On 24 August 2010, human rights defender, Mr Sylvestre Bwira Kyahi was abducted by gunmen in the town of Goma in North Kivu province.

Further Information

Sylvester Bwira Kyahi is the chairman of the Civil Society of Masisi, in the North Kivu region of the DRC.

Sylvestre Bwira Kyahi was kidnapped on 24 August between 1.00 and 2.00pm while en route to the Goma office of the NGO Solidarité pour la promotion sociale et la paix (Solidarity for Social Promotion and Peace, SOPROP). A witness reported that Sylvestre Bwira Kyahi was stopped by a grey Challenger vehicle with tinted windows, before two armed men in military uniform got out of the vehicle and a heated debate took place. It is believed that these men were members of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) and were responsible for the kidnapping. Worried that he had not arrived to the meeting, members of SOPROP attempted to contact Sylvestre Bwira Kyahi by phone after 2.00pm, without success.

It is believed that the abduction of Sylvestre Bwira Kyahi may be related to the publication of an open letter to the President of the DRC, denouncing human rights violations perpetrated in Masisi by members of FARDC and the National Congress for People's Defence (CNDP). The letter, signed by fifty human rights defenders and initiatied by Sylvestre Bwira Kyahi, demanded the removal of CNDP members who have committed serious human rights violations, some of whom are subject to arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court, such as General Bosco Ntanganda. The letter also denounced the existence of a parallel administration organised by members of the CNDP in Masisi territory.

Following the publication of the letter, Sylvestre Bwira Kyahi along with several other signatories, received death threats and were visited at their homes by security service agents. Amongst other incidents, Sylvestre Bwira Kyahi reportedly received telephone threats from a man identifying himself as Colonel Janvier and as working within the Amani Leo operation. On the day of his abduction, Sylvestre Bwira Kyahi was organizing his temporary relocation to a more secure place. Following the alert launched by his colleagues, the provincial authorities met and discussed the case on 25 August.

Front Line remains deeply concerned for the safety of Sylvestre Bwira Kyahi and considers that his abduction is directly related to his legitimate work in the defence of human rights.