Roger Lumbala: France begins an investigation into the former warlord

by

An armed group he led is charged with crimes such as rape, summary executions, mutilation and cannibalism during a deadly civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

French prosecutors also accuse Lumbala of “participating in a group set up to prepare war crimes”.

According to a 2003 UN Security Council report, Lumbala led an armed group called the Rassemblement Congolais pour la démocratie-National (RCD-N), founded in 2000 and supported by the Ugandan military during the country’s deadly civil war.

The UN investigation “confirmed in 2002 a pattern of looting, murder and rape as tactics of war” for RCD-N forces in the Beni area, in the northeastern region of Ituri.

“The summary executions targeted the Nande and pygmies ethnic group, who had to flee to the forest for the first time to escape persecution,” the UN report said.

“The victims reported several cases of mutilation followed by cannibalistic acts,” the report added.

Fighters involved in the so-called ‘Clean the blackboard’ operation confirmed they had been sent by Lumbala, the UN Security Council said. A separate report from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights says that those taking part in the operation “tortured, mutilated and murdered other fighters before using their organs” as war trophies. ”
Why cannot Nigeria protect its children from Boko Haram?

Between October 12 and 29, 2002, RCD-N soldiers reportedly killed 173 civilians and committed “cannibalistic acts,” the report said. An unknown number of civilians were maimed, while soldiers raped a “large number” of women and children.

The report links other cases of mutilation, rape and cannibalism to the “Clean the Board” operation.

The French judiciary has the power to prosecute cases of crimes against humanity committed abroad against foreign victims if the perpetrators are on French territory or resident in France.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo, then known as Zaire, gained independence from Belgium in June 1960. The head of the army, General Mobutu Sese Seko, came to power during a military coup in 1965 and remained largely unchallenged through the 1970s and 1980s.

In 1996, dissident groups led by Laurent Kabila – and strongly supported by Rwanda and Uganda – rose up against the endemic corruption. They entered the capital of Kinshasa in May 1997 and Kabila proclaimed himself president.

Internal and external dissatisfaction with Kabila grew gradually until 1998, when a new rebel group – once again supported by Rwanda and Uganda – was formed and a second conflict broke out.

In January 2001, Kabila was murdered by one of his bodyguards and his son, Joseph Kabila, took over. Under the younger Kabila, foreign forces gradually left and the Congolese parties managed to reach an agreement for a transitional national government with the three major belligerent groups, a number of smaller ex-rebel movements and representatives of civil society and the political opposition.

Lumbala became a minister in this government between 2004 and 2005.

Correction: This story has been updated with the correct image of Roger Lumbala. ‘

.Source