Kabila denounces treason trial as political vendetta amid calls for death penalty

Former Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Joseph Kabila has broken his silence over the explosive treason trial against him, dismissing the proceedings as a “politically motivated” attempt to silence opposition voices and distract from President Félix Tshisekedi’s governance failures.
Kabila, who ruled the DRC from 2001 to 2019, is being tried in absentia before the High Military Court on charges including treason, crimes against humanity, rape, torture, and collusion with Rwanda-backed M23 rebels. Prosecutors allege Kabila masterminded the rebellion in eastern DRC and led its political wing, the Congo River Alliance. The military auditor general has requested the death penalty. “This trial has nothing to do with justice,” Kabila said in a statement, accusing Tshisekedi of weaponizing the legal system to deflect from corruption and instability, particularly in the mineral-rich Katanga province.
Kabila’s supporters have fiercely criticized the trial, calling it a threat to the rule of law. “Manipulating the identity of a former head of state, the son of a national hero, whose biological mother and siblings are alive, purely for political ends, is a crime of state,” said Néhémie Mwilanya, his former chief of staff. The former president, who returned briefly to Goma in May 2024, called for inclusive national dialogue, insisting that “reconciliation will come neither from partial agreements nor from selective trials.” A verdict from the High Military Court is expected within days.