BUTEMBO, Congo (AP) — Mourners gathered Wednesday to bury a Congolese politician who was beaten to death after publicly defending the government’s response to Ebola, a killing that highlights the mistrust health workers say is hampering efforts to slow the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history.
Marie-Célestin Karondwa, a local official with Congo’s ruling Union for Democracy and Social Progress party, was attacked Sunday at his home in Butembo, an Ebola hotspot in the eastern North Kivu province, after defending the government’s response efforts during a radio program, the party said.
“They beat him up and then set the house alight,” Sagesse Kavira, Karondwa’s granddaughter, told The Associated Press at his funeral on Wednesday. He later died from his injuries at a local hospital.
The killing follows a series of attacks on health workers and other responders as the Central African nation battles its 17th and deadliest Ebola outbreak, which has so far recorded over 8,000 cases including nearly 4,000 deaths.
Authorities this month launched a village-centered approach to fight the Ebola outbreak. But those efforts continue to face resistance from some residents who dismiss Ebola as a hoax amid a widespread distrust in the country’s government for various reasons, ranging from how it’s managed past Ebola outbreaks to chronic corruption.
Responders say skepticism about the disease has complicated efforts to work with residents, including in remote communities and emerging hot spots that already face shortages of medical supplies and healthcare workers.
The mistrust is particularly difficult to overcome in eastern Congo’s rebel-controlled territories, where decades of conflict with rebels as well as human rights abuses have left many residents wary of outsiders and state authorities.
The local politician killed in Butembo had been using the radio show to call on the public to obey response measures, particularly social distancing and handwashing, Jean-Baptiste Katsongo Lwatswa, first federal vice-president of UDPS in Butembo, told the AP.
“That is believed to have provoked the anger of certain young people,” he said.
Enoch Muhindo Balimatangi, a resident of Butembo, said there’s fear and mixed feelings about Ebola among locals. “Some say that the illness exists, while others refuse to accept that it does. That’s frightening!” he said.
A key challenge in slowing this particular outbreak is the absence of approved vaccines or treatments for the rare Bundibugyo virus that is causing it. Clinical trials for those are currently ongoing in Ituri province, the epicenter.
In its latest situation report, the World Health Organization warned the disease remains serious and there are “persistent challenges in timely case detection and access to early and adequate patient care.”
WHO has also said the outbreak continues to outpace efforts to track and slow it, and is on track to exceed the deadliest on record, West Africa’s regional outbreak between 2014 and 2016, which killed 11,000 people.
—-
Brennan reported from Dakar, Senegal. Justin Kabumba in Goma, Congo, contributed.
___
For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulse
___
The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.
Congolese politician is killed for defending Ebola efforts as mistrust complicates response 2026
IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2026 2026-09-30 21:27:54
Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
