A/HRC/37/78 C. The ongoing challenge of the fight against impunity 22. The 18 August 2017 sentencing of Aliou Mahamane Touré, the former selfproclaimed superintendent of the Islamic police of Gao from 2012 to 2013, by the assize court of Bamako was a major step forward in the fight against impunity. Mr. Touré was also wanted for war crimes but that charge was dismissed by the court. In addition, on 27 September 2016, the International Criminal Court convicted Ahmad Al Mahdi Al Faqi, a member of the Islamic police of Timbuktu in 2012, of destroying nine mausoleums and one mosque in Timbuktu Region. On 17 August 2017, the Court also found him liable for €2.7 million in damages. The Independent Expert welcomes the fact that, by awarding individual, collective and symbolic reparations to the community of Timbuktu, the International Criminal Court recognized that the destruction of protected buildings causes suffering to people throughout Mali, as well as the international community. 23. However, no significant progress has been observed on a judicial level since the signing of the Agreement on Peace and Reconciliation in Mali, in which the Government had committed to ending impunity. Most perpetrators of abuses and violations of human rights and international humanitarian law go unpunished. The main reasons for the ongoing impunity include: insecurity in the centre and north of the country, the lack of a system to protect judges, the justice system’s insufficient human and logistical resources, the lack of training for justice officials and the high cost of judicial proceedings for litigants. 24. Furthermore, the lack of functioning courts in the northern regions slows the pace of investigations and proceedings. The Supreme Court even ordered in two decisions dated July 2012 and January 2013 that the courts in the areas affected by the armed conflict be shut down in favour of the Court of First Instance of Commune III of Bamako. However, in February 2015, another Supreme Court decision restored the geographic jurisdiction of the northern courts, even though they were not yet operational. The extremely volatile security situation has not, to this day, made possible the return of judges to the northern regions. For this reason, a number of cases of human rights violations and serious abuses are still pending before the Court of First Instance of Commune III of Bamako despite the fact that it no longer has jurisdiction to continue the investigation. 25. As a result of the rising insecurity, the two district judges with expanded jurisdiction of Ténenkou and Youwarou were moved and reassigned to the appeals court of Sévaré. In effect, this prevented the plaintiffs from these areas from accessing justice and slowed down investigations and proceedings. The judges in Djenné, Douentza and Koro might also be transferred to Sévaré for the same reasons. MINUSMA has helped set up a committee within the criminal justice system to address challenges in access to justice. Generally speaking, the judicial system continues to be perceived as biased, thus creating distrust among the population. 26. The complaint and application for criminal damages brought by the Malian Human Rights Association and the International Federation for Human Rights Leagues on 12 November 2014, on behalf of 80 women victims of rape and other forms of sexual violence, is stalled. These offences were committed during the occupation of northern Mali by separatist and terrorist armed rebel groups in 2012 and 2013. The Independent Expert heard that the lack of cooperation on the part of the authorities, as well as problems accessing the areas and persons concerned, were at the root of the stagnation. Similarly, the complaint and application for criminal damages that the two organizations filed on 6 March 2015 on behalf of 33 victims of international crimes during the occupation of Timbuktu and environs by armed groups in 2012 and 2013 is not moving forward. The complaint targets 15 alleged perpetrators of crimes against humanity and war crimes. The Independent Expert welcomes the fact that some of the plaintiffs have been heard by the investigating judge, but regrets that the investigation has been inactive for over six months. He was informed that the investigation is currently suspended owing to a lack of political and judicial will. 27. The Independent Expert welcomes the decision by MINUSMA to support a coalition of six victim associations and three regional coordination groups offering legal, psychological and social assistance to 115 victims of sexual violence in Mopti, Gao and Timbuktu Regions. 6 GE.18-01553