Kinshasa, May 4th, 2026 (CPA).- Several voices were raised on Monday calling for the “immediate and unconditional arrest” of Joseph Kabila, during a march organised by the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS), the ruling party in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), to support US sanctions against the former president. “We have organised this large peaceful march to show the world that the Congolese people stand behind President Felix Tshisekedi and support US sanctions against Joseph Kabila. The decisions taken by the Trump administration are vital for the Congolese people.
We call on the US president to go further by ordering the arrest of Joseph Kabila,” has declared Augustin Kabuya, general secretary and acting president of the UDPS, following the march. At the end of this march organised in the Congolese capital in support of US sanctions against former President Joseph Kabila, the UDPS general secretary has addressed the activists gathered on the esplanade of the People’s Palace in Lingwala, in the centre of the capital, before forming a delegation to deliver the memorandum to the US Embassy in DRC. These demands have also been strongly supported by demonstrators on the ground, who have also expressed their desire to see sanctions imposed on Paul Kagame, the Rwandan president, whom they accuse of supporting, alongside Joseph Kabila, the rebellion active in the east of the country.
Following this address to the crowd, a group of prominent figures present at the march went to the US Embassy in Kinshasa, led by Augustin Kabuya, to submit the memorandum of thanks addressed to the US administration.
Several party officials and activists have welcomed these sanctions
Augustin Kabuya, addressing the crowd on the esplanade of the People’s Palace
At the scene, several party officials and activists have spoken out in support of these sanctions; some political leaders have also praised the public mobilisation. “I am pleased with the mobilisation of our people, who have taken to the streets en masse to show their support for the diplomatic action of the President of the Republic. We have managed to save our country through diplomacy alone, and this is a historic achievement that deserves to be celebrated; the leader must be supported,” has declared Peter Kazadi, a senior member of the UDPS and former Deputy Prime Minister in charge of the Interior. The march organisers have, for their part, emphasised the need to strengthen these sanctions.
“This memorandum is to thank President Donald Trump, the President of the United States, and his administration for the measures taken against Joseph Kabila, the former President of the Republic, who has now become a rebel and is standing alongside the M23. We will not only thank him, but ask him not to stop there, but for these sanctions to continue against all those involved in this affair, in particular the Rwandan president, who should be severely sanctioned,” has argued Augu Kabinda, a member of the UDPS.“The reason for our demonstration today is to encourage US sanctions against the rebellion. They have robbed us of 18 years of power here and they have stolen all our wealth.
That is why today we are marching to support US sanctions against this band of thugs,” has declared Edouard Muamba, burgomaster of Ngiri-Ngiri, a municipality in central Kinshasa. Through this mobilisation, the activists from the main pro-government party aim to keep up the pressure on the international community to tighten sanctions against those they accuse of “destabilising DRC”.