DR Congo officials want to remove former President Joseph Kabila's legal protection after linking him to eastern rebels. Justice Minister Mutamba said Wednesday that they have papers, witness accounts, and facts connecting Kabila to M23 fighters who control parts of the mineral-rich east. Kabila, age 53, has denied these claims before but made no recent comment. He ran DR Congo for 18 years after his father, Laurent, died from gunshots in 2001. The military prosecutor asked senators to cancel his lifetime immunity status.
Kabila lives in South Africa but promised last month he would return to help solve the eastern conflict. His party denied reports that he visited Goma, a city that M23 fighters captured. The government banned his political party for its unclear stance toward the areas M23 occupies. Mutamba, who ordered officials to take Kabila's property, asked him to come back and defend himself. DR Congo and Rwanda, which say it does not support M23, might reach a peace deal soon after signing early papers in Washington.
Kabila lives in South Africa but promised last month he would return to help solve the eastern conflict. His party denied reports that he visited Goma, a city that M23 fighters captured. The government banned his political party for its unclear stance toward the areas M23 occupies. Mutamba, who ordered officials to take Kabila's property, asked him to come back and defend himself. DR Congo and Rwanda, which say it does not support M23, might reach a peace deal soon after signing early papers in Washington.
