Pope Francis told to call on leaders to address impunity in DRC, South Sudan

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Pope Francis, Head of the Catholic Church

Pope Francis has been urged to publicly call on leaders of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and South Sudan to to take concrete steps to end impunity for crimes under international law.

Amnesty International said this on Tuesday  as Pope Francis began a 6-day visit to the two countries.

Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa  said improving the human rights situation in each country will not be possible without criminal accountability for atrocities committed amid the armed conflicts.

“While the DRC authorities initiated a “transitional justice” process, their efforts to actually achieve accountability and justice have proved half-hearted and hesitant. Meanwhile, South Sudanese authorities have failed to prosecute perpetrators of crimes under international law, or to establish the AU-backed Hybrid Court for South Sudan, despite provisions in two peace deals. Instead, they appear to prioritize truth over trials,” said Chagutah.

The Amnesty director added that it is essential that the authorities in each country take urgent steps to address rampant impunity for the atrocities committed during armed conflicts, which have ravaged the countries in recent decades.

Pope Francis went to DRC on 31 January and will leave the country on 3 February for South Sudan where he will be until 5 February. The last visit by a pope to the DRC — Africa’s largest Catholic nation — was 38 years ago. Pope Francis will be the first pope to visit South Sudan.

For over 25 years now, armed conflicts in the DRC have claimed millions of lives, yet both Congolese and foreign perpetrators of these crimes have largely remained unpunished. Earlier this year, a government-appointed committee submitted the first version of a “national transitional justice strategy”, which could take years to finalize and translate into action.

In 2015 and 2018, parties to South Sudan’s latest conflict committed to setting up an African Union-backed Hybrid Court for South Sudan (HCSS) to investigate and prosecute war crimes and other human rights violations committed in the conflict since December 2013. But the creation of the HCSS has been delayed, leaving little to no prospects for accountability for crimes under international law for millions of survivors and victims.

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