Previous PageNext Page



II. RECOMMENDATIONS

To the Forces in Western Congo:

Human Rights Watch calls upon the Congolese government to:

·Instruct all Congolese soldiers to protect the civilian population and uphold international humanitarian law. Investigate accusations of deliberate executions of civilians by Congolese soldiers and prosecute those responsible.

·Investigate and prosecute those within and outside the government responsible for using media to foster hatred and incite to violence. The government must take all necessary measures to ensure the safety of all civilians throughout government-held territory, including those interned or in detention.

·Those arbitrarily arrested solely on ethnic or political grounds should be freed immediately; all detainees should be charged with a recognizable offense or released.

·Guarantee the right to return for all Congolese outside the country. The government should continue to facilitate the safe departure of Tutsi or other civilians wishing to leave the country voluntarily.

·Abolish the special Military Court and establish an independent judiciary that respects due process. Regular military courts should handle the cases of military in detention in accordance with international norms and the Congolese military justice code, including the right to appeal and the right to counsel. The government should guarantee the independence of both the military and the civilian courts and ensure that civilians are not tried before military courts. Civilian and military judges, prosecutors, and other court officials should not be subject to intimidation or harassment related to their duties.

·Desist from the recruitment of child soldiers under the age of eighteen and demobilize those already enlisted.

·Refrain from the recruitment of refugees from camps in neighbouring countries and respect the strictly civilian and humanitarian nature of refugee camps and settlements.

·Screen potential military recruits and exclude any who may have participated in war crimes or crimes against humanity, including the Rwandan genocide. Any against whom evidence of such crimes is found must be prosecuted or delivered to the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) at Arusha.

·Guarantee freedom of expression and freedom of association for all Congolese. This includes lifting excessive regulations on political activities and ceasing harassment and intimidation of human rights defenders and journalists.

·Fulfill the government’s pledge to allow access and the neutral provision of humanitarian assistance to all populations in need in territory under their control.

·Fulfill its obligation to carry out an impartial investigation into massacres and other crimes against humanity committed during the 1996-1997 war in Congo. The Congolese government should make public its findings and where possible hold perpetrators accountable, including members of the AFDL. The government's decision on January 11 to allow Roberto Garretón, the U.N.'s special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Congo, to return to the country to investigate both the 1996-97 massacres and the current situation should be given full effect. He should be given full access and cooperation to conduct his independent investigations.

·Allow independent human rights investigators full access to investigate allegations of human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law.

Human Rights Watch calls upon the governments of Zimbabwe, Angola, and other countries supporting the government of the Congo to:

· Uphold international humanitarian law, and ensure that any violations are immediately investigated, including killings of noncombatants, rape, looting and destruction of infrastructure essential to public well-being. All military operations, including shelling and aerial bombings, should be carried out in a manner that strictly limits the toll on civilians and civilian structures and is consistent with the laws of war; information necessary to establish that international standards were respected should be made public. Clear and public instructions should be given to troops to prevent abuses.

· Press the Congolese government to improve respect for human rights and democratic principles. This includes protection for all Congolese citizens from summary executions, arbitrary arrest and detention; guaranteeing freedom of expression and association; allowing the political opposition and organizations of civil society to operate without harassment or intimidation; establishing an independent judiciary that respects due process; and instituting an inclusive and transparent transition to democracy.

To the Forces in Eastern Congo:

Human Rights Watch calls on the Congolese Rally for Democracy, the government of Rwanda, the government of Uganda, and the government of Burundi to:

· Put an end to civilian killings in territory under RCD control. The RCD authorities and the Rwandan, Ugandan, and Burundian governments should give clear instructions to their troops to cease civilian killings and to respect international humanitarian law. Those suspected of committing abuses should be arrested, investigated, and punished where appropriate.

· Investigate allegations of gross human rights abuses including large-scale killings, summary executions, rape, and forced “disappearances” of civilians. Given the failure thus far of the RCD to investigate the August massacres in the Kasika area, the RCD must take concrete steps to reinforce the Department of Justice and Human Rights or to create an independent commission of inquiry with the power to carry out investigations and make their findings public. In addition to the Kasika massacres, other killings including those in the Makobola area of South Kivu must also be investigated. The RCD authorities and the governments of Rwanda, Uganda, and Burundi should instruct their military forces in Congo to cooperate with these and all other investigations and punish perpetrators where appropriate.

· Halt arbitrary arrest, illegal detentions, and forced “disappearances” and eliminate private and illegal detention centers. Detainees should be held under humane conditions in recognized detention centers and provided withadequate food and access to medical care. Ensure that prisoners are held only in publicly recognized places of detention, and that up-to-date registers of all prisoners are maintained in every detention center and centrally. This information should be freely available to relatives, lawyers, and others with a legitimate interest.

· Prisoners of war in custody should be protected in accordance with the Geneva Conventions.

· Stop the recruitment of child soldiers under the age of eighteen. Combatants under the age of eighteen should be demobilized.

· Guarantee freedom of expression and freedom of association in territory under RCD control.

· Ensure that members of organizations of civil society, including human rights defenders, journalists, and others, are free from harassment and intimidation.

· Allow access and the neutral provision of humanitarian assistance to all populations in need in territory under their control. Protect humanitarian assistance from looting or being diverted for military use.

· Allow independent human rights investigators full access to investigate allegations of human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law.

· Ensure the protection of and facilitate assistance to residual Rwandan and Burundian refugee populations in eastern Congo whose presence may date from 1994. The RCD authorities and their military allies should work closely with international humanitarian organizations to assure the protection of and assistance to these populations.

To the International Community:

Human Rights Watch calls upon the United Nations (U.N.), Organization of African Unity (O.A.U.), the Southern Africa Development Community (S.A.D.C.) or other parties involved in negotiations on the conflict in Congo to:

· Ensure that peace negotiations between warring parties do not serve as a mechanism of further impunity in the Great Lakes Region. Negotiated solutions must include provisions to hold political leaders and members of the armies and militias in Congo accountable for human rights violations during the conflict.

· Insist that all parties to the conflict instruct their troops to respect international humanitarian law and that they investigate fully all alleged violations. Abuses by foreign militaries participating on both sides should also be investigated. In particular, call upon the RCD to follow through on its pledges to launch investigations of the Kasika and Makobola massacres and punish those responsible. Call upon the Congolese government to cease ongoing abuses against civilians, including increased arbitrary arrests of political opponenets and others, such as the recent round-up of civilians, mostly ethnic Tutsis, from the Bethanie Center in Kinshasa.

· Support the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Field Office in Congo and increase its monitoring and technical assistance programs. In particular, the U.N. Office should be given the necessary support to place field officers in RCD-held eastern Congo and throughout government territory. Among other duties, these monitors should have capacity to monitor and tape radio broadcasts for hate speech and incitement to violence.

· The U.N. Security Council should follow through on its July 1998 request that Congo and Rwanda carry out investigations of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Congo during the 1996-1997 war and hold perpetrators accountable for human rights violations.

Human Rights Watch calls upon the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), host countries and the international community to:

· Take measures to secure the exclusively civilian and humanitarian character of refugee camps, including mechanisms to disarm and separate armed elements from civilian refugees, particularly those who leave camps for military purposes; and to exclude from international refugee protection those suspected of participation in war crimes and crimes against humanity, with a view to investigate and prosecute where appropriate in accordance with international standards.

Human Rights Watch calls upon the United States, the European Union, international financial institutions, and other donors to:

· Make any bilateral or multilateral aid to the central government of Congo contingent upon improved respect for human rights, the rule of law, and democratic principles.

· Vigorously and publicly denounce violations of international human rights and humanitarian law by all sides involved in the conflict. This requires condemnation of specific abuses by all parties to the conflict, not simply general admonishments to respect human rights.

· Urge full investigations into human rights abuses by all parties to the Congo conflict. Foreign militaries participating on both sides should also be investigated. In particular, call upon the RCD to follow through on its pledges to launch investigations of the Kasika and Makobola massacres and punish those responsible. Call upon the Congolese government to cease ongoing abuses against civilians.

· Condition any military training or assistance to any parties to the conflict on adherence to international humanitarian law and an investigation of reported abuses by their troops.

· The U.S. government should comply with Section 570 of the Foreign Operations Authorization Act, known as the Leahy amendment, by ensuring that no U.S. assistance is provided to units of security forces if there is credible evidence that such a unit has committed gross human rights abuses, unless those responsible for abuses have been brought to justice. In general, the U.S. should strengthen its monitoring of militaries that receive U.S. aid.

· Support the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Field Office in Congo and increase its monitoring and technical assistance programs. In particular, the U.N. Office should be given the necessary support to place field officers in RCD-held eastern Congo and throughout government territory. Among other duties, these monitors should have the capacity to monitor and tape radio broadcasts that propagate hate speech that incites violence.

· Provide moral, financial, and technical support to organizations of civil society. This should focus on humanitarian needs and development projects, as well as human rights and pro-democracy initiatives.

· Urge all parties to the conflict protect organizations of civil society, including human rights defenders, journalists, and others, from harassment and intimidation. In addition to guaranteeing freedom of expression and freedom of association, the international community should insist that the excessive regulations on political activities be lifted and that representatives of civil society and the political opposition be included in the democratic transition process.

Human Rights Watch
350 Fifth Ave 34th Fl.
New York, N.Y. 10118
(212) 290-4700

email

Previous PageTop Of PageNext Page