Impunity reigns supreme in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), fueling recurring conflicts and perpetuating the most serious crimes, including those of a sexual and sexist nature. This culture of impunity is a major obstacle to the establishment of a rule of law and the restoration of lasting peace. This is the bleak picture painted by Dr. Mukwege, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, in his statement on transitional justice in the DRC.
Decades of Dictatorship and Conflict
Decades of dictatorship and conflict have plunged the DRC into chaos and desolation, eroding the rule of law and undermining citizens’ trust in their institutions’ ability to deliver justice. The Congolese judicial system, ill-equipped and dysfunctional, fails to put an end to this culture of impunity for past and present mass crimes.
A Tireless Advocacy for Transitional Justice
For years, Dr. Mukwege has tirelessly advocated alongside victims for the implementation of all mechanisms of transitional justice, taking into account the international dimension of conflicts. The expression of political will by the President of the Republic to place transitional justice on the government’s agenda in December 2020 had raised hopes for a national transitional justice strategy.
A Holistic National Transitional Justice Strategy: A Necessity
The Panzi Foundation, in June 2021, published a “Advocacy Note for the Adoption of a Holistic National Transitional Justice Strategy in the DRC,” emphasizing the need to combine judicial and non-judicial mechanisms to end impunity and ensure non-repetition.
A National Transitional Justice Policy Project: A Step Forward A national transitional justice policy project (PNJT) was submitted in December 2022, including a national policy draft, a transitional justice framework bill, the creation of mixed specialized chambers, and a timeline for the entire process.
A Call to Action
While the President signed the law relating to the protection and repair of victims of sexual violence related to conflicts and victims of crimes against peace and humanity’s security, Dr. Mukwege insists on the need to adopt a national policy and a holistic national transitional justice strategy integrating all mechanisms.
For a Holistic Justice
For Dr. Mukwege, victims of mass atrocities committed over decades in the DRC deserve holistic justice, including justice, truth, reparations, and guarantees of non-repetition. Only in these terms can we speak of reconciliation and complete the transition from dictatorship to democracy and from war to peace.
Dr. Mukwege’s statement is a call to action, an alarm call for the DRC, and the whole world, to take seriously the need for transitional justice to end the culture of impunity rampant in this country. It is a call for responsibility, ethics, and justice for all.
The editorial team