The Democratic Republic of Congo has established a new advisory council made up of prominent international war crimes experts as part of a broader effort to secure justice for atrocities committed during decades of conflict in the country’s east.
The Council for the Examination of Atrocities in the DRC will advise two Congolese state institutions working to gain formal recognition of crimes, strengthen accountability mechanisms and seek reparations for victims.
The initiative comes as President Felix Tshisekedi’s government intensifies its international campaign over violence in eastern Congo, where armed groups have fought for decades over territory, political influence and access to valuable mineral resources.
Millions of people are estimated to have died as a result of the conflict, which has also displaced large sections of the population and left communities vulnerable to killings, sexual violence and other abuses.
The violence has deep roots in the aftermath of Rwanda’s 1994 genocide, when many of those responsible fled across the border into eastern Congo. Their presence helped fuel repeated cycles of conflict involving local militias, foreign-backed rebel groups and regional armies.
Kinshasa last month filed a case against Rwanda at the International Court of Justice, accusing Kigali of violating international conventions covering genocide, racial discrimination and torture.
Tshisekedi has also called for international recognition of what he describes as a “silent genocide” in Congo. Addressing the United Nations General Assembly last year, he urged the creation of an international commission of inquiry to help end what he called a continuing cycle of impunity.
Fighting escalated sharply in eastern Congo last year after the AFC/M23 rebel alliance captured large areas of territory.
The United Nations and several Western governments have accused Rwanda of supporting M23, an allegation Kigali continues to deny.
The new council will be co-chaired by Congolese human rights campaigner Julienne Lusenge and Howard Morrison, a British lawyer who previously served as a judge at the International Criminal Court and the United Nations tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
Its members also include Stephen Rapp, a former United States ambassador for war crimes issues who led the prosecution of former Liberian president Charles Taylor, and Pascal Turlan, a former senior ICC official who worked on cases involving Congo.
Congolese officials hope the council’s legal expertise and international standing will support efforts to document atrocities, pursue accountability and secure compensation for victims of the country’s prolonged wars.