“Road Courtesy” in Kinshasa and Lubumbashi: A Political Tool to Maintain Public Order

Abstract

Road courtesy is traditionally based upon rules of civility between drivers or road users. This is not the case in cities of the Democratic Republic of Congo, however, where road courtesy refers to periods when, in an attempt to combat corruption and harassment, the public authorities prohibit police officers from stopping drivers in their vehicles. Contrary to what is often found in the literature, this article shows that “petty corruption” generates a certain social order in Kinshasa and Lubumbashi; the public authorities would do well to turn a blind eye to such practices, intervening solely when public order is threatened by a breakdown of relations between police and road users.