The family of Corneille Nangaa, the political coordinator of Congo River Alliance (AFC/M23), has accused DR Congo intelligence services of systematic persecution, arbitrary arrests, intimidation and forced exile targeting its members since late 2023.

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In a statement issued on Sunday, January 18 from Paris, the relatives of the Congolese former election chief-turned rebel leader said the campaign of repression has most recently been illustrated by the detention of Didier Ilaani Nangaa, who, according to the family, has been held for more than ten days in a cell of the National Intelligence Agency (ANR) in Isiro, Haut-Uele Province, "without valid reason or due judicial process.”

"The Nangaa family firmly denounces the persecutions and repressions it has suffered since the creation of the Alliance Fleuve Congo by one of its members, Corneille Nangaa Yobeluo,” Gabriel Nangaa, who claimed to be in exile in France, said in the statement.

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He said the family had raised these concerns with President Felix Tshisekedi in a letter in January 2024, denouncing persecutions, manhunts and systematic arrests. However, it said those efforts yielded no relief.

"Unfortunately, despite this initiative, the situation has only worsened,” he said, noting that several family members are currently detained in prisons as well as in ANR and military intelligence (DEMIAP) cells. At least four relatives have been sentenced to death since July 2024, Gabriel said.

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According to the statement, the denounced pressure has also taken the form of forced displacement and movement restrictions. Several dozen family members are said to be living in exile, while others are reportedly barred from leaving Isiro, the provincial capital of Haut-Uele.

The family said they were living in a state of fear.

"Summonses, arbitrary detentions in succession, intimidations, and threats aimed at subjecting all Nangaa to fear and terror have become commonplace,” the statement said.

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The statement highlights that even the residence of the family elder, Nangaa Bambitoyobei Joseph, an 86-year-old traditional chief of the Wadimbisa Chiefdom in Wamba Territory, has not been spared.

Against this backdrop, the Nangaa family appealed to the international community, human rights organisations and Congolese authorities to intervene. It called for "urgent measures to put an end to these persecutions and to guarantee the safety and fundamental rights” of its members.

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The family demanded the immediate and unconditional release of Didier Ilaani Nangaa, along with all other relatives it says are being held arbitrarily.

Corneille Nangaa, who was the head of DR Congo's electoral commission when President Tshisekedi took power in early 2019, became the leader of the AFC/M23 opposition alliance he helped create in December 2023.

The alliance, which has since taken control of major cities in eastern DR Congo, fights against ethnic discrimination and corruption that have rendered the vast country ungovernable.

Nangaa says Tshisekedi's leadership cannot bring peace to the country that counts more than 200 armed groups.