US and British citizens among 37 sentenced to death in DR Congo coup trial
Thirty-seven individuals, including three Americans, a Briton, a Belgian, and a Canadian, have been sentenced to death in connection with an attempted coup against the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The accused were charged with orchestrating an assault on both the presidential palace and the residence of a close ally of President Félix Tshisekedi in May.
Christian Malanga, a US citizen of Congolese descent and alleged leader of the plot, was killed during the attack along with five others.
A total of 51 people were tried in a military court, with proceedings broadcast on national television and radio.
Marcel Malanga, Christian’s son and one of the US citizens sentenced, testified that his father had threatened him to ensure his participation. His friend, Tyler Thompson, who was also sentenced to death, had previously played football with Marcel in Utah. Miranda Thompson, Tyler’s stepmother, expressed to the BBC in June that the family had “zero idea” of how he ended up in DR Congo, saying, “We were in complete shock as to what was happening, and the unknown. Everything we were learning was what we were getting off Google.”
The third American, Benjamin Zalman-Polun, was involved in business with Christian Malanga.
Jean-Jacques Wondo, a dual Congolese and Belgian citizen, was also sentenced to death. Human Rights Watch had previously described Wondo as a notable researcher on regional politics and security, suggesting the evidence linking him to the coup attempt was tenuous.
The AFP news agency reports that the Briton and Canadian were of Congolese origin. The court noted that Youssouf Ezangi, the British national, had assisted in recruiting some of the other conspirators.
Of the 51 tried, 14 people were acquitted and freed, with the court finding they had no connection to the attack.
Those convicted have five days to appeal against their sentences.
Death sentences have not been carried out in DR Congo for roughly two decades – convicts who receive the penalty serve life imprisonment instead.
The government lifted this moratorium in March this year, citing the need to remove “traitors” from the nation’s dysfunctional army. However, no death penalties have been carried out since.
The attempted coup began in the capital, Kinshasa, in the early hours of 19 May. Armed men first attacked parliamentary speaker Vital Kamerhe’s home in Kinshasa then headed to the president’s official residence.
Witnesses say a group of about 20 assailants in army uniform attacked the palace and an exchange of gunfire followed.
An army spokesman later announced on national TV that security forces had stopped “an attempted coup d’etat”.
Local media reports said the assailants were members of the New Zaire Movement linked to Malanga, an exiled DR Congolese politician.
Malanga was shot dead in the attack after resisting arrest, said army spokesperson Brig Gen Sylavin Ekenge.
President Tshisekedi was re-elected for a second term in disputed elections last year in December. He won about 78% of the vote.
DR Congo is a country with vast mineral wealth and a huge population. Despite this, life is difficult for many people, with conflict, corruption and poor governance persisting.
Much of the country’s natural resources lie in the east where violence still rages despite Mr Tshisekedi’s attempts to deal with the situation by imposing a state of siege, ceasefire deals and bringing in troops from neighbouring countries.
