Written by Were Kelly
A new United Nations report has found that the Rwandan-backed M23 rebel group, Congolese armed forces, and other militias have committed serious rights violations in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, some of which may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The report, released Friday by the UN Human Rights Office’s Fact-Finding Mission, details gross violations of international humanitarian law since late last year when fighting escalated in North and South Kivu provinces.
“The atrocities described in this report are horrific,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said in a statement, demanding accountability for the victims.
The report presents the first UN findings that abuses in the conflict may constitute crimes against humanity and war crimes. It states that the ethnic Tutsi-led M23 carried out summary executions, torture, and enforced disappearances—acts that may amount to crimes against humanity. The group is also accused of war crimes, including wilful killing and hostage-taking.
In a particularly grave finding, the report states that M23 used systematic sexual violence, including gang rape, largely against women, with an intent to “degrade, punish, and break the dignity of victims.”
Crucially, the report also asserts that M23 received “training and operational support from the Rwandan Defense Forces (RDF),” adding that there were “credible allegations of the covert presence of RDF personnel within M23.” Rwanda has repeatedly denied backing the rebels, stating its forces act in self-defence against Congo’s army and ethnic Hutu militias.
The Congolese armed forces (FARDC) and their affiliated pro-government militia fighters, known as Wazalendo, were also found to have committed grave violations. These include gang rape, the deliberate killing of civilians, and looting. The report investigated whether repeated rapes by specific Congolese army units constituted crimes against humanity but could not determine if these acts were state policy.
Furthermore, the report states that certain Wazalendo members may have committed the war crime of conscripting and using children under the age of 15 in hostilities.
M23 leader Bertrand Bisimwa rejected the UN’s allegations in a comment to Reuters, calling them “fabricated” and an “unprofessional attempt to turn public opinion against the group.”
The conflict has had a devastating human cost. After seizing Goma, eastern Congo’s largest city, in January, M23 made significant gains across the two provinces. The fighting has killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands this year alone, escalating the risk of a full-blown war in the mineral-rich region.
Ravina Shamdasani, chief spokesperson for the UN Human Rights Office, told reporters in Geneva that the report “should drive home the importance of accountability and justice for these violations.” The office has called for adequate funding for a Commission of Inquiry into the violations, which has been stalled due to financial shortages.
Despite a declaration of principles signed on July 19 following Qatari mediation, in which both sides vowed to start negotiating a peace deal in August, the deadline was missed, and a resolution to the brutal conflict remains elusive.
SOURCE: REUTERS
