66th session of the Committee against Torture (CAT) Consideration of the report of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
April 20191. Since the publication in 2007 by the Committee against Torture of the List of Issues inviting the state to prepare its second report, the context in the country has evolved considerably with numerous cases of torture and an increase in arbitrary detentions and cases of ill-treatment, particularly against human rights defenders and activists. The state should have submitted its report on 16 April 2009, but did not do so until July 2017, eight years later. Offering an alternative response to the report submitted by the Congolese state, this report extends beyond the period from 2007 to 2017 to also address events and incidents that have occurred from 2017 to the present day.
2. The report reviews the security and political challenges encountered by DRC over the last 13 years. It shows how the governments have progressively distorted legal and institutional reforms introduced with a view to implementing the recommendations of the CAT and the new constitution of 2006 to build an almost informal structure of liberty deprivation and torture. The objective of those choices was to repress citizen-led and political dynamics opposed to former President Joseph Kabila, who was holding onto power in a de facto and unconstitutional manner.
3. To facilitate the commission of acts of torture, the government fostered a climate of silence and secrecy. It exploited the intercommunal conflicts occurring in several regions of the country, encouraged secret detention in cells and detention facilities outside the scope of the judiciary and established a culture of impunity. As a result, sexual violence remains widespread and is used as a weapon of war.
4. The election of a new President in January 2019 represents an opportunity to adopt measures to more effectively fight torture in the country, particularly by dismantling the structures that continues to legitimize it.
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