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CAR: Public Hearing on Bemba's Detention; News Coverage and Op-eds CAR: Public Hearing on Bemba's Detention; News Coverage and Op-eds

01 July 2009

Dear Colleagues,

Please find below information about recent developments related to the
International Criminal Court's investigation in the Central African Republic.
Specifically, this message includes recent media reports on the status of the
case, The Prosecutor v. Jean Pierre Bemba Gombo including the recent hearing in
the case held to discuss Bemba's detention.

On 15 June 2009, ICC Pre-Trial Chamber II confirmed two counts of crimes against
humanity (rape and murder) and three counts of war crimes (rape, murder and
pillaging) against Jean Pierre Bemba Gombo, sending his case to trial. The
crimes were allegedly committed in the Central African Republic (CAR) from 26
October 2002 to 15 March 2003. The Presidency will constitute a Trial Chamber to
be responsible for the conduct of trial proceedings. Before the start of the
trial, a number of preparatory hearings will be held.

Please take note of the Coalition's policy on situations before the ICC (below),
which explicitly states that the CICC will not take a position on potential and
current situations before the Court or situations under analysis. The Coalition,
however, will continue to provide the most up-to-date information about the ICC.

Best regards,
CICC Secretariat
[email protected]

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I. PUBLIC HEARING ON BEMBA'S DETENTION

i. "Public hearing on 29 June 2009 to examine Jean-Pierre Bemba's detention,"
ICC Media Advisory, 24 June 2009,
http://www.icc-cpi.int/NR/exeres/C468C19A-E12F-4934-9270-A6D7817C8BC4.htm

NB: This document has been produced by the ICC. The CICC Secretariat distributes
it as part of its mandate to keep member organizations and individuals informed
about developments related to the ICC. The document does not reflect the views
of the CICC as a whole or its individual members.

"... Pre-Trial Chamber II of the International Criminal Court will hold a public
hearing, on Monday 29 June 2009 at 14:00, in order to listen to the parties
before deciding on Mr Jean-Pierre Bemba's pre-trial detention, as provided by
the ICC Rules of Procedure and Evidence.

Pursuant to the rule 118(3), a hearing on the pre-trial detention of the accused
must be held `at least once every year'. With respect to Mr Bemba, the one-year
period referred to in rule 118(3) will expire on 3 July 2009. The decision of
the judges will be given at a later stage after the hearing. ..."

ii. "Ex-Congo vice president to appear at ICC,"CNN, 29 June 2009,
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/africa/06/29/bemba.icc/#cnnSTCText

"Former Congolese vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba is Monday due to appear
before the International Criminal Court, where he faces war crimes charges of
rape, torture and pillaging during civil war in the African republic. Bemba, who
was arrested near Brussels in May, is accused by the ICC of commanding a rebel
group that carried out a widespread attack against civilians between October
2002 and March 2003. He is scheduled to appear before the independent court in
The Hague, Netherlands for a procedural hearing on his continued custody, the
ICC's press office said...."

iii. "Former Congo VP seeks release ahead of war crimes trial," AFP, 29 June
2009,
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hPlPHqp9IWooOFHTQpm8gNOvCalA

"Lawyers for former DR Congo vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba asked judges
Monday to free him pending judgment in his trial for war crimes allegedly
committed in the Central African Republic.

`It is necessary to free Jean-Pierre Bemba,' his lawyer Aime Kilolo argued in a
special hearing before the International Criminal Court to determine whether his
client should remain in detention in The Hague.

On June 15, the court ruled that Bemba will stand trial on three charges of war
crimes and two counts of crimes against humanity for atrocities allegedly
committed in the Central African Republic from October 2002 to March 2003.

He would stand trial in his capacity as military commander for acts of murder,
rape and pillaging allegedly committed by members of his Movement for the
Liberation of Congo (MLC), and not as a co-perpetrator.

The prosecution has appealed that decision, and no trial date has been set.

...If freed, Bemba would wish to go to Belgium, Portugal or France, countries
where he had family members or property, said Kilolo, dismissing the substantial
flight risk alleged by the prosecution."

iv. "Jean-Pierre Bemba's fate will be known on July 10" ("Le sort de J.P. Bemba
sera connu le 10 juillet "), Le Potentiel, 1 July 2009,
http://www.lepotentiel.com/afficher_article.php?id_edition=&id_article=83021
(in French)

"The fate of Senator Jean-Pierre Bemba, the national president of the Liberation
Movement of Congo (MLC), will be known on July 10 2009 at the latest. This news,
at least, emerged from the International Criminal Court's hearing held on Monday
29 June in The Hague. As a result of this hearing, Trenda Cilova, the Court's
judge indicated: "Within a reasonable delay, the ICC will hand down a decision
on whether a provisional pre-trial release from detention will take place or
not". In the meantime, we have learned from the foreign press that the judge
ordered authorities in Portugal, France, Belgium and Netherlands to submit by
July 10 their observations on the matter as well as the conditions their
countries would impose. In other words, these countries would need to present
guarantees that there will be no chance of escape and that they would be able to
return Bemba to The Hague for appearance in court. If we are to believe certain
lawyers, this means that Bemba would be put placed into a kind of `judicial
surveillance'.

According to Paul Madidi, ICC Representative in the DRC who spoke to
radiookapi.net, all the parties presented their arguments throughout the
hearing. The defense argued in favor of setting Jean-Pierre Bemba free
provisionally because it felt that the risk of flight has never existed and that
the charges against him have been amended. On the other hand, the prosecution
felt that the defendant should remain in detention.

According to his lawyers, Senator Jean-Pierre Bemba wished to be received in
these countries for various reasons. In Belgium, for example, Bemba has
properties and bank accounts and his children are schooled there too. Or even,
France, where he has important social connections.

It is worth recalling that the hearing on Monday was held within the procedural
framework prescribed by the Rome Statute of the International Criminal
Court's[rule 118(3)]...."

[Translation is informal and provided by the CICC Secretariat]

See also:

a.« Cpi : Jean-Pierre Bemba, très bientôt la décision pour ou contre sa
libération provisoire, » Digital Congo, 30 June 2009,
http://www.digitalcongo.net/article/59215 (in French)

b. « Bemba pourrait être remis en liberté, » Jeune Afrique, 30 June 2009,
http://www.jeuneafrique.com/Article/DEPAFP20090630103844/-CPI-Pierre-Bemba-manda
t-d-arret-crimes-contre-l-humanite-Bemba-pourrait-etre-remis-en-liberte.html (in
French)

II. GENERAL NEWS COVERAGE

i. "Congo ex-VP to stand trial at International court," by Mike Corder
(Associated Press), 15 June 2009
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jim5vol2x-nmRWY8Ss2RzsQ5kBKwD9
8R91800

"The International Criminal Court on Monday ordered former Congolese vice
president Jean-Pierre Bemba to stand trial on charges of commanding a militia
that unleashed a campaign of murder, rape and pillage in the Central African
Republic.

But a pretrial panel said prosecutors have insufficient evidence to support
charges of torture and causing outrages on personal dignity ...

He is accused of commanding troops responsible for atrocities during the civil
war in Central African Republic in 2002-2003 after that country's then-President
Ange-Felix Patasse appealed for help fending off a coup led by his former army
chief of staff, Francois Bozize, who is now president.

Bemba will be tried on five charges of murder, rape and pillage."


See also:
a. "Congo's Bemba to stand ICC trial," 15 June 2009, BBC,
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8101809.stm

b. "ICC orders war crimes trial for DR Congo ex-vice president," AFP, 15 June
2009
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gEjiq2dCxfO0GpVeRDNd06FHHTvg


ii. "Commemoration of the first anniversary of Jean-Pierre Bemba's transfer to
the ICC," by Hamza/MMC (DigitalCongo) 26 Mai 2009,
http://www.digitalcongo.net/article/58333 (in French)


"Last week's commemoration of the one year anniversary of Jean-Pierre Bemba's
transfer to the ICC detention center in The Hague made way for a politicized
morning on the 23 May in Kinshasa. The leaders of Bemba's party, the Congolese
Liberation Movement, organized an event [...]featuring two speakers, François
Mwamba Tshisimbi and Jeannot Bemba Saolona, who last visited the suspect in The
Hague. ..."

[Translation is informal and provided by CICC Secretariat]

iii. "Jean-Pierre Bemba : Already 1 year in custody ( Jean-Pierre Bemba : Déjà 1
an de detention)," by Christophe Rigaud (Courrier International), 25 May 2009,
http://afrikarabia2.blogs.courrierinternational.com/archive/2009/05/25/jean-pier
re-bemba-1-an-d-incarceration.html (in French)

"...As leader of the rebels of the Democratic Republic of Congo, [Jean-Pierre
Bemba] is accused of leading a campaign of violent acts marked by massive
torture, murder and rape in the neighboring Central African Republic. The
accusations he faces correspond the period of 2002-2003 during which Ange-Félix
Patassé, then President of the Central African Republic, asked Bemba's Congolese
Liberation Movement (MLC) to squash the tentative coups d'etat in his country.

Bemba's combatants received instructions to `traumatize and terrorize" the
population to prevent them from supporting the least resistance to Patassé's
government.

Defense lawyer, Karim Asad Ahmad Khan, rejected accusations against Jean-Pierre
Bemba by saying that he could not have been responsible for the crimes committed
by his soldiers because they were being placed under the "command and control"
of Patassé's government. "The uniforms, the food, the money, all this was given
to the MLC soldiers, and not by the DRC authorities, not from Mr. Bemba (...)
but by the Head of State of the Central African Republic", explained his lawyer,
adding that the accusation could not establish criminal intentions chargeable to
the accused...."

[Translation is informal and provided by CICC Secretariat]


II. OPINION AND ANALYSIS

i. "The case for the ICC" Op-ed by Lucile Mazangue of the Association des Femmes
Juristes in the Central African Republic (CAR), New African Issue, Issue 485,
June 2009, http://www.africasia.com/newafrican/na.php?ID=2332

"Now that the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued a warrant against
President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan for war crimes and crimes against humanity in
Darfur, the claims that the Court unfairly targets African leaders are reaching
a fever pitch. But the critics are ignoring the facts and doing a disservice to
victims of heinous crimes....In my country, there had been rampant violence
against civilians during intensive fighting between government and rebel forces
in 2002 and 2003. Civilians were killed and raped, and homes and stores were
looted. My government asked the ICC to become involved and the highest court in
the Central African Republic affirmed that the domestic justice system was
unable to carry out the complicated process of prosecuting the crimes. The ICC's
work in CAR is especially important for victims of sexual violence. Rape was
much more widespread than killings and has been a focus of the ICC's
investigation.

Suggesting that an investigation by the ICC is anti-African misses a critical
point: when the Court investigates those allegedly responsible for serious
crimes in Africa, it does so on behalf of African victims. The mandate of the
Court is to hold perpetrators of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war
crimes to account when national courts are unwilling or unable to do so. Many
horrible abuses have, and continue to be, committed on our continent. If African
countries built up their ability to carry out active and effective
investigations and prosecutions of these crimes, fewer cases from Africa would
arrive at the ICC...."

ii. "Patassé reveals presidency bid," by Melanie Gouby (IWPR), 10 June 2009,
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/VDUX-7SVRG8?OpenDocument

"The former head of state of the Central African Republic, CAR, Ange-Felix
Patasse, has told IWPR he will take part in presidential elections next year,
but analysts warn such a move runs the risk of tipping the fragile country into
another crisis.

...Moreover, there are concerns that his return could create instability.
Analysts say it might provoke victims of the blood-letting that led to the 2003
coup, who believe he should be prosecuted by the ICC; and spark a new
potentially violent confrontation with Bozize...."

iii. "ICC under pressure to clarify the J.P. Bemba dossier, (Dans l'attente de
la décision des juges, la CPI subit de plus en plus de pressions pour clarifier
le dossier J.P. Bemba !" by DN/Th/Yes (Digital Congo), 18 May 2009,
http://www.digitalcongo.net/article/58203 (in French)

"Ever since Jean-Pierre Bemba's defense laid out their arguments to discharge
their client, all manner of speculation has been overheard...including
speculation on the eventual liberation of the former vice-president of the DRC
is already in the works....That the ICC decided to break its silence is a good
thing. It brought all wanted clarifications on the Bemba file during the last
weekend. Its spokesman in the Kinshasa office was suitable up to the task. ...
While waiting for this deadline, speculation will continue to nourish public
opinion ..."

[Translation is informal and provided by CICC Secretariat.]

iv. "What kind of future for Jean-Pierre Bemba? (Quel avenir pour Jean-Pierre
Bemba") by Madimba-Nimba (Le Confident), 5 June 2009
http://www.leconfident.net/CPI-QUEL-AVENIR-POUR-JEAN-PIERRE-BEMBA_a4448.html (in
French)

"It is now June of 2009, a bit more than a year since Jean-Pierre Bemba was
arrested. But until now, there has hardly been any ray of hope on the horizon
for reparations to be given to numerous victims who have suffered brutalities
and have seen atrocities by the `banyamulenge' [MLC soldiers]....Some Central
African victims that we met no longer seem to believe that international justice
is in their favor, especially since the tragic disappearance of Wanfiyo Goungaye
Nganatowa last December...

…The long-suffering victims no longer harbor illusions about what might come
given the slow process of the Jean-Pierre Bemba case: they are not reassured.
Only time will tell if they have a reason to be reassured."

[Translation is informal and provided by CICC Secretariat.]



See also:
a. « Jean-Pierre Bemba voit une issue »par Castro (Le Phare) - 13 May 2009
http://www.lepharerdc.com/www/index_view.php?storyID=8781&rubriqueID=9 (in
French)

b. « Bruxelles/Rdc: L'ex vice-Président Jean-Pierre Bemba un an après, » Op-ed
by M. Dieudonné Wabile, coordinateur Europe de l'Association des Amis de
Jean-Pierre Bemba (vidéo) - 23 May 2009
http://www.wat.tv/video/p-bemba-an-apres-avis-dieudonne-1isrq_1im6z_.html (in
French)


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