ICC: Democratic Republic of Congo

On April 19, 2004, President Kabila formally requested the International Criminal Court's (ICC) for help in investigating and prosecuting those responsible for committing atrocities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), an ICC member. Two months later, on June 23, ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo announced the Court's first formal investigation into the alleged atrocities. The Prosecutor's announcement followed a year of preliminary evaluation of information submitted to the ICC by governments, non-profit organizations and individuals.

The conflict in the DRC is the deadliest documented conflict in African history. Nearly 4 million people have lost their lives since 1998 - the majority of them women and children. Child soldiers were recruited and forced to participate in military activity, and young girls were subjected to sexual abuse, sometimes resulting in involuntary abortion. Although a peace agreement was signed in April 2003 and the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) was established to implement the peace agreement, tensions in the region are still high. However, the government's referral of the situation along with its commitment to cooperate will facilitate the efforts of the ICC.

Court Action

On February 10, 2006, the court issued an arrest warrant for Thomas Lubanga Dyilo, the founder of the Union des Patriotes Congolais (UPC) and the Forces Patriotiques pour la Libération du Congo (FPLC). He surrendered to the Court and was transported to the Detention Center in The Hague on March 17, 2006. His trial began on January 26, 2009. He faces charges of war crimes consisting of enlisting children less than fifteen years of age into the FPLC and using them to participate actively in hostilities in the context of an international armed conflict.

On July 2 and July 6, 2007, the Court issued arrests warrants for Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui, respectively. Katanga, the alleged commander of the Force de Résistance patriotique en Ituri (FRPI), was arrested on October 17, 2007. Ngudjolo, the alleged former leader of the Front des Nationalistes et Intégrationnistes (FNI) was arrested on February 6, 2008. The trial began on November 24, 2009.  They both pleaded not guilty to charges of jointly committing war crimes and crimes against humanity.

On August 22, 2006, the Court issued an arrest warrant for Bosco Ntaganda, the alleged Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the FPLC and the alleged Chief of Staff of the Congrès National pour la Défense du People (CNDP). He remains at large.

Watch "A Duty to Protect: Justice for Child Soldiers in the DRC"

Resources:

• Report: In Uncharted Waters (CGS)  PDF
• ICC in the DRC (ICC)
  
• Press release on referral of situation in the DRC to the ICC (ICC) 
• Press release on ICC's first open investigation (ICC)