Digital Dialogue Series focuses on the fight against impunity for conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) in the Central African Republic (CAR)
This fourth session of the Digital Dialogue Series focuses on the fight against impunity for conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) in the Central African Republic (CAR). This webinar is part of the Digital Dialogue Series that address progresses and challenges related to the fight against impunity for CRSV at the national level. The series is organized by the UN Team of Experts (ToE) on the Rule of Law and Sexual Violence in Conflict and its partners. Mr. Renaud Galand, Deputy Director, Justice and Corrections Services, Department of Peacekeeping Operations facilitates this session. Panelists are (in order of appearance):
1) Mr. Yao Agbetse, United Nations Independent Expert on the Human Rights situation in CAR,
2) Mr. Patrick Vinck, Director of Research at the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative,
3) Ms. Rosine Bela Eyebe, deployed to the Justice and Penitentiary Affairs Section of MINUSCA by the United Nations Team of Experts on Rule of Law and Conflict-Related Sexual Violence,
4) Mr. Benoît Narcisse Foukpio, First Advocate General at the Bangui Court of Appeal, and coordinator of the working group of focal points on sexual and gender-based violence of the Ministry of Justice,
5) Mr. Toussaint Muntazini, Special Prosecutor at the Special Criminal Court, and
6) Mrs. Anne-Marie Goumba, director of the NGO “Les Flamboyants”
*********
The magnitude of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) in CAR is well documented. Committed by members of the national army (FACA), different armed groups, and International peacekeeping forces, victims are girls, boys, women and men, mostly from 5 to 60 years old. CRSV are used “to submit, to despise, to humiliate, to dehumanize, and to destroy the dignity of the victims in a permanent way. Victims become objects that can be used and abused.” The consequences are at multiple levels, medical, psychological, material and societal.
Since 2017, surveys among the CAR adult population have shown the necessity to address social dynamics linked to this type of violence, such as the perception that sexual violence needs to be resolved in / between families, and the many barriers that victims face in filling a complaint. On the positive side, complaints have increased over time, despite no increase in the incidence of sexual violence, and the efforts to fight against sexual violence are perceived very positive including the efforts by the State. This positive perception could more generally contribute to peace efforts. As such, the consultation of victims, which reflect the approach adopted by Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, is crucial.
The CAR ordinary justice system has several procedures to address CRSV. Notably, victims have three points of entry in the legal procedure: to lodge a complaint with the judicial police or the public prosecutor, a direct referral to the court, or a referral to the investigating judge as a civil party.
At the national level, several progress have been made: the creation and operationalization of the Mixed Unit for Rapid Intervention and Repression of Sexual Violence to Women and Children (UMIRR) in 2015 and 2017; the creation of the Special Criminal court in 2015; and the recent promulgation of the Truth, Justice, Reconciliation and Reparation Commission (CVJRR) in 2020.
Despite this progress, challenges remain for the ordinary justice system: 1) Insecurity of the judicial personnel in localities occupied by armed forces; 2) the documentation of CRSV cases and the difficulty for the judicial police to do their work; and 3) the lack of a system to protect witnesses and victims.
The judiciary system has the national and international legal instruments to fight impunity for CRSV, but more is needed to ensure the security of the judicial personnel, to strengthen the capacities of actors responsible for investigating and prosecuting sexual violence, and to solve documentation challenges and develop a database on sexual violence.
The Special Criminal Court (SCC) was created to fight impunity for serious crimes committed in CAR since 2003. Three mechanisms help the SCC to address CRSV: 1) the Rules of Procedure and Evidence; 2) the Strategy of Investigation and Prosecution, and 3) the interaction between the SCC and victims.
The Rules of Procedure and Evidence governs the procedure of the CPS including ensuring the confidentiality and security of victims and witnesses and sanctioning anyone who discloses information that may affect the safety, well-being and protection of victims. The Strategy helps selecting the SCC cases. A key criterion is the severity of the crime, which encompasses CRSV. Interacting with victims is crucial so that trust can be established. This is accomplished through the communication and outreach unit in collaboration with civil society and different organizations, to explain the mandate, the difficulties, and how they can interact safely with the SCC.
Often victims of CRSV have lost everything; dignity, house, work, assets. Many are still in camps, in a host family, or with their parents, often with young children. Victims need support to move on with their life; that could be a house, a place where they would not be stigmatized, or work to generate some income and provide for their needs and those of their children. Victims need reparations. Those could be moral in nature, and psychological such as a monument or museum, or awareness programs in schools. But beyond support, they also need to be accompanied in their reintegration into the community.
The full webinar, conducted in French, can be accessed here: https://bit.ly/3lFrmKk
