Lubumbashi, 23 February 2011 – A seminar for providing training in international criminal law to magistrates of the military justice system in Katanga province started in Lubumbashi, the provincial capital, on February 23rd.

The 3-day training seminar involves 37 magistrates of the local military court, and is organized by the Rule of Law Division of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) together with military instructors of the US Defense Institute of International Legal Studies (DIILS).

With the theme of « military Command, military justice and international humanitarian law, » this course is delivered bearing in mind the importance of addressing the situation in Eastern DRC, one that is characterized by issues of sexual violence and other human rights abuses committed by armed groups and men in uniforms.

Specifically, the topics discussed include: the historical development of the concept of criminal responsibility; the complementarity between the principles of international criminal law and the Congolese criminal law, the responses to atrocities under international criminal law, especially in cases of sexual violence; the responsibility of members of the chain of command for offences committed by their subordinates and the responsibility of subordinates who execute illegal orders from their superiors.

This training course is delivered as part a large-scale program for providing military justice training to military magistrates, police investigators, court support staff, members of the chain of command, and civilian lawyers acting as defense counsel at military trials, in various locations across the country.

The program is led by the Rule of Law section of MONUSCO, under the aegis of the Congolese Ministry of Defense and War Veterans, according to UN Security Council Resolution 1925, which calls for a reinforcement of the capacities of the Congolese judicial system with a view to restoring the rule of law.

The opening ceremony of this training was led by Mr. Jean-Marie Dikanga Kazadi, the provincial Minister for Interior, in the presence of several civilian and military officials from MONUSCO and the 6th Military Region of Katanga.

Tahirou Diao/ MONUSCO