La Lettre

FIDH Newsletter

The Great Lakes AFRICA

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Context

Justice in the Great Lakes:
the prerequisite necessary to any hope of finding a solution to the conflicts.

>>This is no revelation but rather an acknowledgement. Unfortunately it is now superfluous as it has been both recognised and universally accepted that justice cannot be put to one side if the conflicts are to find a long-term solution.

In fact, it is still extremely difficult for those countries and regions in crisis to contemplate a truly independent and impartial legal system which can play a full role in the reconciliation process. It is actually a big temptation to put a law in place in favour of those who are victorious and to forget that the supporters of those currently in power could equally be found guilty of violations subject to legal proceedings.

Successive tragedies

The Great Lakes region, having lived through successive tragedies over several years, sees the establishment of an independent legal system as an absolute necessity. Human Rights defenders in the region consequently quite naturally wished to take up this theme at the meeting organised by the FIDH in Tanzania on 18th to 20th April. During the extension to the Darda seminar, this time at Arusha, this meeting brought militants of all the different Rwandan and Burundi organisations together with representatives of the Great Lakes League (LDGL). In recalling all the justice-related issues linked with the region, the participants did not forget themes such as the Gacaca jurisdictions or the state of emergency currently prevailing in Burundi. The three days of meetings allowed the different themes to be explored more deeply and ensured that major concerns and recommendations were articulated. The meeting was also an opportunity for evaluating the impact of the ICTR whose headquarters is actually at Arusha.

A visit to the International Tribunal gave rise to lively but constructive discussions and brought some major problems to light. As well as dysfunctions of a technical and material origin, more serious were those that prevent the Rwandan population de facto from accepting the justice administered by this tribunal. It is in fact extremely worrying to note that the tribunal is perceived by many as being a "luxury machine" administering a law intended for "luxury prisoners" using a variety of methods at an incomprehensibly slow rate.

These different factors combined with the estrangement of the court makes the tribunal's work barely accessible to the Rwandan population and thus obviates any educational virtue of the ad hoc tribunal.

Those participating in the meeting also underlined the large imbalance between the means allocated to the tribunal and the small number of successful lawsuits. They articulated the necessity of establishing internal and external monitoring using local and international organisations to induce the tribunal to accomplish its mission of justice towards genocide victims.

The tribunal is perceived by many as being a "luxury machine"
administering a law intended for "luxury prisoners"

A wide-ranging plan of campaign against impunity

The participants also articulated their wish for a genuine follow-up to this meeting through the FIDH's legal and judicial cooperation programmes in the region or through the creation or implementation of an alarm network which would allow legal proceedings to be instituted against the alleged perpetrators of crimes committed in the region. Also mentioned as a priority for those countries affected was a project to launch a wide-ranging plan of campaign against impunity and the implementation of a system where the administration of justice could be guaranteed through a just and equitable trial. Within this context it is essential to give a great deal of thought to the Rwandan laws that excessively prolong the delays for those remanded in custody since the genocide.

Many leads have been started and the FIDH will obviously undertake to either relay them to the International community or participate in their implementation.

Emmanuelle Duverger

*The Darda seminar, organised by the FIDH in November 1997, brought Human Rights organisations from Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo together in Chad. Its aim is to establish a network of alarm and vigilance between the different organisations within the context of preventing conflicts within the region.

Interview with Willy Nindorera

Willy Nindorera is a member of the management committee of the League of Rights of the Individual in the Great Lakes region (see box) and the person responsible for political matters.

Is the work of the Great Lakes League not made too difficult by the conflicts that pit Burundi and Rwanda against the Congo?

Yes, the truth must be acknowledged. Most of the problems are between the Kivu associations, the RDC member associations being mainly Kivu associations and the other associations. However, there are also problems between the associations in the Congo and Rwanda because of the effects of the Congolese conflict which I deplore, as Human Rights are universal. Everybody should have the same understanding of these rights and share the same point of view concerning the issues affecting the region. On one side as on the other, however, the associations are sometimes slightly politicised and in the case of the Congo some associations denounce the occupations by Rwandan forces. This is understandable but it sometimes results in a tendency to swing to the opposite extreme - towards simplistic anti-Tutsi racism.

On the Rwandan side there are some associations that in my opinion hold a point of view that is quite similar to that of the government in many ways and they should ask themselves if they are truly Human Rights associations. Whenever these different associations meet together it becomes very difficult to harmonise the many different points of view and to successfully manage the meetings.

Do the difficulties and the politicisation of some of the associations represent a danger for Human Rights defenders?

It's a reality in the Great Lakes region. I am not saying that all of the associations are infiltrated but some of them are. The government is always keen to infiltrate an association and insist upon its own point of view, especially when the associations have a certain notoriety and a certain credibility. I have given a few examples but it is not the case for everybody. For Burundi the Iteka League is an organisation known for its independence. In Rwanda there are associations known for their independence whereas others are quite close to the government. In Kivu you wonder if some associations - judging by the positions they hold - are really Human Rights associations or if they are organisations for the promotion of political propaganda.

When the NGOs and the press, who should normally play the role of opposing force and pressure group, do not perform this task as they should it creates a problem. Even if some of them do, it does not carry as much weight as if all the organisations were more or less united in this fight.

What are the future prospects for the Great Lakes region?

That's an extremely complicated question. Nobody can say what the future prospects are for the Great Lakes region as a whole as even the different conflicts in Burundi, Rwanda and the Congo interact to some extent. I am going to say a few things that might perhaps come as a surprise. Burundi is perhaps the country which finds itself in the most worrying position today because the violence there is such as has never been known before - in spite of it having signed a peace agreement eight months ago (…) In Rwanda on the other hand you have a situation of stability and relative peace. However the absence of debate within Rwandan society and the silence of Human Rights associations and the media could mean that this same country could find itself faced with very serious problems before very long - problems that unfortunately it may not see coming. As for the Congo a new order has arrived with "the father's son" which has re-ignited the peace process. Even though there are still many problems it is to be hoped that this process is on the right track today.

Broadly speaking it's necessary to be realistic. There are still many problems that make us feel quite pessimistic about the immediate future at least.

Interview by E.D.