Human rights violations in the Democratic Republic of Congo surged by 30 percent in 2016, spurred largely by a violent crackdown on protesters by state agents, according to a new United Nations report.

DRC crackdown graphic — © 2017 Human Rights Watch

In a report published this week, the UN joint human rights office documented a total of 5,190 human rights violations across Congo, an increase tied to election-related repression and increased activities of several armed groups.

State agents – particularly the national police – were responsible for almost 64 percent of all human rights violations documented in 2016, while armed groups were responsible for the remaining 36 percent. The number of violations committed by state agents jumped by more than 62 percent compared to 2015.

DRC killings graphic — © 2017 Human Rights Watch

The UN documented a total of 480 victims of extrajudicial killings by state agents, an increase of 63 percent compared to 2015. Many of these victims were shot dead by security forces during the violent crackdown on protests against efforts to extend President Joseph Kabila’s stay in power beyond the end of his constitutionally mandated two-term limit on December 19, 2016.

The number of violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms linked to the shrinking of democratic space in 2016 was more than four times higher than the total number of such violations documented in 2015, with the rights to public assembly, opinion, and expression at serious risk. Numerous media outlets and journalists were targeted and abused by government agents, while political opponents were prosecuted in politically motivated trials. The government also failed to mount credible investigations into documented violations, according to the report.

While the majority (66 percent) of all human rights violations documented occurred in the eastern part of the country, there was a notable increase in violations documented in the southern and western provinces, including due to the political repression across the country, the resurgence of inter-ethnic fighting between Twa and Luba in Tanganyika, and fighting between security forces and the Kamuina Nsapu militia in the Kasai provinces.