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February 8, 2011

Bemba trial witness raped in front of his family: “I felt as if I was a dying man”

By Jonathan Venet

The trial of Jean-Pierre Bemba, former Vice President of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and former leader of the Movement for the Liberation of Congo (MLC), started on 22 November 2010. Originally scheduled for 27 April 2010, this trial represents a milestone in the history of international justice for a variety of reasons.

For one, the scale and nature of the violence perpetrated:  Jean-Pierre Bemba is prosecuted for mass rape, murder and pillaging. So far, witnesses’ testimonies show that sexual violence was extremely prevalent  in Central African Republic (CAR) and committed in horrific circumstances. Jean-Pierre Bemba is also the highest-ranking official appearing before the ICC to date. In addition, the sheer number of victims that have applied and have been granted the right to participate in the proceedings is unprecedented.

Following the Chamber’s most recent decision, the number of victims participating now stands at 1,312. The victims are represented by two Central African lawyers, namely Ms Marie-Edith Douzima and Mr Assingambi Zarambaud. On appointing them, the Chamber emphasised the importance of respecting “local traditions”, and ensuring that common legal representatives spoke their clients’ language, shared their culture and knew their realities.

As the trial proceeds, the Judges have the opportunity to hear firsthand accounts of the violence suffered in CAR. Forty Prosecution witnesses are expected to testify before the Judges and those who have come so far, have recounted horrific experiences. Asked about she felt, witness 22 who was gang raped by MLC troops, responded: “That day in my mind, when they brutalised me […] I wanted to commit suicide.” Another witness indicated that she was raped by two MLC soldiers while a third stepped on her arms to make sure she remained on the ground. On the same day, her sister-in-law was also gang-raped by three soldiers. As for witness 23, he recounted that over a period of four days, MLC soldiers repeatedly raped his children and his wives. They also shot one of his wives dead. Later on, he recounted how three MLC soldiers eventually raped him for about four hours, in front of his entire family. When asked how he felt being raped in front of his wives and children, he responded: “I felt as if I was a dying man”. The severe pain and suffering described so far by witnesses is notable. It would appear that these horrific acts were perpetrated with specific intent, such as to terrorise the population, using rape as a weapon of war. While the acts might well also amount to torture, this charge was specifically dropped by Pre Trial Chamber II.

While the scale of the crimes committed is being proven through the direct testimony of victims, it is more difficult to demonstrate Jean-Pierre Bemba’s responsibility as a commander. The Prosecution has a challenging case ahead, where it will have to prove that Bemba failed to prevent, repress, or investigate the mass crimes committed by his subordinates.

While many victims are participating in this trial, the fate of numerous other victims of MCL troops, both in CAR and DRC, who do not qualify for participation in the Bemba case, must also be considered. Here, the Trust Fund for Victims of the ICC could play an important role, engaging with affected communities under its assistance mandate. A decision relating to the Trust Fund’s mandate to provide assistance in CAR is long awaited. There has been a longstanding stalemate in this matter, whereby an initial submission from the Trust Fund to the Chamber was made in October 2009, along the same basis as identical submissions made for the DRC and Uganda, but was rejected by the Chamber with respect to CAR.

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