Tellingly, though, their respective political parties were involved in the political protests even as tension escalated in other Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries. These include Lesotho, Burundi and DR Congo, all of which have gone through their own prolonged political crises. With his refusal to hold elections expected in 2016 prompting numerous protests, DR Congo has together with Lesotho and Madagascar for some time been viewed as potential tinderboxes. OPPRESSIONNot surprisingly, in December last year, the United Nations Security Council noted that “political tensions have been exacerbated by the DRC government’s curbing of political freedoms of the opposition”. Regarding Burundi, since early 2015 the country has experienced political instability marked by violent clashes between government and opposition forces.

Source: Daily Nation April 28, 2018 20:37 UTC