US EditionEx-Congolese rebel leader on trial for war crimes in Paris begins hunger strike
Roger Lumbala protests his Paris trial with a hunger strike; he faces life imprisonment for alleged war crimes during the Second Congo War, France applies universal jurisdiction.
- On Friday, Roger Lumbala, ex-Congolese rebel leader, began a hunger strike to protest his trial, which began this week; he dismissed his lawyers and refused to appear after the first day on Wednesday, announcing the strike in a statement read by Marc Sommerer.
- Under France's universal-jurisdiction law, prosecutors charge Lumbala with `criminal conspiracy to prepare crimes against humanity` and `complicity of crimes against humanity` for acts during the 1998–2003 Second Congo War.
- U.N. reports say the Congolese Rally for National Democracy committed widespread torture, executions, rape, forced labor and sexual slavery, targeting Nande and Bambuti ethnic minorities in 2002 and 2003.
- A verdict is expected Dec. 19 at the Paris criminal court in the first national-court universal-jurisdiction prosecution of a Congolese leader, with a conviction carrying a possible life sentence.
- Amid prolonged instability in eastern Congo, more than 100 active armed groups operate, and lawyers said Congo submitted extradition requests while Congolese and French ministries of justice did not immediately respond Friday.
10 Articles
10 Articles
Former Congolese rebel leader Lumbala went on hunger strike to protest his trial in France.
Associated Press News
Ex-Congolese rebel leader on trial for war crimes in Paris begins hunger strike
Ex-Congolese rebel leader Roger Lumbala has begun a hunger strike to protest his trial in France. The trial began this week over atrocities committed during the Second Congo War.
Ex-Congolese rebel leader starts hunger strike to protest Paris trial
Ex-Congolese rebel leader Roger Lumbala launched a hunger strike on Friday to protest his trial in Paris. The trial, which began Wednesday, focuses on atrocities committed during the Second Congo War, spanning 1998 to 2003. Lumbala dismissed his lawyers and refused to attend court, declaring the French judiciary lacks legitimacy over his case. He faces charges of criminal conspiracy and complicity in crimes against humanity, with a potential lif…
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