Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Matt Brown, mbrown@enoughproject.org, 202-468-2925

WASHINGTON – The International Contact Group on the Great Lakes of Africa meeting in The Hague is an opportunity to address political, diplomatic, security and development issues in Congo, the Enough Project said in a new report.

The body, consisting of the United States, United Kingdom, France, Belgium, the European Union, and the United Nations, will likely focus the meeting on security reform and civilian protection in eastern Congo, the continued irregularities in the Congolese political process, continued reform in the conflict minerals sector, and armed groups and regional dynamics.

The Enough Project recommends that the group pressure the Congolese government to arrest rebel leader Bosco Ntaganda and implement security sector reform. The group should also call for the disbanding of the Congolese National Election Commission and enact accountability measures for electoral fraud.

“With the recent rebellion of ICC-indicted war criminal Bosco Ntaganda in eastern Congo, and renewed questions about the involvement of Rwanda in de-stabilizing Congolese security for power and profit, The Hague seems like a fitting place for the International Contact Group to meet,” said Aaron Hall Enough Project associate director of research. “Prosperity starts with peace, and coordinated efforts to ensure that Congo is able to deliver justice to war criminals like Ntaganda and his men should be a paramount objective for the group, not only as a matter of setting global precedent, but for all those Congolese who are currently suffering and have suffered in the past from unnecessary conflict in the region.”

On the conflict mineral issue, the group should work with the U.S. Government to use the burgeoning Public Private Alliance to begin a multilateral negotiation process on an internationally agreed upon certification scheme.

"The focus on Ntaganda has also left a security vacuum in eastern Congo, which has led to a resurgence of the deadly FDLR militia and the recent killings of over 200 civilians," said Enough Project Senior Policy Analyst Sasha Lezhnev. "The US and European Special Envoys should immediately launch a mediation initiative between the Congo and Rwanda to devise a plan to deal with the FDLR's increased strength, including possible military advisors and a more robust defection strategy."

The Enough Project also urged the group to weigh in on the Lord’s Resistance Army conflict. The group should engage vigorously with governments in and outside the Great Lakes region and the A.U. to secure more capable troops to apprehend the LRA’s senior leadership and protect civilians, while deploying a sufficient number of soldiers to cover the vast area affected by the LRA.

Read the Enough Project’s recommendations for the International Contact Group.

Contact:
Global Witness: Jana Morgan at 703 795 8542 or jmorgan@globalwitness.org
Corinna Gilfillan at 202 725 8705 or cgilfillan@globalwitness.org
Enough Project: Matt Brown at 202 468 2925 or mbrown@enoughproject.org

WASHINGTON – The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) needs to issue regulations to tackle the trade in minerals fuelling conflict and human rights abuses in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a group of non-profits, investors and companies said today. A provision directing the SEC to publish rules on conflict minerals by April 2011 was passed as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

The law includes a disclosure requirement that calls on companies to determine whether their products contain conflict minerals by carrying out supply chain due diligence and to report this to the SEC. For over a decade, rebel groups and senior commanders of the Congolese national army have made millions of dollars through the illegal control of mines and trading routes, while inflicting appalling human rights abuses on the local population, including gender-based violence such as rape and sexual slavery.

“The passage of the Dodd-Frank Act has led to positive developments in eastern Congo to demilitarize mining areas,” said Corinna Gilfillan of Global Witness. “The Congolese government recently adopted a law requiring all mining and mineral trading companies operating in the DRC to carry out due diligence measures. The long delays in the rule-making process threaten to reverse this progress and undermine efforts to develop a clean minerals trade.”

Amol Mehra of the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable, said: “Armed groups and factions of the Congolese army continue to profit from the minerals trade at the expense of the civilian population. The SEC must come out with rules now to tackle this deadly trade and to provide consumers and investors with important information about companies’ efforts to take responsibility for their supply chains and sourcing practices,”

Industry groups are also spearheading due diligence programs across the global supply chain to comply with Dodd-Frank and further delays in the rules risks slowing this momentum.

“A few industry leaders are ahead of the pack basing their actions on the rules as originally proposed. Unfortunately, most companies have been reluctant to move ahead given the uncertainty of the final wording which will dictate the compliance requirements. This is an unfortunate situation and demonstrates the need for the SEC to act swiftly and issue the final rules.” said Dr. Daniel Persico of KEMET Electronics Corporation.

“Leading companies are moving forward with preparation based on the proposed rules. However, uncertainty about compliance requirements will only continue to grow until finalized regulations are issued,” said Tim Mohin of Advanced Micro Devices.

“We support the timely release of this rule as this issue is too important to delay action,” said Gary Niekerk of Intel.

“Congress has a responsibility to act to ensure that the SEC issues timely rules on conflict minerals. Congress passed the conflict mineral provision to address a humanitarian crisis, and until the SEC issues rules, Congressional intent will continue to be compromised” said Darren Fenwick, Senior Manger of Government Affairs for the Enough Project.

Companies, investors and NGOs believe that getting the rules out is an important step forward in breaking the link between conflict and minerals and that all stakeholders must work together to address the dire humanitarian crisis in eastern DRC.

It is important for the SEC to release strong rules now to ensure all affected companies bring the requisite pressure to bear to incentivize responsible sourcing from the region.

"Investors will benefit by gaining confidence that companies they own-- or may own-- are moving rapidly to ensure that their supply chains and products are free of conflict minerals", said Bennett Freeman, SVP-Sustainability Research and Policy at Calvert Investments. "Investors and consumers alike need to know that companies are undertaking appropriate due diligence to diminish this risk," Freeman added.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Matt Brown, mbrown@enoughproject.org,202-468-2925

WASHINGTON – Congo should heed growing international pressure and arrest wanted war criminal Bosco Ntaganda, the Enough Project said in a new paper. The U.S. government and other donor nations should support and pressure Congo to arrest Ntaganda and other senior commanders, according to the paper.

"Bosco Ntaganda’s mutiny provides an important opportunity for the government of Congo and international actors to take positive steps toward peace and reform in eastern Congo," said Aaron Hall, Enough Project associate director of research. "This turn of events presents the possibility that, finally, the interconnected issues of democratization, security sector reform, justice sector reform, and mineral sector reform could be addressed in conjunction with each other."

Ntaganda, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes including recruitment of child soldiers, was until recently living with impunity in Goma, DRC, as a general in the Congolese army. Last month, Ntaganda defected and launched a rebellion against the government from his stronghold in eastern DRC. This action created the ideal conditions for the Congolese government to arrest Ntaganda, according to the Enough Project report, “Taking the Terminator: Congo’s Golden Opportunity to Deliver a Warlord to Justice.”

The report recommends that the international community supports and pressures the governments of Congo and Rwanda to arrest Ntaganda and the senior commanders, urges the establishment of the Specialized Mixed-Courts system which has been provided for by the government to try war crimes in Congo, pressures the government of Congo to implement security sector reform, and asserts to the governments of Congo and Rwanda that Ntaganda is bad for business by saying that companies will not invest in minerals from rebel-held territories.

Read the Enough Project report: “Taking the Terminator:Congo’s Golden Opportunity to Deliver a Warlord to Justice.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Matt Brown, mbrown@enoughproject.org, 202-468-2925

WASHINGTON – The United States should provide urgent diplomatic leadership to support the government of the DRC to arrest Ntaganda, a coalition of human rights organizations including the Enough Project said in a letter to Secretary of State Clinton.

"We have new hope that justice might be done," the coalition said. "Ntaganda’s brutal human rights abuses over many years have affected tens of thousands of Congolese citizens in eastern Congo and his avoidance of arrest is emblematic of continued lawlessness in eastern Congo. The people of eastern Congo have long stood against impunity for serious human rights violations. Their desire for justice burns strong, especially in the face of ongoing atrocities."

Ntaganda, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes including recruitment of child soldiers, was until recently living with impunity in Goma, DRC, as a general in the Congolese army. Last month, Ntaganda defected and launched a rebellion against the government from his stronghold in eastern DRC. This action has sparked international pressure for the Congolese government to arrest Ntaganda.

"Bosco Ntaganda has become the antithesis of security and development in Congo and his continued existence in the region remains anathema to any meaningful reform—not only in eastern Congo, but the country as a whole," said Aaron Hall, Enough Project associate director of research. "The international community must leverage the fact that Bosco is bad for business to the governments of Congo and Rwanda. Push these governments to recognize the longer term economic imperative to diffuse the current situation as a means to improve the climate for any number of political, security, and economic reforms."

In the letter, the coalition that also included Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and 50 Congolese organizations, called on the US to support the Congolese government to plan and carry out the arrest of Ntaganda,press the government of Rwanda, which has backed Ntaganda in the past, to support the arrest and not provide him with sanctuary, and prioritize comprehensive security sector reform in Congo.

“We now await concrete action to lawfully arrest Ntaganda in a manner which protects civilians from any potential fallout,” the letter said. “Improved security for the population, based on the rule of law, begins with his arrest and it cannot wait any longer. The failure to arrest Ntaganda is a source of anxiety and trauma for the population of eastern Congo who fear he could launch a new wave of violence and human rights abuses as he has done in the past.”

Read the joint letter to Secretary Clinton.
 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Matt Brown, mbrown@enoughproject.org, 202-468-2925

Following President Obama’s rollout of the Atrocities Prevention Board on Monday, the Enough Project released this statement:

This is a positive step that harnesses the broad resources of the government to make the phrase ‘never again’ more than a slogan. It recognizes that addressing mass atrocities such as genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity requires the attention of all of the relevant parts of the U.S. government as well as multilateral action. The centerpiece, the Atrocities Prevention Board, will bring together senior officials from across the government – with expertise in diplomacy, humanitarian affairs, national security, intelligence, and economics – on at least a monthly basis and make them accountable for their actions. The Board must be empowered to fulfill the important task set out for it and it will ultimately be judged by its performance in effectively addressing mass atrocities. The Enough Project will work with the Board and other parts of the Administration, as well as Congress, to support U.S. efforts to protect civilians from mass atrocities and to hold the perpetrators of these crimes accountable.

Satellite Sentinel Project Press release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Jonathan Hutson, jhutson@enoughproject.org, +1-202-386-1618

WASHINGTON – The Satellite Sentinel Project (SSP) has published new imagery confirming that the Government of Sudan has dramatically increased the number of military strike aircraft at two airbases and that many are in range to fly deep into South Sudan. SSP has also documented, through the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative’s analysis of DigitalGlobe satellite imagery, craters consistent with reports that Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) aerially bombarded an apparent civilian area near a strategic bridge in Bentiu, the capital of Unity State, South Sudan.

SSP has also identified visual evidence consistent with reports of looting by Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) and southern-aligned forces at a SAF military base in the disputed border town of Heglig. The destruction or seizure of enemy property may violate international law governing the conduct of land warfare.

Enough Project  Co-founder John Prendergast said:

The increased concentration of Sudanese army and air force firepower within striking distance of its border with South Sudan signifies that we may not have yet seen the worst of the fighting. It is imperative that crisis diplomacy be enhanced, in particular by finding a way for China and the US to work together in support of a negotiated stand-down. Ultimately, the only way full-scale war will be averted is if a comprehensive peace deal can be struck that addresses the issues dividing Sudan and South Sudan, creates a process to address the escalating civil war within Sudan, and ends proxy support to each other’s rebels. If any of these issues is left unaddressed, the Sudans will continue to burn.

Harvard Carr Center for Human Rights Policy  Executive Director Charlie Clements, MD, said:

“This report documents evidence of disregard for basic laws of war by all parties to this widening conflict. All parties have responsibilities under international law to protect civilian lives and property.”

Read the latest SSP report, Escalation: Evidence of SAF and SPLA Combat Operations: http://satsentinel.org/report/escalation-evidence-saf-and-spla-combat-operations

View or download DigitalGlobe satellite imagery: http://www.flickr.com/photos/enoughproject/sets/72157629513977712/with/6958153848/

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About the Satellite Sentinel Project

The Satellite Sentinel Project, http://satsentinel.org, combines satellite imagery analysis and field reports with Google’s Map Maker to deter the resumption of full-scale civil war between North and South Sudan and to hold all parties accountable for human rights crimes. Not On Our Watch provided seed money to launch SSP. The Enough Project contributes field reports and policy analysis, and, together with Not On Our Watch, pressures policymakers by urging the public to act. Google and Trellon collaborated to design the web platform. Harvard Humanitarian Initiative provides research and leads the collection, human rights analysis, and corroboration of on-the-ground reports that contextualizes the imagery. DigitalGlobe provides satellite imagery and additional analysis.

Press release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Matt Brown, mbrown@enoughproject.org, +1-202-468-2925

WASHINGTON – The Enough Project filed a petition on April 20 against the Republic of Sudan seeking to bring attention to the widespread human rights abuses that the Sudanese government is perpetrating against its own people in the states of South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

The petition, filed before the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, alleges that the government of Sudan’s intentional bombing of civilians and denial of international humanitarian aid to populations living in the two states constitute violations of, among other things, the rights to life and property afforded these civilians under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

“Khartoum’s forces have deliberately bombed civilian homes, schools and clinics in direct violation of Sudan’s obligations under not only the African Charter, but also international human rights law and international humanitarian law,” said John Bradshaw, Enough Project executive director. “Exacerbating the situation is Khartoum’s steadfast refusal to permit international organizations to deliver desperately needed humanitarian or food aid to civilians resulting in emergency levels of food insecurity.”

When the African Commission convenes this week for one of its ordinary sessions, Sudan will submit a report on its human rights record. The draft document, recently released, contains not a word about the government’s siege in Blue Nile and South Kordofan.  At the same meeting, the Commission will consider the Enough Project’s petition, which describes a starkly different reality.

“The petition provides the African Union and the broader international community the opportunity to closely examine the most recent atrocities committed by the Sudanese government against its own people,” said Mark Quarterman, Enough Project director of research. “Dismayingly, these atrocities are nothing new; rather, they are the latest iteration in a pattern of human rights violations that Khartoum has committed against Sudanese civilians in South Sudan, South Kordofan, Blue Nile, the Abyei Area, Beja, and Darfur since at least the early 1990s.”

The international community should also take actions in the immediate term to provide technical assistance to Sudan’s opposition parties so as to enable those parties to constructively engage in political processes that will eventually allow for a fair, transparent, and inclusive constitutional process and democratic elections. 

“The time has come for the atrocities and cycle of impunity to end, and for democratic transformation to take hold in Sudan,” said Omer Ismail, Enough Project Sudan advisor. “Without a transition to a truly democratic government in Sudan, the Khartoum regime’s pattern of oppression and destruction against marginalized populations will continue as it has for decades.”

Read the full petition.

Contact: Matt Brown, mbrown@enoughproject.org, +1-202-468-2925

WASHINGTON – The international community and Congolese government must urgently agree upon a new deal to reform the Congolese military, according to a new report by 13 leading international and Congolese civil society groups. The report argues that the lack of political will to reform the security sector in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) risks not only billions of dollars of international aid but also the very stability of the country.

“At the end of the day, many of Congo’s seemingly intractable conflict-related problems can be traced back to dysfunctional security services: the army, police and courts. The Congolese government has failed to take concrete action to reform these vital institutions,” said Emmanuel Kabengele, National Coordinator of the Congolese civil society Network for Security Sector Reform and Justice. “Yet the international community has continued to sustain the government, investing money and effort with no actual return. It’s high time that donors demand that Congo engage in real army reform.”

The report, “Taking a Stand on Security Sector Reform,” was signed by 13 leading international and Congolese organizations and networks (see below for full list). It was completed after extensive research and interviews in DRC and donor countries. It argues that the army not only fails to provide security but actively preys upon the population, being one of the major perpetrators of human rights violations in the country. “An effective security sector - organized, resourced, trained and vetted - is essential to solving problems from recruitment of child soldiers, internal displacement and rape, to economic growth or the trade in conflict minerals,” says the report.

The report concludes that the main reason for the failure of army reform in DRC is a lack of political will from parts of the Congolese government – notably those elements which have benefited from endemic corruption.

“The very people in senior positions of the government and military who are responsible for effecting reform continue to profit from the current army, either in raking off salaries of servicemen, kickbacks, or involvement in illegal mining, trade or protection rackets,” said Dismas Kitenge, President of the Congolese organization, Groupe Lotus and Vice-President of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).

The paper underscores the critical role the international community must play. In just 5 years, the report documents, donor countries alone have invested more than $14 billion into the DRC. Yet only one percent, or $140 million, was spent on security sector reform. International aid is now equivalent to nearly half of the DRC’s annual budget. As such, donors have considerable leverage over Congo. Yet despite this enormous investment, the DRC has actually gone backwards. The DRC is ranked last in the world on the UN’s main development index.

“The international community’s investment in DRC has yielded poor results. Numerous armed groups send thousands of child soldiers into battle, and women and children continue to bear the brunt of violence. Adequate health care and personal security remain the exception rather than the rule,” said Ben Affleck, actor, director and Founder of Eastern Congo Initiative (ECI). “Donors must work to convince the Congolese government to undertake drastic military reform. Unless a new course of action is adopted, we run the risk of losing much of the investment that has already been made.”

The costs of accepting the status quo are high for the Congolese people but also for the international community. In addition to the traditional donors – US, EU, UK, France and Belgium – key partners such as China, South Africa, and Angola all have a vested interest in the stability and long-term prosperity of the DRC.

“The new government must seize the opportunity to refocus attention on implementing sustainable and effective reform,” said Pascal Kambale from the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA). “Now is the time for the international community and Congolese government to work together to reform the police and army so that Congo is capable of protecting its own civilians.”

Read the full report: “Taking a Stand on Security Sector Reform”

The following organizations have signed on to this press release:

Eastern Congo Initiative (ECI)

The Enough Project

Eurac: European Network for Central Africa

International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)

OENZ: Ecumenical Network for Central Africa

Open Society Initiative for Southern African (OSISA)

Refugees International

UK All-Party Parliamentary Group on the Great Lakes Region of Africa (APPG)

African Association of Human Rights (Association Africaine des Droits de l’Homme (ASADHO))

Congolese Network for Security Sector Reform and Justice

Groupe Lotus

League of Voters (Ligue des Electeurs)

Pole Institute: Intercultural Institute for Peace in the Great Lakes Region

Contact: Jonathan Hutson, jhutson@enoughproject.org, +1-202-386-1618

WASHINGTON – Bosco Ntaganda, the Congolese warlord wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes, lived for years in a comfortable villa in Goma, rubbing elbows with humanitarian workers, Congolese security officials, and in plain view of United Nations peacekeeping mission. Despite his war criminal status, he has remained able to consolidate power and move freely throughout the region with total impunity while amassing a fortune from exploitation of the region’s illicit minerals trade according to a new Enough Project fact sheet that sheds light on the recently defected former general.

Ntaganda, a Congolese Tutsi with links to the government of Rwanda, fought for years with various rebel groups in both Rwanda and Congo before taking over the Rwandan-backed rebel group the CNDP in 2009. At that point Ntaganda’s forces were integrated into the Congolese army in a still opaque peace deal between Rwanda and Congo. Since then he has continued a campaign of corruption, murder, rape, extortion and intimidation, under the umbrella of the Congolese state security apparatus.

Recently, under still murky circumstances, Ntaganda along with some of his forces defected from the Congolese army and retreated to a stronghold north of Goma. Last week, while visiting Goma, Congolese president Joseph Kabila called for Ntaganda’s arrest, making a break with years of tacit official support for Ntanganda’s crimes.

“Ntaganda has been called both a war criminal and a lynchpin to regional stability,” said the Enough Project paper. “Yet as a member and leader of several armed groups, he has left a bloody trail across the eastern Congo.”

Read the fact sheet, “Who is Bosco Ntaganda: Lynchpin to Security or International War Criminal?”