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DRC: Report on the activities of the DRC Coalition

22 Sept 2010

Dear all, Please find below information about recent developments related to the International Criminal Court's investigation in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This message includes (I) reports on the activities of the DRC Coalition; (II) Related news quoting the CICC and its members; (III) audio/video reports on the Katanga/Ngudjolo trial Please note that all English translations provided by the CICC Secretariat are informal. 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. With regards, CICC Secretariat www.coalitionfortheicc.org *************************************** I. REPORT ON THE ACTIVITIES OF THE DRC COALITION A. CICC MEMBER PRESS RELEASES 1. "Synergy of Congolese NGOs for Victims (SYCOVI) press release No.3/CN/SYCOVI/10," By Robert Falay Yuma (National Coordinator SYCOVI), 11 September 2010 http://iccnow.org/documents/SYCOVI_press_release_mass_rape_DRC_Sept2010_eng.pdf "The Synergy of Congolese NGOs for Victims (SYCOVI) is profoundly shocked by the resurgence of insecurity that victims and civilian populations are facing in Eastern DRC, particularly North and South Kivu. The latest include attacks brought against civilians between July and August by a coalition of elements from the FDLR (Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda), the Mai-Mai Cheka and others on the Mpofi-Kibua axis in the territory of Walikale, where widespread rape, kidnapping, pillage and burning of houses have been reported. Reportedly 235 women, 13 men and 55 children , of which 3 are boys, have been raped; 913 houses burned, 42 shops pillaged and 116 civilians abducted and put to forced labour. To this one needs to add 154 reported rape cases in the locality of Luvungi, North Kivu, half an hour away from the MONUSCO military base (UN Stabilisation Force). This 'nth' attack represents the method of rape as a weapon of war used by armed groups in order to control the population, submitted to fear and thereby easier to exploit natural resources (mines), main sources of support for the war. SYICOVI protests against the omissions, which could be qualified as guilty, of the government, which is called upon to protect the civilian population in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic. SYCOVI also addresses its disapproval to MONUSCO, which is the most costly mission of any UN peace keeping mission in the world, with a budget of over 1 billion USD per year. SYCOVI hereby recommends: The Congolese government as well as MONUSCO: - To use all necessary means ensure that those responsible are hunted down, arrested and brought to justice; - To take medical and psychological responsibility for all the victims identified; - To reinforce the security of civilian populations to ensure that these acts do not reoccur. The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court: - to open investigations into these new rape cases and include them in the ongoing investigations in the KIVU, with a view to concluding these investigations speedily and issue the first arrest warrants which have been awaited for a long time." 2. "The DRC National Coalition for the International Criminal Court (CN--CPI) - RDC press release N° 03/CN--CPI//RDC," DRC Coalition for the ICC, 14 September 2010, http://iccnow.org/documents/Compress_de_la_CN_CPI_RDC_Sept2010.pdf (French) "The DRC National Coalition for the International Criminal Court reminds the Congolese parliament that the adoption of the law implementing the ICC Statute constitutes one of the essential points in the order of business during the parliamentary session opening on 15 September 2010. The DRC is one of the ICC States Parties which has not yet adapted its domestic law to the judicial system put in place by the aforementioned Statute - which has as its aim effectively combating the impunity of those who carry out grave crimes. At the fringes of the Rome Statute Review Conference, held in Kampala from 31 May to 11 June 2010, the Congolese government promised publicly that the DRC parliament would adopt this Bill in the September 2010 session. The text of the Bill, endorsed by deputies Nyabirungu and Mutumbe, was distributed to all members of the National Assembly last June. The DRC National CICC asks the bureau of the National Assembly to include the Bill among matters to be considered and adopted during the aforementioned session, so as to permit the DRC to fulfill its promise and to reassure the victims of grave crimes, committed most notably in the east of the country, that the Congolese civilian authorities will finally be furnished with judicial powers to give them justice without having to wait for the intervention of the ICC The DRC National CICC reminds the Congolese parliament and government that justice for the gravest crimes is one of the essential elements needed to construct a long-lasting peace in a post-conflict state such as the DRC, and contributes to crime prevention, which, after all, remains a threat to peace." B. PRESS COVERAGE 3. "Lubumbashi: campaign on the ICC" (Lubumbashi: campagne sur la CPI), Radio Okapi, 18 September 2010 http://radiookapi.net/actualite/2010/09/18/lubumbashi-campagne-sur-la-cpi/ (French) "One day at the school of the International Criminal Court (ICC)" is the theme of a campaign launched in Lubumbashi aiming to expose NGOs to the objectives and mechanisms of the jurisdiction of the ICC. The focal point of this national campaign, Me Freddy Kitoko, is calling on these organizations to help make it a success. The campaign officially began last Wednesday. It is organized by the Katagan section of the DRC National CICC. Its objectives are to raise-awareness about the Court and to popularize it among the general population and public institutions with the aim of increasing support for the ICC. The campaign also aims to promote solidarity with victims and communities affected by the crimes over which the ICC has jurisdiction. 4. "National Coalition for the ICC asks the DRC to reassure victims of grave crimes commited in the east " (« La CN-CPI demande à la RDC de rassurer les victimes des crimes graves commis à l'Est ») by Lucien Dianzenza (AfriqueRedaction) », 16 September 2010 http://www.afriqueredaction.com/article-justice-la-cn-cpi-demande-a-la-rdc-de-ra ssurer-les-victimes-des-crimes-graves-commis-a-l-est-57140843.html (French) "The government should, according to the Coalition, empower Congolese civilian and military authorities with judicial capacities to enforce justice. In a document of 14 September, sent to parliamentarians in session, the DRC National Coalition for the ICC reminds the nation's two elected assemblies that the adoption of the implementation law of the ICC statute constitutes one of the essential points in the order of business during the opening session on 15 September 2010 This association believes that the consideration and adoption of this Bill and related texts will in particular empower Congolese civilian and military authorities with judicial capacities to enforce justice, without having to wait for the intervention of the International Criminal Court. "This will enable the DRC to fulfill its promise and to reassure victims of grave crimes, committed most notably in the east of the country", explained the Coalition. In its statement, the DRC National Coalition for the ICC reminds the Congolese parliament and government that justice for the gravest crimes is one of the essential elements needed to construct a long-lasting peace in a post-conflict state such as the DRC. Justice also contributes to crime prevention which, after all, remains a tangible threat to peace. ...Last May, a petition signed by over 100 NGOs from 8 regions of the country, members of the Coalition, was delivered to the bureau of the lower house of parliament. The document given to the first vice-president of the institution, Boris Mbuku, by a delegation of the Coalition, led by its spokesperson, Désiré Israël Kazadi, accused in particular the lower house of the Congolese parliament of blocking the implementation of the Bill regulating the functioning of the Court since 2005. The text targeted by the Coalition is the Bill pertaining to the modification and completion of the penal code, the penal procedure code, the code for judicial organization and competency and the military judicial code of the DRC in relation to the implementation of the Rome Statute of the ICC." II. RELATED NEWS: CICC AND CICC MEMBERS QUOTED 1. "Analysis: International justice inches forward", by Nicholas Rigillo, 18 September 2010 http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/europe/features/article_1585429.php/ANALY SIS-International-justice-inches-forward -"Eight years since its establishment, the United Nations' first permanent tribunal, the International Criminal Court (ICC), has yet to issue a single verdict. ...But despite the snail's pace, the international courts in The Hague still deserve support, experts told the German Press Agency DPA. 'The slow progress of the first ICC trials can seem quite disappointing,' says William R. Pace of the Coalition for the International Criminal Court (CICC), a civil society network. Pace notes that 'the longer the trial takes, the greater the risk is that evidence fades - notably with the passing of victims - and the greater victims' expectations can get.' However, he argues that 'such a slow start was always to be expected, as complex and totally new procedures are being established, including on disclosure of evidence and the right of victims to participate in proceedings.' ...Nevertheless, long trials frustrate the families of the victims and are disliked by the accused, 'who have the right to a speedy trial and justice in good time,' notes Richard Dicker, an international law expert at Human Rights Watch, a pressure group. The ICC's first trial, of Congolese militia leader Thomas Lubanga, only began in January 2009, nearly three years after his arrest. Experts agree that the sheer complexity of such trials means they require time. In the case of Milosevic, who faced 66 counts of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, the prosecution spent two years presenting evidence from nearly 300 witnesses covering three different conflicts - in Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo. But complexity is only part of the problem. Dicker also points his finger at the time-consuming exercise of translating every official document into French, along with English the working language of the international courts, and the judges' tendency to tolerate stalling tactics. ... For grieving relatives of the victims in particular, the trial and sentencing of major culprits is the only way to provide closure. Moreover, truth and reconciliation commissions seldom provoke confessions by the powerful, argues Geoffrey Robertson in his book Crimes Against Humanity. Experts nevertheless concur on the need to develop strategies designed to reduce undue delays in the proceedings..." 2. "Lubanga's Missing Co-Perpetrator: Who is Bosco Ntaganda?" by Olivia Bueno (IRRI), 15 September 2010 http://www.lubangatrial.org/2010/09/15/lubanga’s-missing-co-perpetrator- who-is-bosco-ntaganda/ "...For watchers of the International Criminal Court (ICC), there has been a flurry of recent activity around the suspension of the proceedings against Thomas Lubanga. The Office of the Prosecutor is appealing and spectators are eagerly awaiting the decision from the appeals chamber. At the same time, there has been talk about the failure of the court to arrest the man charged alongside him - Bosco Ntaganda. ...Activist Georges Kampiamba, of the Congolese Coalition for the ICC, was recently quoted in an Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR) story saying, "His presence within the army is menacing victims and witnesses and contributing to worsening tension in the region." In Ituri, rumors are circulating that the government has lost control of Ntaganda and that he is organizing new rebel groups in Ituri. Analysts have speculated that Ntaganda has had an informal deal with the government assuring that he will not be arrested and, if he were arrested, the CNDP could resume hostilities. However, when asked about these concerns, one Ituri activist said, "If he were arrested? Who is going to arrest him?", implying that the prospect of arrest was so remote that such concerns barely merit discussion..." See also: "DRC Rights Defenders Face Mounting Threats", by Blake Evans-Pritchard (IWPR) 14 September 2010 http://iwpr.net/report-news/drc-rights-defenders-face-mounting-threats III. AUDIO/VIDEO REPORTS ON THE KATANGA/NGUDJOLO TRIAL 'In the Courtroom' programme - Weekly summary of the proceedings (7-15 September 2010) in the case of The Prosecutor v. Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui Youtube (for viewing): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIKiEwhoayU Audio (mpeg3): http://drop.io/Katanga_Ngudjolo_5/asset/100921-katanga-ngudjolo-mp3 Video (mpeg4): http://drop.io/Katanga_Ngudjolo_5/asset/100921-katanga-ngudjolo-mp4 **************************** CICC's policy on the referral and prosecution of situations before the ICC: The Coalition for the ICC is not an organ of the court. The CICC is an independent NGO movement dedicated to the establishment of the International Criminal Court as a fair, effective, and independent international organization. The Coalition will continue to provide the most up-to-date information about the ICC and to help coordinate global action to effectively implement the Rome Statute of the ICC. The Coalition will also endeavor to respond to basic queries and to raise awareness about the ICC's trigger mechanisms and procedures, as they develop. The Coalition as a whole, and its secretariat, do not endorse or promote specific investigations or prosecutions or take a position on situations before the ICC. However, individual CICC members may endorse referrals, provide legal and other support on investigations, or develop partnerships with local and other organizations in the course of their efforts. Communications to the ICC can be sent to: ICC, P.O. box 19519, 2500 CM the Hague, The Netherlands -----------------------------------------------------------