Congo security forces break up protest over Tshisekedi third-term fears

Security forces used tear gas and live ammunition to break up a protest outside Congo’s parliament in Kinshasa, a crackdown that opposition leaders saw as an early test of how far the authorities would go to push through constitutional change. The confrontation outside the Palais du Peuple came as Felix Tshisekedi’s critics warned that a referendum path could erase the presidential term limits that now bar him from seeking a third elected term.

The pressure has been building since the National Assembly passed a bill on June 9 to organize referendums, a vote that took place after opposition lawmakers boycotted parliament for weeks. Article 220 of the 2006 constitution forbids changes to the number and length of presidential terms, but Tshisekedi has signaled he is willing to test that limit. In early May, he said, “If the people want me to have a third term, I will accept.” He is 62, has been in power since 2019, and his UDPS party has already launched a public campaign in favor of constitutional review.

By dawn on Friday, police, army personnel and militants aligned with Tshisekedi’s party were deployed around parliament to block the sit-in organized by Coalition Article 64, a broad opposition alliance that includes Martin Fayulu and Moise Katumbi. Witnesses and local residents said the protest turned violent when tear gas was fired and shots rang out. Opposition figures said several people were hurt, including Delly Sesanga, whose team said he was shot in the leg. A police official at the scene said officers had acted to restore order, while the government did not immediately answer questions about whether live rounds had been used.

The clash sharpened a fight that opposition leaders have described as a constitutional coup. They have invoked Article 64, which calls on Congolese people to resist unconstitutional power, as the country’s main legal and political shield against a referendum they say is designed to unlock term-limit revisions by another route. Claudel-André Lubaya said no popular will can justify violating the constitution’s letter and spirit, while Katumbi argued that “the constitution should not be a shirt to be changed at will.”

The standoff is unfolding as eastern Congo remains unstable, with M23 rebels seizing Goma, Bukavu and Uvira, and as an Ebola outbreak strains state attention and capacity. The U.S. Embassy in Kinshasa had already warned on June 2 that opposition parties were calling a general strike for June 3 and that a pro-change demonstration was planned for June 5. With the referendum fight now on the streets, Congo’s institutions face an early test of whether they can withstand a bid to rewrite the rules before Tshisekedi’s second and constitutionally final term expires in 2028.