Secretary-General Expresses Concern over Claims that Army Is Mistreating Detained

Rebel Fighters, Desecrating Corpses in Democratic Republic of Congo

 

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:

The Secretary-General is deeply concerned about reports of alleged mistreatment of M23 (23 March Movement) detainees and desecration of corpses of M23 combatants by the Congolese armed forces.

The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) has raised this matter at the highest level with the FARDC (Forces armées de la République démocratique du Congo) and welcomes steps by the Congolese army to investigate these claims and to hold the perpetrators of these acts accountable.

In line with the United Nations Human Rights Due Diligence Policy, MONUSCO has launched the process of reviewing its support to FARDC units suspected of being involved in these incidents.

The Secretary-General calls on the Democratic Republic of the Congo to bring the perpetrators of these reported acts to justice and underlines that mistreatment of detainees is a violation of human rights and international humanitarian law.

The Secretary-General urges the parties to exercise restraint and reiterates the importance of working within the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework to address the root causes of conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

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For information media • not an official record