A/HRC/24/33
crimes against humanity, was transferred on 2 April 2013 from Kinshasa to Bukavu prison
with the support of MONUSCO. The Military Court of South Kivu is in the process of
completing the investigation phase, and Colonel Engangela will stand trial in 2013.
51.
In spite of pledges made by the Government to adopt legislation to implement the
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, the relevant bill has been pending before
Parliament since 2008. In a positive development, on 4 May 2013, the President
promulgated the new organic law on the organization, functioning and competence of
courts of the Judicial Order. The new law extends to the Appeals Courts42 and jurisdiction
over the crime of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
52.
In addition, although the OHCHR mapping report43 recommended a holistic
approach to transitional justice in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, including tools
for vetting the security services for their human rights records, and judicial and non-judicial
transitional justice mechanisms, the current Government has not yet identified the steps that
it needs to take to that end. The rise of M23, composed of former rebels who joined the
national army in 2009 and deserted in April 2012, reflect the dramatic consequences of the
lack of action taken in this regard.
53.
In a positive development, however the Government recently reiterated its intention
not to grant amnesties to perpetrators of violations of human rights law and international
humanitarian law in the context of ongoing negotiations with various armed groups.
3.
Action taken by the Joint Human Rights Office
54.
Judicial authorities continued to benefit from the support of MONUSCO and of the
Joint Human Rights Office in the conduct of investigations and the organization of mobile
hearings, especially in the eastern part of the country. In this regard, the Office undertook
several joint missions with judicial authorities during the period under review, including for
the Minova case,44 for which MONUSCO provided support for the deployment of judicial
investigators to the affected villages.
55.
The Joint Human Rights Office also continued to advocate at the highest level for
the prosecution of FARDC and PNC members accused of human rights violations and, in
that respect, held several meetings with the relevant authorities.
56.
In compliance with the human rights due diligence policy on United Nations support
to non-United Nations security forces, 45 the Joint Human Rights Office continued to screen
FARDC battalion commanders and PNC agents for past human rights violations as a
condition for any support provided by MONUSCO or by the United Nations country team
in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
42
43
44
45
16
To date, only military courts with jurisdiction over such serious crimes were empowered to prosecute
civilians and members of the military charged with these crimes.
See the report of the mapping exercise documenting the most serious violations of human rights and
international humanitarian law committed within the territory of the Democratic Republic of the
Congo between March 1993 and June 2003, August 2010 (available from
http://www.ohchr.org/en/countries/africaregion/Pages/rdcProjetmapping.aspx).
See the report of the United Nations Joint Human Rights Office on human rights violations
perpetrated by soldiers of the Congolese Armed Forces and combatants of the M23 in Goma and
Sake, North Kivu province, and in and around Minova (see footnote 22).
A/67/775–S/2013/110, annex.
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