CAT/C/COD/CO/2
concerned that the military courts continue to have jurisdiction to try civilians in several
situations, in particular when they commit crimes using weapons of war, or to try crimes
committed by military personnel against civilians, even if they are offences under ordinary
law (arts. 2 and 12).
27.
The State party should make the necessary legislative amendments to remove
the jurisdiction of the military courts to try civilians and ensure that the ordinary
courts alone have jurisdiction to hear cases involving serious violations of human
rights committed against civilians.
Political violence: arbitrary arrest and detention, and excessive use of force
28.
The Committee is deeply concerned about the many consistent reports of repeated
attacks on political opponents and human rights defenders seeking to exercise their right to
freedom of association or expression. The Committee is also concerned that many members
of civil society have experienced judicial harassment, have sometimes been subjected to
acts of torture or ill-treatment and have been arbitrarily arrested and detained. While
welcoming the recent release of several political prisoners, the Committee remains
seriously concerned about the many ongoing cases of arbitrary detention. The Committee is
also concerned about the manifestly excessive and disproportionate use of force by officers
of the National Police and the armed forces, who used live ammunition during the
demonstrations that took place across the country between December 2017 and February
2018, in which 19 people reportedly lost their lives and 251 were injured. While noting
with satisfaction the establishment of a joint commission of inquiry to examine the
violations committed during those demonstrations, the Committee finds it regrettable that
the commission’s recommendations have not been implemented, notably the
recommendation regarding the launching of investigations (arts. 2, 12, 13 and 16).
29.
The Committee urges the State party to:
(a)
Immediately release all persons who remain in custody for having
defended their opinions or demonstrated peacefully, and guarantee the payment of
compensation to victims of arbitrary detention;
(b)
Ensure that political opponents, human rights defenders and other
representatives of civil society are protected from acts of intimidation and violence to
which they may be exposed because of their activities;
(c)
Implement the recommendations of the joint commission of inquiry and
undertake prompt judicial investigations into the demonstrations that took place in
December 2017 and January 2018;
(d)
See to it that the Protection Unit for Human Rights Defenders quickly
becomes operational by providing it with the necessary human and financial resources;
(e)
Ensure that impartial and thorough investigations are conducted
without delay into any allegation of excessive use of force, torture, ill-treatment or
extrajudicial executions targeting political opponents, human rights defenders and
members of civil society organizations, and bring proceedings as necessary;
(f)
Develop and implement clear guidelines on the use of force and weapons,
incorporating the principles of lawfulness, necessity and proportionality, and the
precautionary principle, and bring the laws and regulations governing the use of force
into line with international standards, in particular the Basic Principles on the Use of
Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials adopted in 1990.
Protection of the civilian population in the context of the armed conflict
30.
The Committee is deeply concerned about the serious, mass violations of human
rights and international humanitarian law that have been and continue to be committed in
several parts of the country, including the provinces of North Kivu, South Kivu and Kasai,
where summary executions, deliberate – sometimes ethnically motivated – attacks on
civilian populations, the large-scale recruitment and use of children, indiscriminate attacks,
large-scale sexual violence and the destruction of civilian property by the armed forces and
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