claim that Rwandans are influencing his policies.

“It seems as though he is not the one in charge,” said 25-year-old Cathy Ngoie Noushka. “It’s the Rwandans. Rumor has it that Bizima Karaha is [Rwandan Vice President] Paul Kagame’s nephew.”

Although the alliance has the support of Rwanda’s ethnic Tutsis, there is no overwhelming evidence that members of this ethnic group dominate Kabila’s regime. Tutsi-bashing is common here, where the group is widely hated.

Kabila’s administration is also criticized for its ban on political parties during what his government characterizes as a two-year transition period. The move has prompted many to dub his regime the “Third Dictatorship.”

Others contend that Kabila represents the “second coming of Mobutu.”