Democratic Republic of Congo
08.01.03
Urgent Interventions
DRC: President of NGO la Voix des Sans Voix, compelled to clandestinity
Case COD 110102
Incommunicado detention / ill-treatment
The International Secretariat of the OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the fol-lowing situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Brief description of the facts
The International Secretariat of the OMCT has been informed by La voix des sans voix des droits de l'homme (VSV), member of the OMCT network, that Messrs. Zelokata Baratomo, Koma Zongo Yvon and José Venze were apprehended by several agents of the Rapid Inter-vention Police Force (PIR) in the night of 30 to 31 December 2001 and taken to the PIR Na-tional Legion at Avenue de la Victoire, in the commune of Kasa-Vubu.
After their respective families located them on Tuesday January 1st, 2002 the three prisoners were transferred on Friday January 4th, 2002, without the knowledge of their families, to the DEMIAP prison at Sicotra Beach in Kinshasa/Gombe. The victims are currently in detention and not allowed to receive visitors, and so far they have not been informed of the reason for their arrest.
Shortly after his investiture, President Joseph Kabila decided, on March 8th, 2001, to close all the prisons that did not come under the jurisdiction of military courts. This measure applied to the detention centres managed by the Détection Militaire des Activités Anti-Patrie (DE-MIAP) ("Military Detection of Unpatriotic Activities") and in particular the infamous OUAGADOUGOU prison.
According to our information, this prison owes its notoriety to the conditions that prevail in it: overpopulation, absence of hygiene, torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. Furthermore, not only are prisoners forbidden to receive visitors, but the food brought to them by their families is only passed on to them by the prison guards if the families accept to pay the guards first.
OMCT expresses its deep concern for the physical and psychological integrity of the afore-mentioned detained persons and fears that they may be tortured during their detention.
Action requested
We request you kindly to write to the authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo asking them to:
i. take all necessary measures to safeguard the physical and psychological integrity of Messrs. Zelokata Baratomo, Koma Zongo Yvon and José Venze;
ii. guarantee them the right to receive visits by their families and legal counsel;
iii. order their immediate release in the absence of any valid accusations, or if appropriate, to bring them before an impartial and competent court while safeguarding their procedural rights at all times;
iv. ensure respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms all over the country, accord-ing to national laws and international standards.
Addresses
§ H.E President Joseph Kabila. Présidence de la République, Kinshasa-Ngaliema, De-mocratic Republic of the Congo ; Fax (+ 243) 880 02 120
§ Minister of Justice, Ministère de la Justice, BP 3137, Kinshasa Gombé, Democratic Republic of the Congo ; Fax : (+243) 880 55 21
§ Minister of Human Rights, Ministère des droits humains, Democratic Republic of the Congo; Fax : (+243) 12 20 664
Please also write to the diplomatic representative of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in your country.
Geneva January 11th, 2002
Incommunicado detention / ill-treatment
The International Secretariat of the OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the fol-lowing situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Brief description of the facts
The International Secretariat of the OMCT has been informed by La voix des sans voix des droits de l'homme (VSV), member of the OMCT network, that Messrs. Zelokata Baratomo, Koma Zongo Yvon and José Venze were apprehended by several agents of the Rapid Inter-vention Police Force (PIR) in the night of 30 to 31 December 2001 and taken to the PIR Na-tional Legion at Avenue de la Victoire, in the commune of Kasa-Vubu.
After their respective families located them on Tuesday January 1st, 2002 the three prisoners were transferred on Friday January 4th, 2002, without the knowledge of their families, to the DEMIAP prison at Sicotra Beach in Kinshasa/Gombe. The victims are currently in detention and not allowed to receive visitors, and so far they have not been informed of the reason for their arrest.
Shortly after his investiture, President Joseph Kabila decided, on March 8th, 2001, to close all the prisons that did not come under the jurisdiction of military courts. This measure applied to the detention centres managed by the Détection Militaire des Activités Anti-Patrie (DE-MIAP) ("Military Detection of Unpatriotic Activities") and in particular the infamous OUAGADOUGOU prison.
According to our information, this prison owes its notoriety to the conditions that prevail in it: overpopulation, absence of hygiene, torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. Furthermore, not only are prisoners forbidden to receive visitors, but the food brought to them by their families is only passed on to them by the prison guards if the families accept to pay the guards first.
OMCT expresses its deep concern for the physical and psychological integrity of the afore-mentioned detained persons and fears that they may be tortured during their detention.
Action requested
We request you kindly to write to the authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo asking them to:
i. take all necessary measures to safeguard the physical and psychological integrity of Messrs. Zelokata Baratomo, Koma Zongo Yvon and José Venze;
ii. guarantee them the right to receive visits by their families and legal counsel;
iii. order their immediate release in the absence of any valid accusations, or if appropriate, to bring them before an impartial and competent court while safeguarding their procedural rights at all times;
iv. ensure respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms all over the country, accord-ing to national laws and international standards.
Addresses
§ H.E President Joseph Kabila. Présidence de la République, Kinshasa-Ngaliema, De-mocratic Republic of the Congo ; Fax (+ 243) 880 02 120
§ Minister of Justice, Ministère de la Justice, BP 3137, Kinshasa Gombé, Democratic Republic of the Congo ; Fax : (+243) 880 55 21
§ Minister of Human Rights, Ministère des droits humains, Democratic Republic of the Congo; Fax : (+243) 12 20 664
Please also write to the diplomatic representative of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in your country.
Geneva January 11th, 2002