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‘I will never get such a good friend again’

Joshua French, the Norwegian who found his jail-mate Tjostolv Moland dead on Sunday, has paid moving tribute to his friend in an interview with Norway's Dagbladet newspaper.

Published: 21 August 2013 07:01 CEST
'I will never get such a good friend again'
Joshua French (left) and Tjostolf Moland (right) stand in court at their appeal in 2010 - Heiko Junge Scanpix
 
"He's been my best friend, and I will never get such a good friend again," he told Dagbladet newspaper from the yard of his prison in Kinshasa. "I do not think it is possible to know anyone better than we did." 
 
The 31-year-old, who has joint British and Norwegian citizenship, has been moved to a large shared cell with ten other prisoners since finding Moland dead in the cell they shared on Sunday. 
 
"I have not had time to mourn, for I have not been alone for one minute," he told the paper. "They dare not leave me alone." 
 
The two soldiers, who were in the Democratic Republic of Congo to set themselves up as security contractors, were found guilty in September 2009 of murdering their driver Abedi Kasongo. 
 
French said that Africa had brought out the best in his friend.  
 
"I have so many good things to say about Tjostolf. Africa was definitely his element. He was an adventurer, a tough guy, and a very intelligent guy." 
 
French said he feared that he would now be blamed for the death. 
 
"Of course I'm under investigation," he said. "There were two men locked in a cell and is now one is dead. It's quite natural." 
 
Experts from Kripos, Norway's specialist criminal investigation service, are flying to Kinshasa to witness the autopsy of Moland's body. 
 
Major Flory Kadimba, a senior officer at the prison, on Wednesday told VG that Moland had been in good shape just the day before he died.
 
"He was out running in the yard the day before. He was fine, and no indication that there was anything wrong," he said. 

 
Meanwhile diplomats are negotiating both to be able to take the body home to be buried, and to secure French's transfer back to Norway. 
 
"Our highest priority, after the tragedy that happened to Moland, is to get French home," Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide told VG. "Whether in the form of a prison transfer or a pardon, and preferably the latter." 
 
A letter sent by Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg to Congo's President Joseph Kabila in February 2012 requesting his "prompt assistance…to bring to an end this deplorable affair" has yet to be answered 18 months later. 

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FIRE

Police arrest 30 protesters after Congo riot causes fire

Paris police arrested dozens of protesters on Friday who burnt scooters and bins outside a concert venue hosting a Congolese singer they accuse of giving a voice to the Kinshasa regime.

Published: 29 February 2020 11:07 CET
Police arrest 30 protesters after Congo riot causes fire
Gare de Lyon train station was partially evacuated. Photo: Julien Claus/AFP
The nearby Gare de Lyon train station was partially evacuated during the chaos and police warned Parisians to stay away as a thick, black column of smoke billowed over the city centre.
   
Authorities had banned protests around the concert by singer Fally Ipupa at the AccorHotels Arena in the capital but dozens turned out in anger nevertheless, facing off with the artist's fans and trading insults.
   
“With their music, they (the Congolese government) are bringing an entire people to their side while they slaughter and rape women and children,” opponent Willy Dendebe told AFP at the scene.
   
“I have been here (in France) for 30 years because of them! Thirty years and we let them be here in France as if nothing has happened. So yes, we are angry!”
   
Police said 30 people were arrested and 54 fined for participating in a banned protest, while train traffic was severely disrupted.   
 
On Twitter, Paris police denounced the “unacceptable violence” and posted a video of what it said was “scandalous behaviour” by protesters shown wielding large roadworks barriers to prevent firefighters from getting to the flames.
   
Outside the station, AFP witnessed a dozen firetrucks at work amid the smouldering wrecks of about 30 vehicles, mainly scooters. Interior Minister Christophe Castaner condemned the violence and damage caused in the area, while National Assembly member Eric Ciotti described the events as an “unacceptable urban riot”.
   
Far-right National Rally leader Marine Le Pen called the demonstrators “scum” on Twitter and asked: “What image does our country give to the world?
 
'It's a shame'
 
Congolese expats regularly speak out against artists from home who perform in France or Belgium, accusing them of being close to former DR Congo president Joseph Kabila and his successor Felix Tshisekedi.
   
Tshisekedi took office in January 2019, succeeding President Joseph Kabila, who stepped down after 18 iron-fisted years at the helm. Many see Tshisekedi as an extension of his predecessor.
   
Last month, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said the Congolese army and other state agents committed rights violations in the conflict-wracked central African country.
   
Just days earlier, Amnesty International delivered a damning assessment of Tshisekedi's government, saying “insecurity and impunity continue to threaten human rights progress” in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
   
Lwangi Bienvenu, an Ipupa fan who travelled from Belgium for the concert, observed the chaos from his hotel near the Gare de Lyon.   
 
“It's a shame. He's Congolese, we should all be behind him,” Bienvenu said of the singer. “People will talk about the bad inside us. They put people in danger and they will now surely cancel the concert.”
   
Paris has had its share of violent demonstrations in recent months with protesters ranging from the anti-government “yellow vests” movement to workers striking against pension reform setting fire to public property and smashing store windows during several marches, and clashing with police.
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