A senior politician in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been beaten to death after urging residents to take precautions against Ebola during a radio programme, his party said on Monday, as violence against health workers and officials intensifies amid the country’s deadly outbreak.
Marie-Celestin Karondwa, acting president of the ruling Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) party’s federal executive committee in Butembo, was attacked on Sunday by residents of his neighbourhood in North Kivu province.
According to a statement from the party’s Butembo federation, Karondwa was assaulted after appearing on a radio programme in which he promoted measures to prevent the spread of Ebola.
The attackers beat him, looted his belongings and set his house on fire, the party said. Karondwa later died from his injuries.
The party described him as an innocent victim who had defended its position on the existence of Ebola and the threat the disease poses to the population.
The identities of the attackers, their number and their motives remain unclear. The mayor of Butembo did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Butembo has emerged as a hotspot in Congo’s ongoing Ebola outbreak, which has been accompanied by attacks on health workers and disease prevention facilities amid persistent public mistrust.
The killing follows another deadly attack on Saturday, when armed men targeted a hand-washing checkpoint in nearby Beni territory.
At least one person was killed and several others wounded in that incident, according to a local civil society group.
The violence comes as Congo struggles to contain an Ebola outbreak that has already claimed thousands of lives.
Government figures released on Monday showed that the outbreak, declared on May 15, had infected 8,067 people and killed 3,901.
The latest figures underscore the scale of the health emergency as attacks on prevention facilities and those promoting public health measures threaten efforts to bring the disease under control.
