[{"command":"settings","settings":{"pluralDelimiter":"\u0003","suppressDeprecationErrors":true,"ajaxPageState":{"libraries":"core\/picturefill,entity_embed\/caption,views\/views.ajax,views\/views.module","theme":"hrw_design","theme_token":null},"ajaxTrustedUrl":[],"views":{"ajax_path":"\/views\/ajax","ajaxViews":{"views_dom_id:blog_live_feed__blog_body_block__299640__en":{"view_name":"blog_live_feed","view_display_id":"blog_body_block","view_args":"299640","view_path":"\/blog\/content\/299640","view_base_path":null,"view_dom_id":"blog_live_feed__blog_body_block__299640__en","pager_element":0}}},"user":{"uid":0,"permissionsHash":"0ae5601d8790ff50fca3cf23b9ac9170285f2f75823ebdc8d9cc054bc03a679b"}},"merge":true},{"command":"add_css","data":"\u003Clink rel=\u0022stylesheet\u0022 media=\u0022all\u0022 href=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/css\/css_reI-6YIYy-k9pvxm-gaCRrn5cSrTZRtyAMrp4YXDUJw.css\u0022 \/\u003E\n"},{"command":"add_js","selector":"body","data":[{"src":"\/sites\/default\/files\/js\/js_VkK39bvB4H6LLVemwPFz8QWcUMTFqZ3FFo_LBVv_4vs.js"}]},{"command":"insert","method":"replaceWith","selector":".js-view-dom-id-blog_live_feed__blog_body_block__299640__en","data":"\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-view-dom-id-blog_live_feed__blog_body_block__299640__en\u0022\u003E\n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n\n \u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Cdiv class=\u0022blog-block__content__description rich-text pt-6 mb:pt-10 mx-auto\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHundreds of Congolese gathered in Kinshasa\u2019s Limete neighborhood after news broke last night that the Democratic Republic of Congo\u2019s long-time opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi passed away on Wednesday in Brussels. He had left Congo last week for medical treatment.\u003C\/p\u003E\u0026#13;\n\u0026#13;\n\u003Cp\u003EPolice deployed to control the crowds outside Tshisekedi\u2019s home and the headquarters of his party, the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS). Things grew tense, with protesters throwing rocks and shouting slurs against President Joseph Kabila; police responded with rounds of teargas. But grief and sadness were also palpable. Many of those gathered were in tears, others wrote messages for Tshisekedi\u2019s family in a book of condolences; some wondered aloud what Tshisekedi\u2019s death meant for the ongoing Catholic Church-mediated dialogue and Tshisekedi\u2019s struggle for democracy and the rule of law in Congo. Congolese leaders and citizens of all political stripes, as well as foreign dignitaries paid tribute to Tshisekedi.\u003C\/p\u003E\u0026#13;\n\u0026#13;\n\u003Cdiv class=\u0022embed\u0022 data-type=\u0022image\u0022\u003E\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\u003Cdiv class=\u0022embed align-right embedded-entity embedded-entity-type-media embedded-entity-bundle-image embedded-entity-viewmode-embeddable embed--right\u0022\u003E\n \n\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \n \n\n\n\n\u003Cfigure class=\u0022figure figure--expand text-center\u0022\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022figure__media relative inline-block mx-auto\u0022\u003E\n \u003Ca href=\u0022\/modal\/30894\u0022 rel=\u0022modal:open\u0022 class=\u0022figure__link\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cimg srcset=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/480w\/public\/multimedia_images_2017\/2017-02-drc-gongo-africa-tshisekedi.jpg?itok=GCwd6k_Z 480w, \/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/embed_xxl\/public\/multimedia_images_2017\/2017-02-drc-gongo-africa-tshisekedi.jpg?itok=mctWZbRf 850w\u0022 sizes=\u0022(max-width: 524px) 100px, 500px\u0022 data-responsive-image-style=\u0022embedded_images\u0022 src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/embed_xxl\/public\/multimedia_images_2017\/2017-02-drc-gongo-africa-tshisekedi.jpg?itok=mctWZbRf\u0022 width=\u0022850\u0022 height=\u0022545\u0022 alt=\u0022Congolese opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi attends a political rally in the Democratic Republic of Congo\u0027s capital Kinshasa, July 31, 2016. \u0022 loading=\u0022lazy\u0022 typeof=\u0022foaf:Image\u0022 \/\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022figure__expand absolute block bottom-0 right-0 w-8 h-8 bg-white text-gray-700\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022sr-only\u0022\u003EClick to expand Image\u003C\/span\u003E\n \n\n\n\n\u003Cdiv class=\u0022icon fill-current w-full inline-block\u0022\u003E\n \u003Csvg viewbox=\u00220 0 20 20\u0022 fill=\u0022currentColor\u0022 role=\u0022img\u0022 focusable=\u0022false\u0022 aria-hidden=\u0022true\u0022\u003E\u003Cuse xlink:href=\u0022\/themes\/custom\/hrw_design\/dist\/app-drupal\/assets\/spritemap.svg?cacheBuster=#sprite-expand\u0022\u003E\u003C\/use\u003E\u003C\/svg\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n \u003C\/a\u003E\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n \u003Cfigcaption class=\u0022figure__info text-left font-serif text-xs md:text-sm lg:text-base mx-auto text-gray-700 mt-1\u0022\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022figure__caption\u0022\u003ECongolese opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi attends a political rally in the Democratic Republic of Congo\u0027s capital Kinshasa, July 31, 2016.\u00a0\n\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022figure__credit\u0022\u003E\u00a9 2016 Reuters\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003C\/figcaption\u003E\u003C\/figure\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\u0026#13;\n\u0026#13;\n\u003Cp\u003EKnown as the \u201cSphinx of Limete,\u201d Tshisekedi had become a symbol of peaceful resistance and fighter in the struggle for democracy in Congo. He was one of the rare Congolese politicians who had consistently been on the side of the opposition for the past three decades, leading peaceful resistance first against the dictator Mobutu Sese Seko before taking on President Laurent Kabila and then his son and the current president, Joseph Kabila. Following the 2011 presidential elections, marred by allegations of widespread fraud and brutal repression, many Congolese believed that Tshisekedi was the real winner even though the official results put him in second place with 32 per cent of the vote. Tshisekedi never officially recognized Kabila\u2019s victory.\u00a0\u003C\/p\u003E\u0026#13;\n\u0026#13;\n\u003Cp\u003ETshisekedi was also one of the few \u2013 if not the only \u2013 Congolese political leaders who could mobilize people to the streets. When he returned to Kinshasa last July, following two years abroad for medical treatment, hundreds of thousands gathered to catch a glimpse of him and hear him speak. Despite his age and deteriorating health, it\u2019s largely thanks to Tshisekedi\u2019s leadership and his willingness to ally with others that the opposition remained somewhat, and unusually, united in their 2016 struggle to resist attempts by Joseph Kabila to extend his presidency beyond the constitutionally mandated two-term limit, which ended on December 19, 2016.\u00a0\u003C\/p\u003E\u0026#13;\n\u0026#13;\n\u003Cp\u003EThe Catholic Church-mediated dialogue late last year gained its legitimacy in large part due to Tshisekedi\u2019s blessing and the participation of his UDPS political party and the Rassemblement opposition coalition he presided over. This led to the signing of a deal on New Year\u2019s Eve, which defused a potentially explosive situation and ostensibly set the country on the path toward elections in December 2017 and the country\u2019s first democratic transition of power. But implementation of the deal has been painfully slow, raising doubts whether Kabila and those loyal to him are really committed to organizing elections.\u003C\/p\u003E\u0026#13;\n\u0026#13;\n\u003Cp\u003ETshisekedi was due to lead a council to oversee implementation of the deal and the organization of elections. It\u2019s now hard to imagine who will fill this void, and it remains to be seen whether the opposition will be able to maintain enough unity and legitimacy to see the deal through and maintain the pressure on Kabila.\u003C\/p\u003E\u0026#13;\n\u0026#13;\n\u003Cp\u003ECongo\u2019s political leaders would perhaps pay the best homage to Etienne Tshisekedi by putting the interests of the country first and working together to fulfill his long-time dream of a truly peaceful and democratic political transition.\u003C\/p\u003E\u0026#13;\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n\u003C\/div\u003E\n","settings":null}]