Mukwege Calls to Delay Referendum Until Conflicts in the East Ends

Denis Mukwege has opposed the idea of organizing a constitutional referendum in the Democratic Republic of Congo while conflict continues in North and South Kivu, directly linking his position to recent remarks made by President Félix Tshisekedi over the country’s 2028 elections.

According to an Actualite.cd report, the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize winner argued that if insecurity prevents national elections, it should also prevent any referendum process.

Speaking in an interview with Africanews, Mukwege referenced Tshisekedi’s May 6 press conference where the Congolese president warned that the country may not be able to organize elections in 2028 unless the war in eastern Congo ends.

Tshisekedi said instability in North Kivu and South Kivu made it impossible to guarantee a proper national vote, a position also highlighted in an earlier XTRAfrica report.

Mukwege argued that the same logic should apply to any attempt to amend the constitution through a referendum.

The debate comes amid growing political tensions over constitutional reform and the possibility of extending presidential eligibility beyond the current two-term limit established under the 2006 Constitution. Opposition figures and civil society actors have increasingly warned that discussions around institutional reform could deepen divisions while eastern provinces remain unstable.

Eastern DR Congo has remained affected by escalating violence involving the Rwanda-backed AFC/M23 rebellion, which expanded its territorial control earlier this year after capturing Goma and later Bukavu.

Mukwege also criticized Kinshasa’s developing partnership with the United States around strategic minerals, claiming that security improvements promised for eastern Congo have not yet materialized despite ongoing mineral cooperation.

President Tshisekedi has repeatedly said his priority remains ending the conflict and restoring stability before major electoral deadlines approach. During his May 6 briefing, he compared the Congolese situation to wartime Ukraine, arguing that elections cannot realistically be organized while parts of the country remain under armed threat.