Democratic Republic of the Congo: From occasional outrage to sustained response - the need for the Human Rights Council to play a role in the areas of judicial reform and the fight against impunity

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC STATEMENT AI Index: AFR 62/009/2011 12 September 2011 Democratic Republic of the Congo: From occasional outrage to sustained response - the need for the Human Rights Council to play a role in the areas of judicial reform and the fight against impunity Amnesty International submitted the following written statement to the 18th session of the United Nations Human Rights [...] The need for a comprehensive and long-term strategy to reform the DRC national justice system Crimes under international law have been committed by Congolese and foreign security forces and armed groups in almost every corner of the DRC over the past two decades and continue to be committed, notably in the east of the country. [...] That report also concluded that the Congolese justice system did not have the capability to address crimes under international law due to various significant structural and chronic shortcomings, including the limited engagement of the Congolese authorities in strengthening the justice sector, the very limited resources allocated to the judicial system, the lack of independence of the justice syste [...] These include the lack of a national witness and victim protection programme; endemic corruption; the lack of independence of the justice system; lack of personnel, training and resources; the lack of enforcement of court judgments, including in the payment of financial compensation when the State is held accountable; and the poor prison conditions. [...] In light of the scale and nature of the violations committed in the DRC and the widespread impunity that prevails, Amnesty International believes there is an urgent need to develop a more long-term and comprehensive justice strategy that can deliver sustainable reform of the Congolese justice system in order to overcome impunity.