Letter to the UK Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

As representatives of international human rights and development organisations interested in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), we write to you regarding the brutal assassination of Pascal Kabungulu.

Mr. Kabungulu, the Executive Secretary of Héritiers de la Justice, a Congolese human rights organization, was murdered by three armed men in his home, in the presence of his family, on July 31, 2005 in Bukavu, eastern DRC.

Mr. Kabungulu was one of DRC’s most prominent and committed human rights campaigners and a key civil society leader. Héritiers de la Justice has received funding from the U.K. Department for International Development (DFID) for its human rights work since 2001 through the Christian Aid Peace and Reconciliation Programme in eastern DRC. In May 2002, Mr. Kabungulu came to London to meet with Prime Minister Tony Blair to launch the Christian Aid ‘Listen to Africa Report’. The Prime Minister and Mr. Kabungulu discussed issues relating to human rights abuses and the conflict in the DRC. Mr. Kabungulu spoke about the important work that Héritiers was doing in recording and denouncing such human rights violations.

The assassination of Mr. Kabungulu is a tragedy for his family and everyone who knew and worked with him. He leaves behind a wife and six young children who now fear for their own safety, as they are eye witnesses in the current investigation into Mr. Kabungulu’s murder. His murder is a major loss, not only to Héritiers de la Justice and Congolese civil society, but to the DRC as a whole, given the important role Mr. Kabungulu played in the struggle against impunity in the DRC.

We are concerned that Mr. Kabungulu’s assassination is indicative of a more general trend on the part of government authorities, armed groups and members of former armed groups to target, intimidate and ultimately remove key civil society actors who speak out to challenge injustice in the DRC. We fear that Mr. Kabungulu’s assassination may be the first of other attacks against human rights defenders in the run up to the elections. The immediate effect of the murder of Mr. Kabungulu, widely known for his courageous defence of the rights of all Congolese, has been to intensify and spread fear, not only among human rights activists and civil society actors, but the wider civilian population in the Kivus.

Congolese judicial authorities have initiated a criminal investigation into the case and the provincial authorities of South Kivu have established a Commission of Enquiry, chaired by the Military Prosecutor of South Kivu.

There have been reports that the Commission’s investigations have been hindered by interference from Congolese army personnel. On August 4, 2005, three Forces Armées de la République Démocratique du Congo (FARDC) army officers – led by Commander Thierry Ilunga – forced the director of Bukavu Central Prison to release two soldiers who were in detention on suspicion of involvement in the killing. Between August 4 and 18, the suspects were held in the custody of the 10th Military Region during daytime, and were allowed to return home at night. They have now been returned to the Central Prison. In addition, several members of the Commission of Enquiry have reportedly received threats in different forms, which may be linked to their membership in the Commission. Our organizations believe that if the Commission’s investigations are to be genuinely independent and free from interference by military personnel, they should be directed and carried out by the civil authorities.

The DRC is of key strategic importance to U.K. policy on Africa because of the implications for security and stability across the continent. Her Majesty’s Government (HMG) has become an important donor to the DRC government and is investing millions in the DRC election process, as well as in wider efforts to build an accountable state in the DRC.

During the current period of transition to democracy in the DRC, it is crucial that human rights activists and wider civil society are able to operate without fear of attack and that the culture of impunity is challenged by all actors interested in the future of the DRC. The U.K. and DRC governments and the European Union (E.U.) must demonstrate their commitment to the building of an accountable and democratic state in the DRC by dealing robustly with human rights abuses and guaranteeing the security of human rights activists and civil society actors.
In the light of these developments and given the U.K. government and the E.U.’s commitments to the transition process in DRC, we urge the British Government to raise its concern over the assassination of Pascal Kabungulu through all possible avenues , including via the U.K.’s presidency of the E.U.

We call on the U.K. government to urge the Congolese transitional government to:

• Ensure that a prompt and impartial investigation into the assassination of Mr. Kabungulu takes place without hindrance. The government must also instruct judicial authorities to investigate and prosecute the actions of the three officers from the RCD-Goma recently integrated in the “Forces Armées de la République Démocratique du Congo (FARDC) who forced the prison director to hand over the two suspects detained in relation with Pascal Kabungulu’s assassination;
• Guarantee that the current Commission of Enquiry into the assassination of Pascal Kabungulu be independent, impartial and competent, with clear terms of reference and authority; and that it conduct its inquiry in a fully transparent fashion. The Commission must also have the authority, in accordance with law, to provide redress, including any compensation due, and to enforce any eventual decision and award, without undue delay, as provided for by the U.N. Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms;
• Provide the judicial authorities and the Commission of Enquiry with the means necessary to carry out an independent thorough and impartial investigation;
• Develop an action plan for the protection of Congolese human rights defenders in full implementation of the U.N. Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms;
• Invite the U.N. Special Representative for Human Rights Defenders to the DRC.

Through its current role as the U.K. Presidency of the E.U., we urge the U.K. government to ensure that the E.U. takes steps to:

• Call on the Congolese transitional government to ensure that a prompt and impartial investigation into the assassination of Mr. Kabungulu takes place without any obstructions;
• Fully implement the E.U. Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders, including practical measures of support and protection overseen by the E.U. Mission in Kinshasa, specifically:
• monitoring the current investigation led by the Commission of Enquiry into the assassination of Pascal Kabungulu
• addressing the situation of human rights defenders when reporting to the Commission, noting in particular the assassination of Pascal Kabungulu and the arrests and threats against other human rights defenders.
• maintaining suitable contacts with human rights defenders, including by receiving them in the Mission and visiting their areas of work
• appointing a specific liaison officer for Human Rights Defenders
• facilitating a visit to the DRC by the U.N. Special Rapporteur for Human Rights Defenders.

E.U. support should also include:

• urging the Congolese government to extend an invitation to the Rapporteur
• providing funds to the Rapporteur to enable her to execute her mandate and carry out a visit to the DRC.

Provide adequate funding and other resources, including technical support for:

• the establishment of an independent judiciary in the DRC;
• human rights training to the police, members of the armed forces and civil
service.
• effective DDRRR and security sector reform programmes in the DRC.
• Put in place an emergency fund for human rights defenders and their families, aimed at assisting them in situations of immediate risk, and following an assault.

We look forward to hearing from you on these important issues.

Yours faithfully,

David Pain
Head of Africa Division
Christian Aid

Stephen Bowen,
Campaigns Director,
Amnesty International U.K. Section

Mary Lawlor
Director
Front Line

Georgette Gagnon
Deputy Director, Africa Division
Human Rights Watch