Bukavu, 24 February 2012 – « MONUSCO's support to the Public Prosecution Office in the restoration of the rule of law » - such was the theme of the press encounter organized by the Public Information Office of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the Democratic of Congo (MONUSCO) in Bukavu, Sud Kivu province, on 24 February 2012.

Some twenty journalists attended this monthly event, during which the provincial coordinator of MONUSCO's Rule of Law section, Amani Amadou, discussed the UN Mission's activities to build the capacity of judicial institutions in Sud Kivu. Such activities, he said, include providing training for various actors of the provincial judicial system, including the public prosecutor, judges, lawyers, inspectors, and criminal investigation officers. He added that, in the framework of the Government's Stabilization and Reconstruction Program (STAREC) for war-affected areas in eastern DR Congo, MONUSCO has contributed to the construction of peace courts in the territories of Walungu, Shabunda and Fizi. Moreover, the Mission is providing technical, logistical and other support to judicial authorities as they organize mobile court hearings, or conduct inspections of jurisdictions, lower-level prosecution offices, and detention centers. These inspections often result in unblocking trial proceedings, resolving cases of extended pre-trial detention, and reducing prison overcrowding.

At the same occasion, the general prosecutor at the Bukavu appeal court, Pascal Mukonkole, discussed the responsibilities of the prosecutor's office. These responsibilities, he said, include ensuring that all laws and judicial decisions are implemented, and that all laws and all legislative and regulatory acts as well as acts of judgment are applied. Other duties involve ensuring that criminal investigation officers perform their functions properly. In a nutshell, the public prosecutor has a delicate role to play in a State claiming to be law-bound.