; Whereas, on November 5, 2017, the Congolese electoral commission released a calendar that would delay elections until at least December 23, 2018, while noting numerous constraints that could impact respect of this calendar; Whereas the failure to hold constitutionally required elections has increased political uncertainty, violence, and instability inside the DRC, and the United Nations Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator said that amid the political stalemate, conflict is rapidly spreading across the country and in appalling ways, even in a country blighted by violence and insecurity for decades ; Whereas political space in the DRC continues to be heavily restricted, as evidenced by arrests and detention of members of the political opposition, democratic activists, and journalists, and by restrictions on fundamental freedoms such as speech and assembly; and Whereas opposition have been targeted, arrested, harassed, and violently attacked by security forces: Now, therefore, be it