« All I want is reparation »November 2017 / N° 705a

Views of victims of sexual violence about reparation in the
Bemba case before the International Criminal Court

In memory of Maitre Goungaye Wanfiyo,First lawyer mandated by the victims in the Bemba case before the International Criminal Court,
President of the Central African Human Rights League

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abbreviations

5

Executive Summary

6

Introduction

8

I. Crimes of sexual violence committed in the Central African Republic
since 2002
1.1. CAR, a battlefield since 2002
1.2. Sexual Violence
1.3. The crimes falling under Jean-Pierre Bemba’s responsibility

11
11
12
14

II. The judicial response to crimes of sexual violence

17

17
2.1. The total absence of legal response at the national level2.2. The Bemba case before the International Criminal Court: some scant justice for the18
victims of sexual violence
2.3. The Mandate of the Special Criminal Court and its complementarity with the International
19
Criminal Court

III. Reparation: a fundamental issue for the victims of sexual and genderbased violence
3.1 Legal framework, participation and eligibility
3.2. The demands for reparation by victims of sexual violence
3.2.1 Timely reparation provided by Jean-Pierre Bemba
3.2.2 Reparation with individual repercussions
3.2.3 Types of reparation sought

20
20
23
23
24
24

A) Restitution and compensationa) The poverty caused by the attacks perpetrated by the Banyamulengueb) Restitutionc) Compensation

24
24
25
25

B) Rehabilitationa) Medical supporti) Physical injury and unwanted pregnanciesii) HIViii) Corruption in medical servicesb) Psychological supporti) Psychological harm suffered by direct victimsii) Psychological harm suffered by children and spousesiii) Types of supportc) Awareness-raising to combat stigmatizationi) Stigmatization of the victims of sexual violence and their childrenii) Victims abandoned by their spousesiii) Discrimination against widows and unmarried womeniv) Difficulties being in an intimate relationshipv) Awareness-raising programmes for the populationd) Professional education and traininge) Income-generating activitiesf) Housing assistance

26
26
26
27
28
29
29
29
29
30
30
31
32
32
32
33
34
35

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »3C) Satisfactiona) The conviction and sentencing of Jean-Pierre Bembab) Testimony/presentation of viewss and concernsi) The relief brought by telling the story of the violenceii) Health consequences for the victimsiii) Reactions in communitiesiv) Failure to provide adequate psychological support at the Court

4

35
35
35
35
36
36
36

Conclusion

38

Recommendations

40

1. To the Trial Chamber III of the ICC
2. To the Trust Fund for Victims of the ICC
3. To the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court
4. To the Support Units of the Special Criminal Court and its bodies
5. To the Authorities in the Central African Republic

40
41
41
42
42

Appendix - List of people met

43

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »ABBREVIATIONSCAR 		

Central African Republic

DRC 		

Democratic Republic of the Congo

ICC 		

International Criminal Court

FACA 		

Central African Armed Forces

FIDH 		

International Federation for Human Rights

HIV 		

Human Immunodeficiency Virus

LCDH 		

Central African Human Rights League

LRA 		

Lord’s Resistance Army

MINUSCA

United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in theCentral 		African Republic

MLC 		

Movement for the Liberation of the Congo

OCDH 		

Central African Human Rights Observatory

OCODEFAD

Organization for Compassion and Development of Families in Distress

OPCV 		

Office of the Public Counsel for Victims at the International Criminal Court

SCC 		

Special Criminal Court

TFV 		

Trust Fund for Victims at the International Criminal Court

UNDP 		

United Nations Development Programme

UNESCO

United Nations Organization for Education, Science and Culture

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »5

Executive Summary
International crimes, including rape and other crimes of sexual violence perpetrated by various forces
and armed groups during the multiple conflicts that have ravaged the Central African Republic (CAR)
since 2002, remain unpunished. Until now, only the International Criminal Court (ICC) has begun torespond to the injustices committed against the victims of these crimes. In 2016, the ICC sentenced
Jean-Pierre Bemba for serious crimes committed between October 2002 and March 2003 by his
troops. Bemba, former Vice-President of the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)and Commander of the Movement for the Liberation of the Congo (MLC), had come to support former
president Ange-Félix Patassé against an attempted coup d’état by François Bozizé, who became thePresident of CAR in March 2003. Jean-Pierre Bemba was found responsible in his capacity as militarycommander for murder, rape and pillage constituting crimes against humanity and war crimes, andwas sentenced to 18 years of imprisonment. This sentence is the first to be handed down by theInternational Criminal Court for crimes of sexual violence. The Court must now issue reparation orders
for the more than 5000 victims participating in the proceedings, and potentially for others who have
yet to be identified.
The attacks carried out by the troops of Jean-Pierre Bemba (known as Banyamulengue) werecharacterised by extreme violence against the victims as well as by the systematic pillaging of homes,
which were also sometimes destroyed. Stripped of all their assets and resources, victims continue tosuffer serious physical and psychological consequences which at times have meant they are unable
to work even many years after the attacks. These consequences have condemned the victims to livein situations of extreme vulnerability and poverty. The victims live in a state of extreme deprivation,and have never received appropriate care or assistance from their Government or the international
community. Now that the ICC is about to define reparation to the victims more than fifteen years after
the violent events took place, many are deceased, many are ill and know they will soon be gone, andall are waiting impatiently for help to alleviate their suffering and meet the needs of their families. The
slow pace of the proceedings is causing many of the victims to feel discouraged and desperate. In
fact, while the proceedings were underway, the country was ravaged by a number of other conflicts
with similar consequences.
The survivors with whom the delegation met lost everything in the attacks in 2002 and 2003. Victimsof rape and other forms of sexual violence, they have suffered grave physical and psychologicalconsequences. Most of them have lost their housing and means of subsistence. The youngest have
had to halt their studies. They have been stigmatized and rejected by their families and communities.
The seriousness of the crimes and their consequences make it difficult if not impossible for the original
circumstances of the victims to be restored. Nevertheless, that is what the victims want: for what they
have lost and what they could have had (lost opportunities) to be restored, insofar as this is possible.
The needs of the victims with whom we have met are many. They need all of the types of reparation
provided for under the ICC Statute and in its jurisprudence. The victims have shared with the delegationfrom FIDH their urgent need for medical care, psychological support, materials to build houses forthemselves and their families, furniture, farming implements to work the fields, financing for small
businesses to provide for their basic needs, adult education programmes, assistance to pay for school
enrolment fees for their children, and programmes to raise awareness in their communities to mitigate
the stigmatization arising from the sexual violence they have endured. Most of the victims encountered
have nevertheless said that they would like to receive reparation in the form of financial compensation,
considering the extreme corruption that is prevalent in the country. In fact, they expressed a complete
lack of trust in the infrastructure of the Central African Republic, saying that they feared that they would
never benefit from the reparation unless it was directly given to each of them individually.

6

FIDH - « Tout ce que j’attends, c’est la réparation »Regarding the source of the reparations, some people indicated that they wished to receive reparationfrom Jean-Pierre Bemba. Given that most of his assets might be consumed to pay his legal fees, it isunlikely that those assets will suffice to cover all of his debt towards the victims. The Trust Fund forVictims (TFV) created by the ICC will definitely have to allocate a significant sum for the financing of
the reparations to supplement the contribution of Jean-Pierre Bemba.
Significant time has elapsed since the crimes were committed. The victims are extremely vulnerable
and impoverished and have experienced multiple re-victimizations. Corruption is generalized in theCentral African Republic and an atmosphere of extreme insecurity persists as a result of repeatedarmed conflicts, in a humanitarian situation that continues to worsen even today. All of these factors
add layers of complexity to the ICC’s task of providing reparation through the Trust Fund for Victims.
Furthermore, the Court will have to coordinate its strategy and action taking into consideration
upcoming cases linked to the crimes committed since 2013 by the Séléka and anti-Balaka armed
groups that are currently under investigation. The ICC will also have to coordinate with the Special
Criminal Court (SCC), a hybrid tribunal in charge of investigating and prosecuting the perpetrators ofserious human rights violations and breaches of international humanitarian law committed since 2003
in the Central African Republic. The key issue will be to guarantee the consistency and harmonizationof the reparation measures granted to the victims, for crimes that are sometimes similar and could
have been committed over the same time periods.

FIDH - « Tout ce que j’attends, c’est la réparation »7

Introduction
FIDH has worked since 2002 with the Central African Human Rights League (LCDH) to document
the crimes committed between October 2002 and March 2003 in the Central African Republic.
FIDH advocated against the impunity of these crimes and for an investigation to be opened
before the International Criminal Court.
Between 2002 and 2006, FIDH and LCDH conducted four investigative missions to document war
crimes and crimes against humanity, including crimes of sexual violence committed between
2002 and 2003, as well as two national advocacy missions and a seminar on the ICC1. At thesame time, between 2005 and 2008, FIDH organized several information-sharing and strategy
meetings at ICC headquarters in the Hague between representatives of its respective leagues - the
LCDH and, at the time the Organisation pour la compassion et le développement des familles endétresse (OCODEFAD) (the organization for compassion and development of families in distress)- and the Office of the Prosecutor and Registry of the ICC. In the course of those meetings, FIDH
underscored the seriousness of the crimes of sexual violence and the grave consequences of
those crimes for the victims in an attempt to prompt the opening of an investigation by the Court
for these crimes, and to raise awareness among the Court representatives regarding the situation.
The information sent by FIDH, which from the beginning emphasized the seriousness of the crimesof sexual violence, contributed to the decision of the ICC Prosecutor to open an investigation in
May 20072. That information also made it possible to establish much of the context and evidence
used by the Office of the Prosecutor, the legal representatives of the victims and the judges of
the ICC3.

1. 	See the following FIDH reports on crimes committed in 2002/2003 [all reports in French only – English titles for
information purposes only]:- « Crimes de guerre en République centrafricaine » (War Crimes in the Central African Republic), February 2003
[https://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/cf355f.pdf].
- « Quelle justice pour les victimes de crimes de guerre » (No Justice for the Victims of War Crimes), February 2004
[https://www.fidh.org/fr/themes/justice-internationale/Quelle-justice-pour-les-victimes].
- « Fin de la transition politique sur fond d’impunité - Quelle réponse apportera la CPI ? » (Political Transition Ending
as Impunity Continues - How Will the International Criminal Court Respond?), March 2005 [https://www.fidh.org/fr/
themes/justice-internationale/cour-penale-internationale-cpi/Fin-de-la-transition-politique-sur].
- « Forgotten, stigmatised: double suffering of victims of international crimes », October 2006 [https://www.fidh.org/
en/region/Africa/Forgotten-stigmatised-double].
- « La FIDH et la situation en République centrafricaine devant la Cour pénale internationale. L’affaire Jean-Pierre Bemba
Gombo » (FIDH and the Situation in the Central African Republic before the International Criminal Court. The JeanPierre Bemba Gombo Case), July 2008 [https://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/CPIaffbemba502fr2008.pdf].
- « République centrafricaine. Déjà-vu. D(é)s accords pour la paix au détriment des victimes » (Central African Republic.
Déjà-vu: Peace Accords Detrimental to Victims), December 2008 [https://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/RCA513fr2008.pdf].
- « Bemba devant la CPI : 15 ans d’action de la FIDH, de l’enquête de terrain aux conclusions du Procureur » (The
Bemba Case before the ICC: 15 Years of Work by FIDH, from the Investigations on the Ground to the Conclusionsof the Prosecutor), March 2016 [https://www.fidh.org/fr/regions/afrique/republique-centrafricaine/verdict-dans-laffaire-jean-pierre-bemba-devant-la-cpi-15-ans-d].
2. 	This is the first time the Prosecutor has opened an investigation in which allegations of sexual crimes far outnumber
alleged killings. According to the Prosecutor, “The allegations of sexual crimes are detailed and substantiated. The
information we have now suggests that the rape of civilians was committed in numbers that cannot be ignored
under international law. Hundreds of rape victims have come forward to tell their stories, recounting crimes acted
out with particular cruelty. Reports detailing their accounts were ultimately provided to the Prosecutor’s Office.
Victims described being raped in public; being attacked by multiple perpetrators; being raped in the presenceof family members; and being abused in other ways if they resisted their attackers. Many of the victims were
subsequently shunned by their families and communities”. Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC, press release,“Prosecutor opens investigation in the Central African Republic”, The Hague, 22 May 2017 [https://www.icc-cpi.int/
legalAidConsultations?name=prosecutor+opens+investigation+in+the+central+african+republic].
3. 	FIDH, « Bemba devant la CPI : 15 ans d’action de la FIDH, de l’enquête de terrain aux conclusions du Procureur »,(TheBemba Case before the ICC: 15 Years of Work by FIDH, from the Investigations on the Ground to the Conclusions of
the Prosecutor), op. cit., pp. 9-10.

8

FIDH - « Tout ce que j’attends, c’est la réparation »FIDH continues to work to document the crimes in CAR and to combat impunity. FIDH has carriedout several missions to document the crimes perpetrated, in particular between summer 2013
and February 2014, requesting that the ICC open an investigation, which was finally announced
on 24 September 20144. FIDH is working with the Office of the Prosecutor on the investigations
under way and has also worked to have the Special Criminal Court put in place to break the cycleof impunity in CAR5. In this regard, FIDH has opened a joint office with its member organisations
in Bangui to support the victims in gaining access to justice, in particular the justice of the Special
Criminal Court6.
Since 2016, FIDH has also been leading a project to strengthen accountability for sexual andgender-based violence, as well as access to reparation before the International Criminal Court
for the victims of those crimes. After Jean-Pierre Bemba was sentenced in 2016 for rape as awar crime and crimes against humanity, FIDH and its member organisations in Central African
Republic felt that it was necessary to continue to transmit the voices of the victims to the judgesof the International Criminal Court to ensure that their reparation order would reflect the wishesof those victims. A delegation from FIDH therefore travelled to Bangui from 9 to 16 June 2017.
The delegation was made up of Karine Bonneau, Director of the International Justice Departmentof FIDH, and Daisy Schmitt, Programme Officer at the Women’s Rights Department of FIDH.
The delegates interviewed victims of crimes of sexual violence committed in 2002 and 2003 in
CAR, for which Jean-Pierre Bemba was found responsible. The delegation met with 12 womenand 1 man who were from Bangui, Sibut, Moungoumba, Damara and Bossangoa. All are victims
participating in the proceedings against Jean-Pierre Bemba before the ICC. The delegation also
met with representatives of the ICC Registry, Support Units from the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) and members of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization
Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) to the SCC, as well as civil society organizations(see the Appendix with the list of persons interviewed). The delegation received support in its
mission from personnel from the office in charge of executing the joint program of the FIDH tocombat impunity in the Central African Republic, the LCDH and the Observatoire Centrafricain desDroits de l’Homme (Central African Human Rights Observatory, OCDH). The delegation extends
its sincere appreciation to the President of LCDH, the President of OCDH, the joint Programme
Coordinator, the Financial and Administrative Director and programme officers.
FIDH would especially like to thank Marie-Edith Douzima, the legal representative of the victims
in the Bemba case and her assistant Evelyne Ombeni, who facilitated meetings with their clientsand assisted the delegation during the interviews. FIDH also extends its most sincere thanks to allof the interviewees who participated in the proceedings during the Bemba case for having agreed
to be interviewed. FIDH thanks Elisabeth Mbaya and Michelle-Séfora Dibert-Yamonza, whoenabled the interviews to take place by interpreting into Sango, the language of the interviewees.
Finally, FIDH is extremely grateful to the representatives of NGOs and international organisations

4. 	FIDH « Centrafrique : ils doivent tous partir ou mourir. Crimes contre l’humanité en réponse aux crimes de guerre »(FIDH, Central African Republic: They must all leave or die. Crimes against humanity in response to war crimes”),
June 2014 [https://www.fidh.org/fr/regions/afrique/republique-centrafricaine/15617-centrafrique-ils-doivent-touspartir-ou-mourir]; FIDH, « La FIDH appelle la Procureure de la CPI à ouvrir une enquête sur les crimes graves commis
en RCA », [FIDH calls for the ICC Prosecutor to open an investigation on the serious crimes committed in CAR),
13 June 2014 [https://www.fidh.org/fr/themes/justice-internationale/15541-la-fidh-appelle-la-procureure-de-la-cpi-aouvrir-une-enquete-sur-les] ; Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC, press release, “Statement of the Prosecutor of theInternational Criminal Court, Fatou Bensouda, on opening a second investigation in the Central African Republic”, The
Hague, 24 September 2014, ICC-OTP-20140924-PR1043 [https://www.icc-cpi.int/Pages/item.aspx?name=pr1043&].
5. 	FIDH, « Qu’est ce que la Cour pénale spéciale » (What is the Special Criminal Court), 19 July 2017. [https://www.fidh.
org/fr/regions/afrique/republique-centrafricaine/qu-est-ce-que-la-cour-penale-speciale].
6. 	FIDH, « Inauguration du Bureau conjoint FIDH-LCDH-OCDH pour lutter contre l’impunité » (Joint Office of FIDHLCDH-OCDH to Combat Impunity Inaugurated), 11 March 2017, [https://www.fidh.org/fr/regions/afrique/republiquecentrafricaine/inauguration-du-bureau-conjoint-fidh-lcdh-ocdh-pour-lutter-contre-l].
FIDH - « All I want is reparation »9for making themselves available for discussions and for the quality of the interviews that wereconducted.
The International Criminal Court is about to hand down reparation orders in the Bemba case. The
purpose of this report is to document the claims for reparation by the survivors of sexual violence
who are participating in these proceedings. The report aims to provide information to the experts
appointed by the Court and to the judges who will issue rulings on reparations, describing thecurrent living conditions of the victims, the consequences of the sexual violence which continue
to affect victims on a daily basis, their needs and the reparations that they would actually like toreceive. The report examines the different reparation measures that should be granted by the
Court, but also the significant risks that must be taken into account to guarantee effective andongoing reparation in the current context of the Central African Republic.

10

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »I. Crimes of sexual violence committed in theCentral African Republic since 2002

1.1. CAR, a battlefield since 2002
Since 2002, the Central African Republic has seen many armed conflicts between government
forces and armed groups, as well as flagrant and repeated violations of international humanitarian
law and international human rights law throughout the entire period.
The first major conflict between October 2002 and March 2003 was the result of a coup d’étatby General François Bozizé against then-President Ange-Félix Patassé. The coup was supported
by Jean-Pierre Bemba, Vice-President of the DRC and his troops from the Movement for the
Liberation of the Congo known as Banyamulengue, who at the time were active in the southernparts of the Central African Republic on the border of the DRC.
The northern part of the country has then been the scene of a number of abuses constituting war
crimes, sometimes committed by the same fighters7. The abuses then spread to the southern partof the country as incursions began by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a group of Ugandan armed
rebels.
In the second major conflict, members of Séléka, who had been in power since 2013, battled until
2015 with a group known as anti-Balaka, and were responsible for a massive wave of systematic
criminal abuses. Séléka are a coalition of armed rebel groups mainly coming from the northernpart of the country, joined by large numbers of mercenaries from Chad and the Sudan. The antiBalaka are a group of armed vigilantes, mostly Christian, made up of members of the Central African
Armed Forces (FACA) and political personalities close to former president François Bozizé8.

7. 	FIDH, « La population civile en grande insécurité dans le nord de la République centrafricaine » (Civil population
experiencing high levels of insecurity in the northern part of the Central African Republic), 27 February 2006 [https://www.fidh.org/fr/regions/afrique/republique-centrafricaine/La-population-civile-en-grande].
8. 	FIDH « Centrafrique : ils doivent tous partir ou mourir. Crimes contre l’humanité en réponse aux crimes de guerre »(Central African Republic: They must all leave or die. Crimes against humanity in response to war crimes.), op.cit.
FIDH - « All I want is reparation »11

However, criminal violence remains endemic. The ex-Séléka (no longer in power since 2014)
continue to battle against anti-Balaka and other groups of armed bandits, and are now also
battling United Nations peacekeeping forces and humanitarian groups on the ground in theCentral African Republic9.
According to United Nations report published in 2017 mapping serious violations of international
human rights law and international humanitarian law committed within the territory of the Central
African Republic from January 2003 to December 201510, sexual and gender-based violence is “awidespread but underreported phenomenon”11.

1.2 Sexual Violence“The perpetrators may differ in their political or military objectives but they all shared extreme
disregard for, and deliberate infringement of the dignity and of the physical and mental integrityof their victims. In some instances, victims were raped several times, by different perpetrators,
during the successive conflicts. The victims had in the vast majority of cases no recourse toprotection or justice by the authorities.”12
Absolutely all of the parties involved in the conflict in CAR committed rape and other crimesof sexual violence: members of the Armed Forces, rebel groups, foreign combatants, and evensoldiers deployed in United Nations peacekeeping operations tasked with protecting civilians.
Most of the sexual violence was committed in public, before family members of the victims.
Some of the victims were also kidnapped during the attacks to be used as sexual slaves byarmed groups. These crimes of sexual violence were often perpetrated alongside other crimes,
especially pillaging and murder, depriving the victims of the support of their close family members
and resulting in loss of access to the social and material resources essential for their survival.
Most of the victims are women and children.13 However, these crimes are also perpetrated against
men and boys. The number of acts of sexual violence is significantly underestimated due to themany barriers to reporting the crimes. The perpetrators of rape and other types of sexual violencetarget victims because of their real or imagined social, ethnic or religious ties to the groups they
are battling. These crimes are also perpetrated to terrorize and humiliate populations, rupture thefamily and social circle of the victims and destroy communities that are perceived as enemies14.
The victims of rape are rejected by their spouses, and sometimes also by their families. They aremocked by their community and must raise their children alone, without resources or support.
Because the children involved have witnessed or been the victims of rape, or have been born ofrape, they in turn are stigmatized and excluded15.

9. 	Human Rights Watch, “Killing Without Consequence: War Crimes, Crimes Against Humanity and the Special
Criminal Court in the Central African Republic”, July 2017 [https://www.hrw.org/report/2017/07/05/killing-withoutconsequence/war-crimes-crimes-against-humanity-and-special].
10. United Nations, Report of the Mapping Project documenting serious violations of human rights law and international
humanitarian law committed within the territory of the Central African Republic between January 2003 and December
2015, May 2017 (hereinafter the “Mapping Report”) [http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Countries/CF/Mapping20032015/2017CAR_Mapping_Report_EN.pdf]
11. “Indeed, sexual violence has been systematically underreported for various reasons... The Mapping Project team therefore
decided to gather information and documents establishing that sexual violence was committed in certain contexts...This
approach showed that, while sexual violence has been extremely underreported, the documented cases were most probably
not isolated incidents and indicate that the phenomenon was recurrent and widespread.” See Mapping Report, p. 215.
12. Mapping Report, op.cit., p. 215.
13. The Mapping Report also highlights that women and girls are the main targets of torture and other forms of illtreatment perpetrated by the different armed groups (see p. 208).
14. “In 2015 alone, service providers in the Central African Republic recorded 29,801 cases of women who had survived
gender-based violence, including rape, sexual assault and sexual slavery. Of them, 27,977 were women and girls, and
1,824 were men and boys. Forty-four per cent of rape cases involved gang rapes, often committed in front of family
members.”See Mapping Report, op.cit., p. 208.
15. Mapping Report, op.cit.; FIDH, “Forgotten, stigmatised: double suffering of victims of international crimes”, op. cit.; “FIDH and
the Situation in the Central African Republic before the International Criminal Court. The Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo Case”, op.
cit.; FIDH: “Central African Republic: They must all leave or die. Crimes against humanity in response to war crimes”, op.cit.

12

FIDH - « Tout ce que j’attends, c’est la réparation »“Thousands of women and girls in the Central African Republic were survivors of conflictrelated sexual violence and many suffered double jeopardy: being raped, enslaved and/or forced
to be married, and then ostracized or rejected by their community, sometimes even by theirown families. The trauma experienced was often aggravated by the fact that the perpetrators
also looted their properties. The victims were thus deprived of the means to cater for their own
recovery and livelihood or that of other people under their care.”16This sexual violence perpetrated during a period of armed conflict took place in a context ofwidespread violence and discrimination against women and girls. As the United Nations Mapping
Report highlights:“Conflict-related sexual violence is a manifestation of the more general discrimination,
marginalization and violence suffered by women and girls in the Central African Republic...
Customs and tradition relegate females to an inferior position and lead to or create conditions inwhich the rights of women and girls are violated. As such, women and girls are often excluded
from decisions that affect their lives and livelihood. Sexual and gender-based violence anddiscrimination is thus widespread and marked by a general lack of will by the authorities andarmed groups to address the issue.”17
Discrimination against women and girls often results from practice, but also stems fromlegislation. For example, the Family Code of the Central African Republic permits polygamy18,
providing that the future husband must pay a dowry to the family of the future wife19 and that thehusband is the head of the family. 20
According to the Criminal Code of the Central African Republic, the general prohibition against
abortion is lifted in the event of rape on condition that the intervention is approved by a college ofphysicians and is performed by a doctor in a hospital during the first eight weeks of pregnancy21.
However, in practice, taking into consideration the lack of medical infrastructure and informationon legal abortion, the costs involved, the very short time period within which an abortion may belegally performed, and other procedural obstacles, many women opt for clandestine abortions,risking their health and their very life22. Furthermore, women who have an illegal abortion are
liable for a prison term of up to 2 years23.

16. M
 apping Report, op.cit., p. 207.
17. M
 apping Report, op.cit., p. 208. The Mapping Report places particular emphasis on female genital mutilation andmurders of women after accusations of witchcraft and charlatanism.
18. L aw No. 97 013 of the Family Code, Articles 216 and 230 et seq. Ibid., Article 208.
19. Ibid., Article 254.
20. L
 aw No. 97 013 of the Family Code, Articles 216 and 230 et seq.
21. L aw No. 10001, 6 January 2010, Criminal Code of the Central African Republic, Articles 79 (3), 80. The prohibition onabortion is also lifted in cases where a girl who is pregnant is experiencing severe medical distress; where there areserious or incurable defects of the fetus; in cases where the pregnancy represents a serious threat to the life of themother; and in cases of incest (article 79).
22. S
 ee Médecins sans frontières, « À Bangui, les avortements non médicalisés sont devenus une véritable urgence »(Doctors Without Borders, In Bangui, unsafe abortions have become a real emergency), 28 September 2017 [https://
msf.lu/fr/actualites/toutes-les-actualites/a-bangui-les-avortements-non-medicalises-sont-devenus-une-veritable].
23. L
 aw No. 10001, 6 January 2010, Article 78, Criminal Code of the Central African Republic.
FIDH - « Tout ce que j’attends, c’est la réparation »13

1.3. The crimes falling under Jean-Pierre Bemba’s responsibility
During its missions to the CAR to investigate the crimes committed in 2002 and 2003, FIDH
collected many testimonies from victims, including victims of sexual violence.
According to testimony gathered by the FIDH, particularly between 2002 and 2003 (some of whichis copied below), rapes were extremely widespread after the battle of Bangui, when Congolese
mercenaries belonging to the MLC were pushing the rebels of François Bozizé towards thenorthern part of the country, at the end of October and beginning of November 2002. Some of thetestimony also reveals that these crimes were not perpetrated only during the counteroffensiveof the Congolese mercenaries against the rebels of general Bozizé. They continued between
November 2002 and March 2003 because there was still a significant Banyamulengue presence
behind the front. The story below also confirms that a final massive wave of crimes took place,including rape and pillaging, crimes committed by Banyamulengue fleeing before the rebel forcesof François Bozizé as they advanced victorious towards the capital in March 2003. As they
retreated towards the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Banyamulengue committed serious
violations of human rights in an attempt to forcefully make off with anything they could carry, thefinal spoils of their battle.
“The men from Zaire, I mean the Banyamulengue, who were coming from Bossembele (which is
60 km from my town) arrived in Boali, in the city centre, at five in the afternoon on 15 March 2003.
Armed men showed up in a truck and took away the street vendors. I was one of them. They also
picked up a crazy guy who was hanging around in the street. We had to follow them on foot withall of our merchandise. There were six of us, all young. We walked for 4 km, and then we got to thelorry that was carrying other things. Another lorry full of Banyamulengue arrived and picked up ourthings. It was eight in the morning. That’s when the armed men who had taken us with them started
to beat us up, hitting us with the butt of their rifles. The leader hit us the most, with a machete, andhe hurt me, like I showed you just now, on my arms, my legs and my head, on the top of my head
and across my eyebrows. He cut me with his machete. Then six of them sodomized us, the threeoldest ones of our group of kids. Each of us was raped by two men. Another victim of those rapes,
the crazy man, was there with me. Towards noon, the liberators arrived (the rebellion led by Bozizé)
and the Banyamulengue fled. But the liberators killed eight of them, from what I could see. They
also blew up the lorry, and you can still see the chassis there today. After they left, I was very tired, I
had lost a lot of blood. I lay down by the side of the road. I know that it was the Banyamulengue who
attacked us...the leader was speaking to us in French... between themselves, they spoke in Lingala.
I don’t understand the language but I know it when I hear it.”X, a minor (13 years old at the time of the events). Testimony gathered during FIDH
investigations.24
The stories told by the victims reveal that rape was committed indiscriminately against all
civilians - including some men who held important positions in their communities - in public, or in
their homes before other members of their families.
“It happened when the rebel troops of Bozizé were withdrawing before the Banyamulengue andfalling back towards PK22. On 7 November 2002, the Banyamulengue occupied the Begoua regionin PK 12 where I live. Night fell and they hadn’t done anything to the civilians. It wasn’t until thenext day on 8 November that they started pillaging anything of value, whether they were stealing
it from people directly or taking it from homes that they sacked. I spoke up and told them not
to do that. That’s when all of the problems began. When I did that, four Banyamulengue cameafter me, saying that it was people like me who had made the people rise up against President
Patassé. They told me that I deserved to die. They were wearing military outfits, but they weren’t
wearing military shoes. They had weapons, Kalashnikovs. One of them ordered me to lie down on
the ground, in front of my wife and children, and he sodomized me in front of them. He took off all
my clothes, I was completely naked. When it was over, the other three raped my four daughters andmy wife in front of me. I tried to fight them but because they were pointing their weapons at me,
24. FIDH, « La FIDH et la situation en République centrafricaine devant la Cour pénale internationale. L’affaire Jean-Pierre
Bemba Gombo », op. cit., p.8.

14

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »there was nothing I could do. My brother-in-law tried to fight back, and they ended up killing him.
When the four of them had finished, they left us and went away. But they came back with other
Banyamulengue, and they completely sacked my house...I knew that they were Banyamulengue
because they were speaking only Lingala. Bemba was their commander. One day, Bemba himself
even landed in a small plane, in the courtyard of the medical centre in Begoua. It was 17 November
2002, while fighting was happening in PK22.”
P. Testimony gathered during FIDH investigations.25
Sexual violence, especially rape, was therefore used as a weapon of war, to humiliate, terrify andpunish the civilian population of the Central African Republic who were accused of complicity
with the rebels. The modus operandi of these crimes is almost identical in all of the stories: thesoldiers would burst into the room, demanding money, terrorize the people by firing random shotsor holding them at gunpoint, and then rape everyone.
“It was 25 December 2002. My mother and I were hiding in PK22 at our parents’ house when weheard that the Banyamulengue were coming. Our parents gave us money so that we could go andhide in Bangui, and meanwhile they went off to hide in the hills. We left, heading in the direction of
the PK22 market. That’s when we met the Banyamulengue. They asked my mother for money. She
didn’t have any. They tried to take her clothes off, but she said that she was sick. I tried to get in
between them to defend her. Then one of the Banyamulengue, a young guy, took out his bayonet
and slashed my ankle. After having hurt me, they told me that since I didn’t want them to sleep withmy mother, I would be their victim. Then two of them grabbed me and sodomized me. They took off
all of my clothes. While that was happening to me, some other ones took my mother and took her
away. They must have done the same thing to her. After that, a vehicle from the Red Cross came topick us up, my mother and me, and they took us to Bangui and took us back to our house. We had
never seen those people before. But the simple fact that they didn’t speak either Sango or French,and they only spoke Lingala, made us realize that they were Banyamulengue. My mother died on
11 February 2003 of AIDS.”
W, a minor (13 years old at the time of the events). Testimony gathered during FIDH
investigations26.

“I am 15 years old. I live in PK12. On Friday 1 November 2002, men came dressed in military fatigues
and carrying weapons. I was asleep in my room with my sister. With one blow, they broke down
the door. They demanded money, jewellery, gold. My sister replied that we didn’t have any money.
They didn’t understand. Then they asked where the father’s bedroom was, my uncle, who has beenparalyzed for 17 years. We went towards the bedroom with X, Y and Z, my cousins. One of the men
dragged my sister into the shower. She started to scream. We all ran towards her. The man pointed
his gun at us, when he was on top of my sister. He ordered us to return to the living room, which
we did because we were terrified. That’s when a young man, he was big and fat, turned towards
me. He dragged me over beside the freezer. He tried to take off my pagne (a dress fashioned froma piece of cloth). I fought back. That’s when he ripped my underwear. He threw me on the ground.
He took off his pants. He penetrated me with his penis. He hurt me so badly. I saw lots of bloodon my dress. I still have pains in my lower belly. This person spoke Lingala, and spoke French very
badly. The humanitarian workers came to see me. They took a blood sample. They gave me somemedicine. I am afraid when I see men. I am afraid they will come back. I’m afraid of being sick.”
Y. Testimony gathered during FIDH investigations.27

25. F
 IDH, « La FIDH et la situation en République centrafricaine devant la Cour pénale internationale. L’affaire Jean-Pierre
Bemba Gombo », op. cit., p. 9.
26. Ibid., p. 8.
27. Ibid., p. 6.
FIDH - « All I want is reparation »15

Some of the stories also speak of women being raped by having their vaginas penetrated bysoldiers’ hands, under the pretext of searching for money, or being raped with a weapon.
“The Banyamulengue took all my clothes off in front of my husband. He was able to get away. They
raped me in front of my three children. They put their hands in my vagina. My son was crying alot, the Banyamulengue frightened him with their weapon, and then he stopped crying. When myhusband came back, he found us all naked in the bedroom. We got divorced after everything that
happened.”B, 40 years old (from Bossangoa). When the Banyamulengue pillaged the city, they ordered B.
to give them her money. She didn’t have any. They told her that they were going to look for itin her vagina and they penetrated her with their hands. Bangui, 14 June 2017.

16

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »II. The judicial response to the crimes of sexual
violence
2.1. The total absence of judicial response at the national level
It is important to underscore that the victims in the Central African Republic initially tried to accede
to national justice , and they filed suit against the presumed perpetrators of the crimes in thedomestic courts. However, these courts had neither the willingness nor the ability to investigate
these criminal acts and prosecute their perpetrators. The Court of Cassation thus concluded on
11 April 2006 that it did not have the capacity to judge blood crimes, rape and pillaging, referring
the cases to the International Criminal Court for the responsibility of the perpetrators to beestablished. 28 .
According to the UN’s Mapping Report, “The armed conflicts in the Central African Republic
have provided an environment in which perpetrators of sexual violence enjoy unbridled
impunity as a result of widespread insecurity and dysfunctional or collapsed institutions,a situation which persists to date. In order to bring justice to the thousands of survivors ofsuch crimes and ensure a future where women and girls can enjoy their fundamental humanrights, the national authorities, with the support of the wider international community,
have to urgently institute and implement judicial, political, psycho-social, economic andeducational measures to promote and effectively protect the rights of women and girls in
the Central African Republic.”29
Later in the report, the United Nations lists the barriers faced by the survivors in theirattempt to see justice done:“In practice, survivors of sexual violence face numerous obstacles to accessing justice. Chiefamong these are a variety of practical and procedural hurdles to filing criminal complaints,
including: the difficulty and cost to reach authorities; the control of commissariats andgendarmerie posts by the very armed groups which may be responsible for the crimes; aswell as the total unavailability of protective measures for survivors. In the rare cases wherea survivor, or their relatives, overcome these challenges to file complaints – often with theassistance of non-governmental organizations – this is unlikely to result in any criminal
proceedings, convictions or penalties...In the few cases the State took actions against
members of security forces documented in this report, perpetrators either received derisory
sentences, escaped from prison or were posted outside Bangui.”30As highlighted further
on in the report, “Even in times of peace, very few cases of sexual violence ever reached thejustice system, few resulted in decisions, and even fewer in convictions.” 31
In the absence of national remedy, the International Criminal Court was the last resort for thevictims. “I am coming back to life,” said one of them when she was interviewed on the radio about
the arrest of Jean-Pierre Bemba.32

28. F
 IDH, « République centrafricaine. Oubliées, stigmatisées : la double peine des victimes de crimes internationaux »,https://www.fidh.org/en/region/Africa/Forgotten-stigmatised-double op.cit., pp. 72-73.
29. M
 apping Report, op.cit., p. 208.
30. Ibid., p. 211.
31. Ibid., p. 233.
32. F
 IDH, « La FIDH et la situation en République centrafricaine devant la Cour pénale internationale. L’affaire Jean-Pierre
Bemba Gombo », op. cit., p. 21.
FIDH - « All I want is reparation »17

2.2. The Bemba case before the International Criminal Court: some scantjustice for the victims of sexual violence
On 21 March 2016, the Trial Chamber III of the ICC found Jean-Pierre Bemba guilty, as militarycommander, of all the crimes of which he had been accused: rape, murder and pillaging,constituting crimes against humanity and war crimes. On 21 June 2016, he was sentenced to a
prison term of 18 years.
In determining the sentence against Jean-Pierre Bemba, the Trial Chamber first considered theextreme gravity of the crimes33. The Chamber concluded that the troops of Jean-Pierre Bemba
had committed crimes against victims who were particularly vulnerable, which constitutes anaggravating circumstance under Rule 145(2)(b)(iii), Rules of Procedure and Evidence (RPE) of the
ICC, because the rape victims: “ i) were unarmed; ii) were targeted in their homes, on temporary
MLC bases, or in isolated locations, such as the bush, and/or when they were seeking refuge; iii)
were forcefully restrained; iv) and/or were children”.34
The Trial Chamber added that the MLC soldiers had committed the crimes of rape with particular
cruelty, which constitutes an aggravating circumstance in the meaning of Rule 145(2)(b)(iv) of
the RPE: the rapes were committed “(i) for self-compensation; (ii) to punish suspected enemies
and their sympathisers; (iii) without regard to age, gender, or social status, including against
multiple members of the same family and local officials; (iv) in the presence of the victims’
family members, neighbours, and/or other civilians or soldiers, thereby heightening the victims’
humiliation; (v) in conjunction with acts of murder, pillaging, and other violence and abuse during
the same events and against the same direct and indirect victims; and/or (vi) repeatedly against
the same victims, sometimes penetrating the same victim orally, vaginally, and anally”.35
According to the United Nations, this ICC Judgment against Jean-Pierre Bemba is “the notable
exception” to the overwhelming impunity that prevails in the Central African Republic.36 The
success of the ICC was made possible thanks to the confluence of a variety of factors, in particular
the expertise and motivation of the investigative team to research the evidence of sexual crimes,
but also the work to document the crimes of sexual violence undertaken by NGOs, including
FIDH, which then sent the relevant information to the Office of the Prosecutor. 37
The decision on the acknowledgement of the responsibility of Jean-Pierre Bemba and on thepunishment handed down in the first instance are currently being appealed by the Defence
and the Prosecution. The Court decided that these appeals would not suspend the reparations
proceedings, which are therefore taking place in parallel to the pending appeals, but could becalled into question if the decisions on the guilt of the accused and the punishment are notconfirmed.38
The victims of sexual violence in the Central African Republic can hope to one day see othersentences, given that the Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC is currently conducting otherinvestigations on crimes committed since 2013, both by Séléka/ex-Séléka and by anti-Balaka- which should also involve crimes of a sexual nature, and taking into consideration the Special
Criminal Court that has been put in place.

33. Trial Chamber III, Decision on Sentence pursuant to Article 76 of the Statute, 21 June 2016, No.: ICC-01/05-01/083399, §41-42. [https://www.icc-cpi.int/CourtRecords/CR2016_04476.PDF]
34. Ibid., §41-43.
35. Ibid., §47.
36. Mapping Report, op.cit., p. 233.
37. See especially the FIDH report on the strengthening of the establishment of responsibility for crimes of sexual
violence and gender-based crimes at the International Criminal Court and beyond (coming out early 2018).
38. Trial Chamber III, Decision on the request of the Defence to suspend the reparations proceedings, 5 May 2017, ICC01/05-01/08-3522.

18

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »2.3. The Mandate of the Special Criminal Court and its complementarity
with the International Criminal Court
The Special Criminal Court is a special court in the justice system of the Central African Republic,
created by Law No. 15,003 of 3 June 2015 to investigate, process and judge serious humanrights violations and breaches of international humanitarian law committed in the Central African
Republic since 1 January 2003, as defined by the Criminal Code of the Central African Republic
and by international law. 39 The composition of the personnel of the SCC will be mixed, meaningthat some will be citizens of the Central African Republic and others will come from abroad. The
court has a renewable mandate of five years. Its Prosecutor was appointed on 15 February 2017,
and some of its domestic and international judges were appointed a few months later. 40
However, the SCC is facing significant challenges that are delaying the launch of its work. Its
Rules of Procedure and Evidence (RPE) have yet to be approved by the Parliament to give a legal
basis for the work to be done by the judges and the Prosecutor. Ongoing armed conflicts andincreasing insecurity raise the issue of access to the territory and of the safety of SCC personnel
and its premises, but also of the victims and witnesses. As yet, no penitentiary infrastructure that
could allow for suspects to be housed has been identified.
Because the temporary competence of the ICC, which continues to investigate crimes committed
in 2013 and 2014, overlaps with that of the SCC, the two courts will have to structure theirinvestigations based on the principle of complementarity. According to its Statute, the ICC iscomplementary to domestic criminal courts and has no competence unless the State withjurisdiction does not have the willingness and/or the capacity to conduct investigations andprosecutions41. The organic law that instituted the SCC nevertheless provides for a “reversed
complementarity”, according to which the competence of the ICC takes precedence over that of
the SCC, even though the latter is a national court42. The prosecutors and judges must therefore
cooperate fully to guarantee the prosecution of the principal perpetrators before the ICC or the
SCC. In particular, it will be necessary for the ICC to support the investigations of the SCC, taking
into account the evidence that the ICC has already gathered.
Similarly, the law on the creation of the SCC does not contain any provisions regarding the right toreparation of victims, which however is acknowledged when dealing with civil parties according
to the provisions of applicable criminal law in the Central African Republic for victims that fallunder the jurisdiction of the Court pursuant to international law. The draft RPE, as they exist at
the time of writing of this report, contain provisions that are imprecise in regard to reparations
and that exclusively provide for symbolic or moral reparations, which in and of themselves are notsufficient to guarantee reparation that is appropriate for the harm undergone. The two courts will
have to coordinate their strategies on that topic in order for a harmonized response to the claims
for reparation of the victims to be provided. Donors for the SCC should support the creation of anational fund for the victims (similar to the Trust Fund for Victims of the ICC), to compensate forthe probable indigence of those sentenced by the SCC and guarantee respect for the right of thecivil parties to effectively obtain reparation.

39. L
 oi organique 15.003, portant création, organisation et fonctionnement de la Cour pénale spéciale, 3 June 2015
(Organic Law 15,003 on the creation, organisation and functioning of the Special Criminal Court, 2015)[https://www.
fidh.org/IMG/pdf/loi_organique_portant_cre_ation_organisation_et_fonctionnement_de_la_cps.pdf].
40. F
 IDH, « Qu’est-ce que la Cour pénale spéciale? », op. cit.
41. R
 ome Statute, Article 17.
42. A
 ccording to Article 37 of Organic Law 15,003, on the creation, organization and functioning of the Special Criminal
Court: “When… it is established that the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has been seized of a case that
concurrently falls under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court and the Special Criminal Court, the latter
will stand down for the former to take over.”

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »19

III. Reparation: a fundamental issue for thevictims of sexual and gender-based violence
3.1. Legal framework, participation and eligibility
In the Statute of the International Criminal Court, reparation is governed by Article 75, which provides
the following: “The Court may make an order directly against a convicted person specifying appropriate
reparations to, or in respect of, victims, including restitution, compensation and rehabilitation.” 43 The
Rome Statute also creates a Trust Fund for Victims, whose purpose is to assist the Court in
implementing reparation orders, particularly by pooling the resources of persons found guilty,
States, and other sources (when they are sentenced to pay fines or make reparations to victims
or when their assets are confiscated), with the goal of guaranteeing financing for reparations. 44
The provisions of the founding texts of the Court on reparations are not detailed. This phaseof the proceedings is therefore broadly based on the jurisprudence of the Court, especially theprinciples applying to reparations that are established pursuant to Article 75 (1) of the Statute.
Before the Bemba case, three cases reached the stage of reparations. In the first two cases, theProsecutor v. Thomas Lubanga45 and the Prosecutor v. Germain Katanga46, the accused were
found guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed between 2002 and 2003 inthe eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Despite the fact that there was proofof their responsibility for sexual crimes committed, no sexual violence charges were filed against
Thomas Lubanga, and Germain Katanga was acquitted of rape and sexual slavery47. The thirdcase was the Prosecutor v. Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi. In 2016, Al Mahdi was found guilty of the war
crime of intentionally directing attacks against sites of a religious and historic character in thecity of Timbuktu in 2012, when the Northern part of Mali was occupied by jihadist groups. Despite
the fact that there was proof that he had committed sexual crimes, Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi was
not accused of any crime against persons. The Bemba case is therefore the first case in which
the ICC will grant reparations to the victims of sexual violence.

43. Rome Statute, Article 75 (2). This list is not exhaustive.
44. Rome Statute, Article 79. See also Rule 98 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence and the Regulations of the TrustFund for Victims.
45. See the FIDH report on the strengthening of the establishment of responsibility for crimes of sexual violence andgender-based crimes at the International Criminal Court and beyond (coming out early 2018).
46. In March 2012, Thomas Lubanga was found guilty of the war crimes of enlisting and conscripting of children under
the age of 15 years and using them to participate actively in hostilities. In July 2012, he was sentenced to 14 years of
imprisonment. In December 2014, the Chamber of Appeals confirmed the verdict and the punishment.
47. In March 2014, Germain Katanga was found guilty of being an accomplice to murder, attacking a civilian population,
destruction of property and pillaging, constituting war crimes and crimes against humanity. In May 2014, he wassentenced to 12 years of imprisonment. In June 2014, the defence dropped its appeal against the guilty verdict anddid not file an appeal against the sentence. These two decisions are therefore final.

20

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »In the Lubanga case, Trial Chamber I issued its first decision in August 2012, which
was partially amended by the Appeals Chamber in March 2015. These two decisions
established a set of principles to serve as guidelines for reparations, such as theissuance of a reparation order against the person who was found guilty48, lower
evidentiary requirements in this phase of the proceedings49, and the need to adopt a
gender-sensitive approach to avoid perpetuating or reinforcing discrimination. Basedon these principles, the Appeals Chamber gave the Trust Fund for Victims the taskof presenting a plan for the implementation of collective reparations. The Trust Fundpresented its final plan in September 2016 and agreed to allocate €1 million to thefinancing of reparations in this case. €170,000 were allocated for the identificationof the victims and evaluation of damages, and €730,000 were set aside for physical,
psychological and socio-economic rehabilitation programs. As of today, these projects
have not been implemented.
In the Katanga case, the Court handed down a reparation order in March 2017.50 The
Court assessed the extent of the harm suffered by the victims at a total monetary
value of US$3,752,600 and set the amount of Mr. Katanga’s liability at US$1 million.
Because he was found indigent for the purposes of reparation, the Trust Fund forVictims agreed to cover the entirety of his debt. The court decided to order individualand collective reparations to 297 victims. The judges awarded each of the 297 victims
symbolic compensation of USD 250 per victim as well as “collective reparations in
the form of support for housing, support for income‑generating activities, education
aid and psychological support.” This is the first order handed down to grant individual
reparations. The Trust Fund submitted a plan for the implementation of the reparations
in June 2017. The Court also ordered the Trust Fund to contact Congolese authorities
regarding the potential to have them cooperate in the implementation of the reparations.
In the Al Mahdi case, the Court sentenced the guilty party to pay individual andcollective reparations to the community of Timbuktu in August 2017. The individual
reparations consisted of compensation to cover the economic harm for persons whose
income was exclusively dependent on the mausoleums destroyed. These reparations
will also benefit the descendants of the deceased whose mausoleums were destroyed,
to cover their moral harm. The collective reparations include restoration measures.
Symbolic reparations were also granted: Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi filmed a video andposted it online, apologizing for his actions. The State of Mali and the United Nations
Organization for Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO) were each granted thesymbolic amount of one Euro. The total amount of the reparations was assessed at€2.7 million, and must be covered by the Trust Fund for Victims insofar as the guilty
party is indigent. The Trust Fund must draft a plan for the implementation of the Court
Order by February 2018.

48. T
 he Appeals Chamber, Judgment on the appeals against the “Decision establishing the principles and procedures tobe applied to reparations” of 7 August 2012, 3 March 2015, ICC-01/04-01/06-3129, §76.
49. Ibid., §81.
50. T
 rial Chamber II, Reparation Order pursuant to Article 75, Rome Statute, 24 March 2017, ICC-01/04-01/07-3728.
FIDH - « All I want is reparation »21

Article 75 (3) of the Rome Statute provides that before making an order, the Court may invite
and shall take account of representations from or on behalf of the convicted person, victims,
other interested persons or interested States. Rule 97 (2) of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence
also authorizes it to appoint experts to assist and advise it. In the Bemba case, the Court
received comments from the Defence, the Prosecution, the legal representatives of the victims,
the Registry and the Trust Fund for Victims as well as international organizations, NGOs anduniversities on certain points of the procedure for reparations. The Court then appointed four
experts who were given the mission of assisting it to issue a ruling on the eligibility of the victims,
the harm to be taken into consideration, the extent of the liability of Jean-Pierre Bemba and thetypes and means of reparation that would be appropriate. These experts will deliver their report inNovember 2017. Although FIDH welcomes the decision by the judges of Trial Chamber III to callon experts to further clarify its decision on reparations, FIDH regrets that the Court did not find it
useful, in an effort to better understand the reality of the victims, to appoint even one expert fromthe Central African Republic who would have a profound understanding of the national context
and functioning of the country. Of the experts appointed by the Court, not even one was from theAfrican continent. When the experts have submitted their report, the Chamber will then be able toinvite the victims, the perpetrator and all other interested persons or States to comment on thereport. The Chamber will then hand down its reparation order.
The victims are therefore able to make comments before the Court hands down a reparation
order. Pursuant the Rome Statute, this right is an integral part of the overall system for theparticipation of the victims in the proceedings taking place at the International Criminal Court.
This system enabled the victims to have their voices heard other than solely as victims, and has
never before been seen within the international criminal justice system. Pursuant to Article 68(3) of the Statute of the Court, “Where the personal interests of the victims are affected, the Court
shall permit their views and concerns to be presented and considered at stages of the proceedings
determined to be appropriate by the Court and in a manner which is not prejudicial to or inconsistent
with the rights of the accused and a fair and impartial trial.”
In the Bemba case, 5229 victims are participants in the proceedings. Of those, 4674 are represented
by an external legal representative, Marie-Edith Douzima. A further 555 are represented by the
Office of Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV) of the ICC. The number of participating victims iswell above the number in the Lubanga and Katanga cases, with 146 and 366 victims respectively
having participated in those proceedings. Organizing participation and granting reparations tothat many victims is a challenge for the Court, but the significant participation is also a measureof the success of the Bemba proceedings. The victims who presented their views and concerns
or who testified throughout the proceedings helped the Court make its decisions. The victims
who met with the FIDH team during its mission in June 2017 also in large part indicated thattelling the Court the story of the experiences they had lived through had positively affected their
psychological state. 51
Another challenge is now before the Court: determining which victims are eligible for reparations.
First of all, because Jean-Pierre Bemba was found guilty of all of the crimes he was charged
with, all of the victims who were authorized to participate in the proceedings should be eligible
for reparation. Secondly, there are other victims of the crimes of which Jean-Pierre Bemba wasfound guilty. These other victims are also eligible to receive reparation. Before issuing a ruling on
the extent of the debt of Jean-Pierre Bemba and the concrete reparation measures that must beordered, the Court must therefore ask the Registry and the Trust Fund for Victims to determine
how many people there are in order to enable them to participate in the reparation proceedings.

51. See below pp. 35-36.

22

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »3.2.The demands for reparation by victims of sexual violence“I will say this: today, I am nothing. I am waiting for Court to give me some reparation so that I cancontinue surviving for the time I have left on this earth.”52
All of the victims who met with the delegation of FIDH are participating in the proceedings.
Several of them had the opportunity to testify or present their opinions and concerns before the
Court. For the others, their only tie with the ICC is their relationship with their legal representative.
Some have been able to participate in joint meetings on the proceedings and reparations, and forothers their only source of information on the proceedings has been the radio. During individualinterviews conducted by the FIDH, they all insisted that their situation was truly an emergency
and that the Court needed to ensure that they would in fact individually be able to benefit fromthe reparations that were granted.

3.2.1. Timely reparation provided by Jean-Pierre Bemba
The victims who met with the delegation all underscored the urgent need to provide reparations
in relation with the Bemba case, and their frustration that they had not yet received anything 15
years after the events.
“All I want is reparation, it doesn’t matter what type.”S., 51 years old. S. was raped by Banyamulengue in 2002. His two wives and his two daughters
were also raped during the attack. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“Right now, the first thing I want to ask is for things to move forward. Many [of those involved] havealready died. Look at my health, when I was so sick in 2010, I could be that sick again within a month.
Hurry up. I don’t know what the future holds for me.”Y.B., 43 years old (from Sibut). Y.B. was raped by two Banyamulengue after an ambush in theforest. During those rapes, Y.B. was infected with HIV. Bangui, 13 June 2017.
“When we went to the ICC, the Court guaranteed us that they would do something, and nothing ishappening. We are all going to die. What can the Court do for me? My health is gone (crying). It’s too
far away, the only one who helps us is our lawyer. In all this time, all the ICC does is observe, it’s justgoing around in circles. I am not okay with this. I have never seen anyone from the ICC here.
It has taken too long for the decision to come down. I wish they could give me some money so that
I could set up a store, so that I could take care of my children, to get care for myself, or to have ahouse of my own where I could live with my children. Tell the ICC that we are all going to die. We have
waited for too long and this is the point we have gotten to.”P.M., 32 years old (from Moungoumba). P.M. was kidnapped by the Banyamulengue and forced
to carry the loot that they had pillaged. When one of them accused her of not being reliablebecause she was not from the Congo, she was raped by more than a dozen of the militants
until she fainted. P.M. has been HIV-positive since then. She is one of the witnesses of theProsecution. Bangui, 13 June 2017.
“Many of our colleagues have already passed away. What happened, it was as if we had poison in ourbodies; every time we remember, it’s terrible.”
C.I., 51 years old (from Sibut). C.I. was raped in front of her common-law husband. She became
pregnant after the rape and had an abortion upon the request of her partner. Bangui, 13 June 2017.
Some of the victims say that the harm has been compounded by the slow pace of the reparations.
“If the court had thought of us sooner, my health would not have gone downhill so badly.”B., 40 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 14 June 2017.

52. T rial Chamber III, Transcription, Audience de la fixation de la peine, (Hearing to determine the punishment) 17 May
2016, ICC-01/05-01/08-T-369-Red-FRA WT 17-05-2016 66/68 NB T, p. 66. (Original in French only)
FIDH - « All I want is reparation »23

The testimony gathered also indicates that the Bemba proceedings, which are taking place in The
Hague almost 8000 km away from the victims in the Central African Republic, and which even 15
years later have brought no concrete benefits to the victims, seem very far away from their daily
reality.
“What reparation? I’m starting to think more about the fact that I don’t have anywhere to sleep, I’msick, that’s what I’m thinking about.”G., 45 years of age (from Bangui). G was raped when she fled Bangui with her family to headfor Damara (located 70 km north of Bangui). During those rapes, she was infected with HIV.
Bangui, 11 June 2017.
Some of the victims also expressed the wish to receive reparation from Jean-Pierre Bemba,
directly financed by him.
“What we want is reparation from Jean-Pierre Bemba. What he came and did to us is no good, heshould pay”.
S., 51 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.

3.2.2. Reparation with individual repercussions
All of the victims interviewed rejected more or less emphatically any collective projects forreparation managed by the State, because they feared that they would not benefit from them.53
They all expressed a wish to receive reparations they could benefit individually : that would allow
them to access healthcare, education and training for themselves and their children, benefits thatwould contribute to improving their personal financial situation and their personal wealth, improvetheir living conditions and those of their children and enable them to leave something to their heirs.
“What we want is not projects, hospitals, schools that everyone can use. We will not get the benefitof them. We want to build a house for our children, we want to farm. If you only do something for the
population, it’s not going to benefit us. Even if it’s free today, it won’t last, and tomorrow we will haveto pay. They will sell everything and steal everything. They are always doing backroom deals behindthe scenes. We want something individually for us, so that each of us can leave something that is
guaranteed for our children.”
C.I., 51 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.

3.2.3. Types of reparation sought
The victims expressed a wish to receive measures of restitution, compensation and rehabilitation.
Some victims also expressed a feeling of having received some satisfaction. 54

A) Restitution and compensationa) The poverty caused by the attacks perpetrated by the Banyamulengue
The attacks perpetrated by the troops of Jean-Pierre Bemba were characterised by systematic
pillaging of homes, meaning the theft of all furniture and cash. The houses were also sometimes
destroyed at the time that they were pillaged. The victims of the attacks were completely strippedof all of their assets and resources. They found themselves obliged to live in the most extreme
poverty thereafter.
“They took everything, all of our things, our beds, everything.”
N., 33 years old. N. was raped by Banyamulengue in 2002. Her mother, her father, her sisterand the second wife of her father were also raped during that attack. Bangui, 10 June 2017.

53. See below pp. 28-29.
54. On the different types of reparation, see the Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Remedy andReparation for Victims of Gross Violations of International Human Rights Law and Serious Violations of International
Humanitarian Law adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 16 December 2005 (A/RES/60/147).

24

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »“We were fleeing through the bush and the Banyamulengue pillaged everything from our house, they
emptied the entire house and then chased us through the bush. They took the mattresses, everything.”
C.I., 51 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
The poverty was frequently aggravated because of the physical and psychological consequencesof the crimes, meaning that the victims were unable to work.
“Before the Banyamulengue came, I used to sell merchandise. But I got sick [from HIV]. I stopped
because I didn’t have the strength and I didn’t have any money to run my business. I can’t go on
fighting to be able to keep my store.”
Y.B., 43 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
The poverty can also be aggravated by the fact that victims who are women often bear the full
financial responsibility for their children because many men left their wives or partners after therapes that they suffered. Sometimes, the husbands were killed by the Banyamulengue. 55
Many of the victims of the crimes that Jean-Pierre Bemba was found responsible for were also
attacked in subsequent conflicts, which also resulted in violence, murder, destruction and homeinvasions where property was stolen.
b) Restitution
Some of the victims expressed a wish to have their destroyed homes restored and the objects
that were pillaged by the Banyamulengue returned.
“Before, my father had three houses. During the sacking, the Banyamulengue destroyed one of them.
Then the Séléka came and ruined the other one. There is only one left. My parents live there. I haveto rent my home with my four children, but I don’t have any money so it’s my father who pays therent. He’s a farmer, sometimes he has money and sometimes he doesn’t. He has debts, we were
supposed to be evicted. We are four months behind on the rent. I wish that my father’s house thatwas destroyed by the Banyamulengue could be rebuilt.”
T., 23 years old. T. was raped by Banyamulengue in 2002. Her mother, her father, her sister andthe second wife of her father were also raped during that attack. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“I want someone to give me money for the things that were destroyed by the Banyamulengue.”I., 45 years old. I. was raped by Banyamulengue in 2002. Her husband, the second wife of her
husband and her two daughters were also raped during that attack. A short time later, her
seven-month-old baby died. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“We would be fine with buying a bed for example. Some people bought a single bed, but now there
are always 10 [members of my family] in the house who sleep on the floor.”N., 33 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
c) Compensation
Most of the victims who met with FIDH indicated that they wish to receive compensation in theform of cash.
Some said that having a little money would make it easier for those who knew that they weregoing to die to improve their living conditions and have a better life for their remaining days.
“It wouldn’t be bad to build hospitals and schools, but most of us have already died. Even with thehospitals and the medication, people continue to die. If they had been given money, they would havebeen able to buy coffee, they would have died happy. It has to be done quickly because many of us
are dying now.”J., 48 years old (from Damara). J was raped and beaten by five men when she was sevenmonths pregnant. She lost her baby after the rape. Her mother and her husband were killedduring the attack by the Banyamulengue. Bangui, 13 June 2017.
55. S
 ee below pp. 31-32.
FIDH - « All I want is reparation »25

Those who were interviewed generally specified the way that they wished to use the money:
for food or medication; to pay the rent or purchase land; to rebuild their houses that had been
destroyed or build a house to shelter the families of the victims who were children at the time ofthe events; to meet the basic needs of their children, including those who were born of rape; andto pay their school fees, among other uses.
“Ask the ICC to give us money so that we can start a business, put our children in school. I would likesome land to build a house for my children.”CI, 51 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
“Bemba’s soldiers caught me and took me. I gave birth to their child. But I have no means to support
that child. If you could think about that.”C, 28 years old (from Bossangoa). C was kidnapped by one of the Banyamulengue and raped
several times. After those rapes, she was pregnant twice and was infected with HIV. The firstchild died. She was finally able to flee to Bossangoa with help from someone from the Central
African Republic. She shared her opinions and concerns during the hearing for determining thepunishment in May 2016. Bangui, 11 June 2017.
To meet the needs expressed by the victims, the reparation could be in the form of financial
compensation or in the form of income-generating activities so that those who are able to work
can improve their level of resources.56 The reparation could also be in the form of in-kind benefits.

B) Rehabilitation
Dr Adeyinka M. Akinsulure-Smith and Dr André Tabo, experts on post-traumatic stress disorder andsexual violence in armed conflict, testified when questioned by the Court during the proceedingsthat “rape victims generally suffer from four types of consequences: (i) medical (including lesions
to organs, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), loss of virginity, and unwanted pregnancies);(ii) psychological (fear, anxiety, anger, aggression, guilt, isolation, embarrassment and shame,loss of confidence, and washing rituals); (iii) psychiatric (PTSD, reactive depression, melancholia,
neuroses, addictive behaviour, and psychosomatic disorders); and (iv) social (stigmatisation andrepudiation).”57
The experts also highlighted the difficulties experienced by victims of rape in reintegrating into
society, the lack of access to appropriate medical treatment, how women are abandoned by theirhusbands after the rapes, which are equated with adultery in the central Central African Republic,
and the extreme humiliation experienced by men when they are sodomized by rape58.
a) Medical supporti) Physical injury and unwanted pregnancies
The victims interviewed have ongoing physical consequences from the sexual violence inflictedon them by the Banyamulengue and do not have appropriate medical care. Some women became
pregnant after the rapes and some were forced to abort.
“At the time, I had a terrible pain in my lower stomach and pelvic area. It still hurts today. It’s apermanent pain. My father makes teas for me out of roots to help with the pain. I take it just to
appease him, but it doesn’t help.”
T. 23 years old (from Bangui). Bangui, 10 June 2017.

56. See below pp. 34-35.
57. Trial Chamber III, Decision on Sentence pursuant to Article 76 of the Statute, 21 June 2016, No.: ICC-01/05-01/083399, §36.
58. Ibid., §37.

26

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »“After what I’ve lived through, I hurt everywhere, everything hurts. I go to the hospital, they give meprescriptions. I had a D&C to get rid of the foetus of the Banyamulengue. I don’t feel good, medicine
is a constant in my life. The medicine isn’t free and I don’t have money to pay for it. My whole family
has had to contribute to buy the medication, my children, my aunts, my uncles.”C.I., 51 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
Those who were interviewed also have consequences from the other physical violence that they
endured during the attacks.
“I have had pain in my legs ever since the events took place. The Banyamulengue pushed me and I
fell down. I started having back pain in 2002.”
I., 45 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“After the shock, my health was ruined. I especially had pain in my chest because the Banyamulengue
gave me such a clobbering. Afterwards, I went to the hospital and they gave me something to calmme down. I have headaches, and when I get them, I can’t hear anything. I haven’t seen a gynaecologist,
there are none where I live. All I do is take sedatives. They prescribe them for me every time I go to
the hospital. If the prescription is too expensive I have to figure out something I can afford.”
P.M., 32 years old (from Moungoumba). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
ii) HIV
Several of the victims interviewed were infected by HIV during the rapes committed by the
Banyamulengue.
“I had some tests done after the events, they found a sickness [HIV]. My family knows about myillness. I haven’t hidden it. Everybody knows about it. My children were very sad and it affected thema lot. I take medication, the doctors give it to me for free each month.”
J., 48 years old (from Damara). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
The interviewees who have been infected with HIV receive free antiretroviral treatment (ARV)from the Community Hospital in Bangui. Still, they all said that food scarcity made it hard or even
impossible to take their medication. ARV is usually taken at mealtimes. Without adequate food,the medication can cause significant uncomfortable side effects. The victims who met with the
FIDH delegation are so poor that they do not have access to regular meals. In addition, although
they receive the ARV at no cost, they have no funds to purchase the other medications to heal
against opportunistic diseases (i.e. acetaminophen).
“Before giving testimony, I had some tests done that I paid for myself [HIV testing]. They gave mesome medication for free. At the hospitals in Bangui, you can get ARV at no cost. But if I don’t eat
when I take the medicine, I get dizzy. I have to take my pills in the morning and the evening but I don’t
have enough money to buy food. I only eat once a day in the evening, and that doesn’t happen everyday. So often I cannot take my medication.”V., 51 years old (from Bossembélé). V was raped in front of her father on the road between
Bangui and Bossembélé. Bangui, 11 June 2017.
“I’m sick, I don’t have enough money for food. The doctor recommended that I eat before taking the
medication. So sometimes I can’t take the medication.
When I take the ARV without eating, I feel tired, I get a headache and I can’t do anything anymore.”C., 28 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 11 June 2017.
“When I arrived in Bangui after what happened, I went to see the doctor and he prescribed sometests for detecting STDs and that’s how I found out that I was sick [HIV]. I am taking ARVs, they are
free. But what’s hurting me is famine, it makes the disease worse. When I take the medication and I
don’t eat, I get dizzy and I feel exhausted.”
Y.B., 43 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »27

Finally, those who contracted HIV after the rapes are suffering from a variety of illnesses, some ofwhich could be linked to the destruction of their immune system caused by the infection.
“I don’t get care for the other sicknesses. Sometimes I have pain in my low belly, I have diarrhoea,
and I don’t have money to buy medicine. Last week I had stomach pain again. I don’t have any pills,
I take a tea made from roots that my aunt brings for me.”C., 28 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 11 June 2017.
“I don’t have money to pay for the medication for the other sicknesses. I am constantly sufferingfrom the symptoms of malaria, I’m anaemic and I have cysts from amoebas. I can’t get any carebecause I don’t have any money.”V., 51 years old (from Bossembélé). Bangui, 11 June 2017.
The reparation measures ordered by the Court should include free medical care, including freedoctor’s appointments, as well as full coverage so that any prescribed medications are available
at no cost. However, it will be necessary to take into consideration a certain number of barriers to
the implementation and efficacy of this type of reparation measure, as listed below.
iii) Corruption in medical services
Several victims expressed their disbelief in the feasibility of any programme to provide medical carebecause of the significant corruption that exists in the country.59 They expressed a disheartening
lack of trust in the medical services in the Central African Republic and are convinced that ifcollective projects are put in place, they will never be able to take advantage of them.
“We heard that the money for the reparations would be used to build schools and hospitals, and I do
not agree with this at all. If a hospital is built, the victims will go there, but we will have to pay for the
medication. Show me a hospital where people don’t pay for medication? In CAR it’s impossible, they
will always make us pay. It might work at the beginning. But when the NGOs and the whites leave,
they will stop giving us the medicine for free. It’s the same for schools. I won’t take back my words. Ifthey give us cash, even if it’s only 5 or 10 FCFA, it will be better. We will buy the medication.”S., 51 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“In our country you can’t get free care, I don’t trust them. Two or three days later they ask you to pay.
If you can be sure that it’s free, it would be fine.”N., 33 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“In our country it’s impossible to think that something like that would happen. When they build
hospitals, in the end, we don’t get anything at all. If they have stores of medication, they give them tous for free for a month or two, and then they ask us to pay.”
N.M., 43 years old (from Bossangoa). When the Banyamulengue arrived, N.M.’s family fled andshe stayed with her mother, who was too sick to escape. Both of them were raped, N.M. withthe barrel of a rifle. Bangui, 14 June 2017.
“I have heard people talking about building hospitals, schools, but I don’t agree with this. Becauseeven if they are built, not everyone will be able to benefit from them. Whenever there are any events[armed conflict], the white people get scared and they leave, then we will no longer have the rightto any free care. It can’t work. What I propose is that they give me money so that I can have a little
house of my own. The house that I have now is not a good house. I don’t have the funds. I would also
like some money so that I can do better at farming my land. I’m not necessarily against hospitals andschools, but we have been abandoned.”J., 48 years old (from Damara). Bangui, 13 June 2017.

59. The Central African Republic is ranked 159th out of 176 States on the Corruption Index published by Transparency
International in 2016.

28

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »Many towns in CAR have no hospitals or medical clinics, and most essential healthcare services
are provided or supported by humanitarian organizations. Furthermore, the only paved roads inthe country are the ones between Bangui and Sibut to the north, the one leading to Baoro to thewest and the one leading to Mbaiki to the south. Specialized, safe methods of transportation will
therefore have to be found to provide any medical aid and to monitor the proper implementationof the programme on the ground.
b) Psychological supporti) Psychological harm suffered by direct victims
All of the victims interviewed by the mission experienced extreme psychological effects from theviolence inflicted on them by the Banyamulengue 15 years ago. Those effects persist even today.
“When I remember my child who died just after the attacks and think of all the things that the
Banyamulengue did to me, it hurts.”
I., 45 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“After the events, I felt so sad, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Sometimes I wished I could just die.
Thankfully, we got some counselling from workers from the WHO [World Health Organization] and I
started to feel better. They told us that we had to keep going and look towards the future. They went
to see village leaders, they crisscrossed the country to raise awareness.”
N.M., 43 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 14 June 2017.
“When I sit down, when I think about it, I’m sad, sometimes the whole thing gives me a headache.
I am a person, something like that should not have happened to me. I ask myself why I had to go
through that.”J., 48 years old (from Damara). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
ii) Psychological harm suffered by children and spouses
Some of the victims were raped in front of their spouse and/or children. Several women indicatedthat their children were suffering from significant psychological consequences.
“The Banyamulengue raped me in front of my three children. My oldest boy is 20 now. He is so violent
compared to other kids. We aren’t stigmatized but I don’t know what people say when I’m not around.
When I explained to my son what had happened, my two daughters were there. They were sad but
they didn’t say anything. They have never asked me any questions about it. But they understand.”B.,40 years old, (from Bossangoa), Bangui, 14 June 2017.
“My youngest son is always angry. When people say that I am worth nothing, or they say bad things
about me, he gets angry and he fights with the other children. It’s not good to fight, I scold him. Now
he stays home, and that’s not good either.”P.M., 32 years old (from Moungoumba). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
One of the women interviewed explained that her husband was extremely traumatized by herrape, to the point that it killed him.
“My husband died because he was so traumatized. He was furious because of what they had done
to me. He was depressed, he stopped eating, he became delirious. He was there when it happened.”
C.I., 51 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
iii) Types of support
Some people indicated that they would like to receive psychological support for themselves or for
members of their family who were affected by the crimes that they suffered.

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »29

“I would like some kind of support. Every time I think about all of that again, it’s so bad for me, and if
I could speak with a psychologist, get some advice, I would feel a little better.”V., 51 years old (from Bossembélé). Bangui, 11 June 2017.
“Some kind of psychological support could help my son get over his aggression, his violence.”B., 40 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 14 June 2017.
Some people expressed that they felt some solace from being able to meet in groups, either atchurch or with other victims, to talk about everything or simply help each other with the tasks ofdaily life.
“We meet up with other victims in Bossangoa. When I talk about it with N.M., I feel a little relieved.
These groups are a good idea, and they can help us. At first, I thought that I was the only one who
had been raped by the Banyamulengue, and then I learned that I wasn’t the only one.
I shared my testimony with those who had been victims of the Séléka, I told them that I was a victim
from 2003 but that God had protected me, I’m still alive. We victims help each other get by. I feelbraver after sharing my testimony, after telling them that they are not the only ones.”B., 40 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 14 June 2017.
“I am the chair of a group of women who were victims of the armed conflict. There are about
50 women in the group. We get together and work to clear each other’s land, and then we taketurns having meals at each other’s houses. We go shopping together and we cook together. At the
beginning, the idea was to get together because our situation made it impossible to do any hard
work. By working together, everything is quicker and easier. We don’t have to spend so much time in
the hot sun.
We don’t want to think about what happened to us, it’s over and nobody can erase that. We don’t talkabout the events because we don’t know how each of us is feeling, somebody could faint. I am notin favour of psychological support.
Our group is only women because these issues that concern women are only for women. Most of
us don’t have a husband.”J., 48 years old (from Damara). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
“I work a lot with the church. The church is welcoming, I am a member of the choir. Every so often
C.I. and I get together to talk.”
Y.B., 43 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
c) Awareness-raising to combat stigmatizationi) Stigmatization of the victims of sexual violence and their children
All of the victims who met with the mission suffered and continue to suffer from extreme
stigmatization because of the sexual violence that they have undergone. The stigmatization
happens in communities as well as in families. Being HIV-positive is an aggravating factor for the
exclusion and isolation of the victims. Some of them have suffered physical attacks by people intheir communities. This stigmatization often extends to their children.
“There are always people who stigmatize us, the first thing they say is, ‘Are you one of the ones who
got raped by the Banyamulengue?’ ” What can a person say? I didn’t ask them to come and rape me.”N., 33 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“People who know my story stigmatize me. Even in my own family. My brother has beaten me
because of that. They tell me that I am nothing, that I am going to die.”V., 51 years old (from Bossembélé). Bangui, 11 June 2017.

30

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »“If I tell you that it’s easy for me, it would be a lie. I used to be stronger. I used to go and buy supplies
to sell, I used to travel. Now I just sit around. Children, adults, everyone points at you, children laughin your face, they say ‘She’s the one’. We feel ashamed and we can’t really go anywhere. Aroundadults, nobody pretends. I can’t go out, I can’t travel around, I am stuck.”
N.M., 43 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 14 June 2017.
“My mother is the only one who takes care of me. The other parents are pretty indifferent. But thepeople from my neighbourhood, we don’t get along at all. It seems like we have a good relationshipbut as soon as there is any little problem, they remind me about my illness, they point the finger at
me. I don’t react, all I can do is put myself in God’s hands.”
Y.B., 43 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
“We are the butt of jokes for everyone, people look at us and they say, ‘She’s the one who was rapedby the Banyamulengue’.” My children are stigmatized too. Whenever there is any little problem atschool, people say to them that they are victims.”J., 48 years old (from Damara). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
“People have insulted me and called me ‘Banyamulengue wife’ since the beginning. It makes me
feel so sad because I didn’t ask for any of this to happen. I was living with my aunt, and her children
mistreated my children, they treated them like employees. They called my daughter (the one that I
had because of the Banyamulengue) ‘monkey’ [a term for Congolese citizens living in CAR andworking at menial jobs], she was the servant around the house. As time went by, the little kids
around the neighbourhood also started to call her that. Now, she feels frustrated and she doesn’twant to play with the other children.
I have my family, my brothers and sisters, but nobody includes me anymore. I am no longer important.
My family was sad and upset about what happened to me because of the Banyamulengue. Now myfamily believes that I’m no longer worth anything, because I lost the ability to continue with mystudies and I have children all over the place.
I want the Court to do something for me because I have become the butt of everyone’s jokes,
everyone is always laughing at me. Nowadays it’s a bit less, it’s not as bad as it was before.”C., 28 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 11 June 2017.
ii) Victims abandoned by their spouses
All of the women interviewed who were married at the time of the attacks were abandoned bytheir husbands because they were raped. The only man that the delegation was able to interview
was also abandoned by one of his wives. Men who left their homes also abandoned their children
along with their wife.
“My husband and I got divorced after everything that happened. The Banyamulengue put their hands
into my vagina. My husband was able to flee, but they raped me in front of my three children. My son
screamed so much. My husband came back and he found us naked in the bedroom. After a time,
he made us leave to go to Bangui and stay with our family. Later, we met up with him in Bossangoa.
He told me that he didn’t feel like living with me anymore because the Banyamulengue had put theirhands into my vagina. I asked him, ‘What are we going to do about the children?’ He answered, ‘They
abused you in front of them, figure it out yourself.’ ”
B., 40 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 14 June 2017.
“After the events, my husband and I separated. He went and reported my rape to one of the
Banyamulengue leaders, a Rwandan man. He asked why the leader accepted the Banyamulengue
doing that kind of thing. But there was no solution, and my husband was afraid that I was infectedwith an illness, so he went back to his family. I was sad, and I had to take care of my child all bymyself.”Y.B., 43 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »31

“After the events, people talked to my husband, they told him that I must have the sickness [HIV]. So
he said to himself that he couldn’t carry on with me and he left. I ended up all alone with our children.
Every time people point at me, I don’t want to have a man in my life anymore.”
N.M., 43 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 14 June 2017.
iii) Discrimination against widows and unmarried women
For women, the harm of separation is aggravated because of the discrimination suffered byunmarried women and widows in the Central African Republic.
“Here in CAR, if you don’t have a husband, nobody respects you. If your husband just died, people
say you are a witch.”
C.I., 51 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
iv) Difficulties being in an intimate relationship
Many women, especially those who lost their virginity because of rape, indicated that they were
having trouble finding a husband and/or maintaining a stable intimate relationship.
“My problem is that I can’t find a husband for myself. Men always abandon me. They say that I am a
‘Banyamulengue wife’. Everyone in the neighbourhood knows about it. After the violence, I didn’t feelgood. Even now I feel angry and sad because I can’t find a husband who will be only mine. I am thebutt of everyone’s jokes. I have had children with three different men.”T., 23 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“My husband and I got divorced after everything that happened. I have had a partner since thenbut we were not able to live together in peace. He questioned me about the events. I was angry, I
didn’t answer him, so other people told him. He could see that I was angry. He didn’t ask any morequestions, but he started to change his behaviour. I understood that it was because of that. I had
imagined what would follow. He was the one who left me.”B., 40 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 14 June 2017.
v) Awareness-raising programmes for the population
All of the victims interviewed felt that it would be beneficial to conduct awareness-raisingprogrammes in their communities aimed at fighting against the stigmatization and stereotypes
attached to the victims of sexual violence.
“It would be good to work against stigmatization, because it’s the first thing that people say to us
when they insult us. Even now, when we have arguments with our neighbours, they point the finger
at us.”
N., 33 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“Awareness-raising would be a good choice because we would breathe easier.”J., 48 years old (from Damara). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
“It would be helpful to conduct awareness-raising programmes. Because people mock us, someone
needs to tell them that we are humans just like they are, and that’s life.”V., 51 years old (from Bossembélé). Bangui, 11 June 2017.
“If we can educate people little by little, stigmatization will end. Someday the taunting can end.
People are starting to forget what happened in 2003 because other things have happened sincethen, but the stigmatization is just as bad as it ever was, and so is the taunting because of sexual
violence.”S., 51 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
32

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »“It’s like an open wound in our heart, each time you want to talk to somebody they call you a‘Banyamulengue wife’ ”. We are still suffering the repercussions. If people were made more aware,maybe we could feel more like life was still worth living.”
C.I., 51 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
Some of the victims indicated that they had participated in awareness-raising projects.
“They asked me to talk to people, I talked. We went around in teams raising awareness with
community leaders and the general population. We would rather talk about it ourselves because
we are the ones who lived through it. There are also some boys who help us, who didn’t live throughwhat we did but who speak to show that what happened is not our fault. The NGOs used to do thistoo. Today, we are on our own, because the NGOs have left.”
N.M., 43 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 14 June 2017.
d) Professional education and training
Some of the victims who were in school at the time of the attacks were forced to abandon theirstudies because of prejudice and stigmatization or because they had no money to pay their school
fees. Leaving school prevented them from continuing with their studies, getting a decent job thatwas less difficult and menial, and having the benefit of a better income. This lost opportunity has
also had significant psychological repercussions.
“Before the events, I used to go to school. Afterwards, I quit school. I don’t know how to read or
write. I didn’t go back to school because the Banyamulengue took everything and we didn’t have any
money after that.”T., 23 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
Some of the victims also shared that after having been the victims of these crimes, they were nolonger able to send their children to school, including children born after the violence perpetrated
by the troops of Jean-Pierre Bemba, because of the poverty caused by the crimes or because of
the stigmatization.
“My little brothers and sisters used to go to school before. Three of them quit school. There was no
more money to keep going after the violence, and on top of everything, it hurts.”N., 33 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“After the attacks, my two daughters quit school.”I., 45 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“After the events with the Banyamulengue, I was left on my own with my three little girls, who werestill small. People used to point at us in the neighbourhood, so there was no longer any way for themto continue in school, and they had to quit because people were always pointing at them. Today, they
don’t work.”G., 45 years old (from Bangui). Bangui, 11 June 2017.
Some people have spoken out in favour of an adult education programme, so that they could
learn to read and write. Others have expressed a wish to receive professional training. Several
have said that they would wish for the reparations to cover the school fees of their children.
“I didn’t want to quit school. I wanted to start up again. I want to learn to read and write in French.
My children don’t go to school, they are at home. I would really like it if they could be registered toattend school.”T., 23 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“I would like the State to do something for us. If the State could pay for school for my children. Someof my children are still in school. One of my daughters is in second year. But I haven’t been able topay for her school fees because I don’t have any money. When the teachers ask her for money forphotocopies and things, she comes home.”
C.I., 51 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
FIDH - « All I want is reparation »33

“I am 30 years old. I went to school until I was 15. I got my certificate of aptitude. After that, theBanyamulengue kidnapped me and I stopped attending school. I would really like to go back toschool because I don’t do anything, I’m always thinking, and with my illness… if there were some kindof training, it would help me to forget.
None of my children go to school except for one of my boys, whose aunt paid for his school fees. I
would like my other children to be registered in school. The first one, who is 11 years old, would liketo go to school. She was only able to go between the ages of six and seven years (kindergarten tograde one). I am the one who paid her school fees (3000 FCFA). But you also have to pay for schoolsupplies (15,000 FCFA), the uniform (7000 FCFA), and lunch if she comes home at noon. Now I don’t
have enough money any more to pay for all that. If there were a programme for children to be able to
go to school for free, I would accept that.”C., 28 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 11 June 2017.
On the other hand, some said that they were not in favour of building schools, an initiative that
was announced over the radio, either because they did not believe that school would be free60 or
because they have no children who could attend.
“Free school, I have no children, what would that do for me?”N., 33 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
In the Central African Republic, the cost of private schools varies. Add to that the cost of a uniform,
which is sometimes mandatory, and school supplies. The cost of public school is approximately
3300 FCFA per year (including fees, school insurance (AMASCA) and other contributions parents
are expected to pay). Parents also have to pay for school supplies (notebooks, slates, pens andpencils, backpacks). Classes are scheduled either in the morning or afternoon depending on theweek.
e) Income-generating activities
Everyone interviewed indicated that they needed money, and some specifically listed what theywould need help with to improve their income: the ability to invest in merchandise for resale,purchase a sewing machine to sell clothing, or purchase tools or agricultural inputs to increase
production. They strongly expressed a wish to be able to have the means to get personal andindividual benefits from the reparation, even if they had to share them, to enable them to improvetheir individual financial situation. Some people also expressed the need to become involved insome kind of activity to distract themselves, have some fun and improve their mental health.
“I am a farmer, I would like a tractor and a plough so that I could produce more. The victims could get
together depending on how many tractors there are to cultivate the fields together. If the reparations
go towards the fields, that’s good, because each person has their own field. The results would be
more individual and direct than if a hospital were built.”
S., 51 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“I sell little things by the roadside, plantains and bananas, little cakes, grilled fish, chicken. But I havea hard time finding money to buy the things I sell. I live thanks to help from my father. I would likesome money so that I could run my business. I would like to buy thread for weaving, clothing, shoes
to sell, so that I could support my children.”T., 23 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“Before, I used to go into the backcountry to buy manioc and peanuts. Now I am very sick, and I don’t
have any more money, so I had to stop running that business. I would like a little money so that I
could run a small business, to sell a few small things. With my health issues, there’s not much I cando.”V., 51 years old (from Bossembélé). Bangui, 11 June 2017.

60. See above pp. 28-29.

34

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »The risk that tools that are distributed could be stolen has however been raised.
“I could agree with getting some equipment, but the last time they brought us some machines forcrushing manioc, they were stolen from us. So I don’t know if that would be very effective.”J., 48 years old (from Damara). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
f) Housing assistanceSeveral victims have expressed a wish to have a house of their own as well as some furniture.
Some of them lost their houses and their property when the Banyamulengue attacked, and others
are not able or are no longer able to pay rent because of the poverty caused by the pillaging or
because of the physical consequences of the sexual violence and other harm caused by thecrimes, which prevents them from working.
“You should film the place where we live; you will be shocked. I have a house made of straw, butduring the rainy season, it deteriorated. I would like some tin and some boards to build a house.”
C.I., 51 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.

C) Satisfactiona) The conviction and sentencing of Jean-Pierre Bemba
Most of the people interviewed said that they were satisfied with the conviction of Jean-Pierre
Bemba and they agreed with the punishment he was given.
“I was relieved to see that Jean-Pierre Bemba was convicted.”I., 45 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“He was convicted, my heart is starting to feel a little easier.”S., 51 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
Some people however expressed their discontent.
“The fact that he was convicted did not make me feel relieved, because a lot of us are dying, andnobody did anything for us after that, we are still unhappy.”
C.I., 51 years old (from Sibut). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
“What Bemba did was not good, that is why he was tried. But 18 years in prison, that’s not much,because what he did to me was my death. Something should be added to the punishment, thatwould be better.”
P.M., 32 years old (from Moungoumba). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
b) Testimony/presentation of views and concernsi) The relief brought by telling the story of the violence
Most of the victims who testified or gave their opinions and revealed their concerns before the
Court said that they felt relieved after having spoken about what had happened to them.
“I was happy to testify before the Court, to go and explain because all the things that happened tome did not do me any good. That was a relief.”
I., 45 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“I went to the ICC. I felt calmer after having heard the proceedings. We met with psychologists andwe saw other people; we spoke to Bemba and I am happy that I did that.”N., 33 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
FIDH - « All I want is reparation »35

“I gave my testimony about what I lived through. It was important. I spoke before everyone, before
the judges, my heart was soothed. I will always thank the Court because I was finally able to speak
about the pain that I carry in my heart. We want the Court to hear the cries of our hearts. The
problem is that we still have no reparation.”S., 51 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“When I testified, I was well received; I felt gratified. I was allowed to say things that I was carrying
in the deepest part of myself that were gnawing away at me so much. I had never spoken to anyone
except for my lawyer.
At the beginning, I thought that I was already done for. But when I testified, I felt something releaseinside me. I felt completely relieved, it really helped me a lot.
I testified without covering my face. I didn’t want to be anonymous because everyone already knew
what had happened to me. There was no use in hiding my identity or covering my face.”
P.M., 32 years old (from Moungoumba). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
ii) Health consequences for the victims
However, the positive effects of testifying must be put into context because of the fact that sucha powerful experience could have represented a shock for the victims, and could affect theirhealth, meaning that the ICC should continue to follow up with victims.
“When I was in The Hague, I had diarrhoea with blood, I had to be taken to the hospital.”I., 45 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
“When I testified (from Bangui on 16 May 2016), it wasn’t good for me. I had a fever on that day
because I relived everything I had suffered through.”V., 51 years old (from Bossembélé). Bangui, 11 June 2017.
“I had health issues when I got back from The Hague. When I came home, I had constant dizziness,
attacks as if I were epileptic, and headaches and chest pains. Before that I didn’t have those
symptoms, I just had malaria.
P.M., 32 years old (from Moungoumba). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
iii) Reactions in communities
The testimony also caused envy within communities, although some people were encouraging
and in some cases it helped to decrease the stigmatization.
“When I got home, some people recognized me. I continue to have problems, people envied me
because I had gone to testify in The Hague. Out in the country, people are full of complexes. They
thought that I had some kind of an advantage over them.
The ones who were more aware encouraged me. I spoke in sango, in front of everyone; they told
each other that it was for the good of the country. Now the stigmatization is a little less. I don’t see
people pointing at me any more.”
P.M., 32 years old (from Moungoumba). Bangui, 13 June 2017.
iv) Failure to provide adequate psychological support at the Court
Although going back over traumatizing events in front of a large audience in the context oflegal proceedings necessarily involves stress for the victims and witnesses, some victims also
described a lack of psychological support before, during or after their testimony.
“I had a full medical check-up when I went to testify in The Hague in 2011. I got all the tests, even thetest for AIDS, before I left for The Hague. They give us some pills but I’m not really sure why. Maybeit was to protect us from the cold. I didn’t see any doctors after I testified.”I., 45 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
36

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »“I remember that before the testimony [by videoconference link], I saw a white woman. I spoke withher by video but I didn’t know that she was a psychologist [the Witnesses and Victims Unit of the
ICC Registry performs a psychological evaluation before witnesses and victims testify]. The
connection was bad. I didn’t see any doctors afterwards.”
V., 51 years old (from Bossembélé). Bangui, 11 June 2017.
Some people complained of their isolation and said that they felt abandoned.
“The ICC was supposed to come and check on us from time to time. After the Banyamulengue, theSéléka came. We are worn down. I would like it if ICC would come to Bangui to visit the victims.”T., 23 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »37

Conclusion“I was still in school when the Banyamulengue took me away to the other side [to the DRC]. I was avirgin. When I came back I no longer had anything. I’m already dead because I have that sickness. I
want the Court to do something for me and my children and I want my children to become someone.
Since then, I have spoken, for justice. I have nothing left to say.”C., 28 years old (from Bossangoa). Bangui, 11 June 2017.
“I would like to be made whole. I have spoken, now it’s up to you.”I., 45 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
In a period of time still undetermined, the International Criminal Court will decide to grant
reparations to the victims of the sexual violence for which Jean-Pierre Bemba has been foundguilty. To make this complex decision, the judges of Trial Chamber III will have to take into
consideration a number of factors linked to the crimes and the victims, but also the particular
context of the Central African Republic.
The Court intervenes in favour of victims who are in a situation of extreme vulnerability. The
survivors of the events in 2002 and 2003 lost everything in the attacks perpetrated by the
Banyamulengue, and their financial situation was sometimes aggravated by ensuing conflicts.
They are suffering extreme consequences, which in some cases cannot be remedied. They needeverything and their needs are interdependent. The Court and the Trust Fund for Victims must
therefore create a programme for reparations that makes it possible to respond to all of theconsequences of these crimes. In particular, the reparations must be transformative, to ensurethat they neither reproduce nor contribute to perpetuating gender-based discrimination andstereotypes.61
Furthermore, for more than 15 years, armed conflicts have been ongoing in CAR, and part of its
population has been repeatedly re-victimized. Many of the victims of the crimes of Jean-Pierre
Bemba have also been the victims of crimes committed by the Séléka, the anti-Balaka or otherforces or armed groups that have sacked and pillaged the territory of the Central African Republic.
“One of my sons died in 2014. He was killed by the anti-Balaka. Another one was shot by MINUSCA,
but they were able to get the bullet out and he is alive.”S., 51 years old. Bangui, 10 June 2017.
The ICC will therefore be faced with the difficult task of ordering reparations whose goal is toremedy the consequences of crimes that were committed 15 years ago, while other crimes
have been and continue to be perpetrated. The judges who define the reparation measures will
inevitably have to consider the general context of human rights violations and the multiple revictimization of many of the victims.
Moreover, there are still conflicts under way at the time of writing of this report, conflicts that
could well continue until the reparations ordered are implemented. The measures ordered must
therefore also consider that context of insecurity. It will be particularly important for the judges
to ensure that armed groups are not able to affect the reparations process and that the securityof the victims is guaranteed.
As confirmed by the testimonies presented in this report, the Central African Republic is a Staterotten through with corruption. In order for eligible victims to effectively be able to benefit fromthe reparation measures to be granted to them, the Court must provide for the implementationof reliable and verifiable procedures that will make it possible to guarantee that sums allocatedto the victims are not diverted. One of the major challenges for the Court and the Trust Fund is
the choice of the intermediaries who will implement the reparations. They will have to be chosen
based on their reliability, integrity and impartiality. The intermediaries should also be selected fortheir knowledge of the Central African Republic and their proximity to the victims.

61. See Mapping Report, op.cit., p. 234.

38

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »One of the criticisms often made against the International Criminal Court is that it is so distantfrom the situations that it is called to judge. The expert consultation procedure set forth in thefounding texts of the Court allows it to receive counsel from people who are closer to the national
context in which the crimes were perpetrated in order to better understand the reality of thevictims. In the Bemba case, however, the Courts did not feel that it was useful to appoint experts
from the Central African Republic, or even any from the African continent, which is unfortunate.
Such experts nevertheless decided to go to CAR , in order to meet with the victims and otherparties involved in the reparations process.
Because of this lack of contact, the judges will have to rely on the Registry and the Trust Fund forVictims to identify victims who are not already participating in the proceedings, and locate those
who are participants but who are scattered around and sometimes displaced, as well as theirbeneficiaries in the event that they are deceased. The Registry and the Trust Fund for Victims will
also be in charge of communicating with victims who are eligible to receive reparation. The twobodies must have sufficient resources to be able to supply relevant information to all beneficiaries
regarding the reparation process, or to work with intermediaries who have kept track of wheredisplaced victims have gone and who may be able to assist in identifying them.
Finally, the Court must sentence Jean-Pierre Bemba to provide reparations, and therefore to pay
for them. It seems clear that Jean-Pierre Bemba will not have enough personal resources tocover all of his debt, especially given that a significant portion of his own assets will be taken up
paying for the reimbursement of the legal aid allocated by the ICC to his defense. The Trust Fundfor Victims will certainly have to allocate a significant amount to the financing of the reparations.
Nevertheless, the Court should not determine the debt of Jean-Pierre Bemba based on his own
assets or on the resources of the Fund. The amount of the reparation must be calculated basedon the number of victims and the scope and seriousness of the harm. If the resources that areavailable when the Court hands down its order are not sufficient, it could imply that reparation
will not become effective immediately, and that the amount may not immediately be paid in full.
However, the assets belonging to Jean-Pierre Bemba could be identified later, or the Fund could
receive voluntary contributions in future, possibly specifically earmarked for reparations in thiscase, meaning that it could be possible for the entire debt of Jean-Pierre Bemba to be covered.
It is important for the harm of the victims to be acknowledged in its entirety and in all its scope,even if some portion of the reparation must remain symbolic for a time. For many victims who
are now in poor health or elderly, reparation is urgent, but if they die before all of the reparation
granted to them has been paid, their children will still be able to benefit from it.

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »39

Recommendations
1. To the Trial Chamber III of the ICC
1.1 The eligibility of victims- Acknowledge the status of the victims who are eligible to receive reparation for all victims
who participated in this phase of the proceedings.
- Enable the victims who are not yet participating in the proceedings to demand reparation.
The Registry and the Trust Fund for Victims should have the necessary means to identify
and support those persons to enable them to effectively participate in the reparations
proceedings.

1.2 Reparation- Sentence Jean-Pierre Bemba to pay reparation.
- Respect the independence of the Trust Fund for Victims, which is only involved in a subsidiarymanner to supplement the resources of the person who has been convicted, and will decide
for itself how much will be taken from its own resources to finance the reparations.
- Order a set of individual and collective reparation measures making it possible to respond to
all of the consequences of the crimes. Those measures must be transformative and seek tosubvert instead of reinforce pre-existing gender hierarchies and stereotypes.
Restitution- Restore the homes, property and assets of the victims that were destroyed or pillaged
during the attacks. The reparations programme must include a restitution programme thatconsists of supplying equipment to rebuild destroyed homes and replace pillaged furniture,such as beds, which are necessary to guarantee an appropriate lifestyle.
- Adopt measures making it possible to guarantee that restitution will continue permanently
taking into account the situation of insecurity.
- Guarantee that the restitution does not lead to a reproduction of gender inequality in terms
of property ownership. Provide the victims with ownership titles for the assets that are
returned to them, ensuring that women and men have equal ownership rights.
Compensation- Provide compensation to each victim, based on the harm that they have undergone andwithout taking into account the solvency of Jean-Pierre Bemba or the amount of resourcesthat the Trust Fund for Victims could make available to the Court to supplement the amountof the reparation order.
- Adopt measures to guarantee the security of victims before and after the payment ofcompensation, aimed at preventing attacks and pillaging, particularly coming from armed
groups that are active in the Central African Republic.
- Implement a programme to raise awareness aimed at managing the expectations of thevictims if all the compensation ordered by the ICC cannot immediately be paid by the guilty
party, by the Trust Fund for Victims, or by any other stakeholder.
Rehabilitation- Guarantee that all victims have access to medical care. Take the necessary measures toensure that medical appointments and medication are free until the victims are completely
healed, and for those who suffer from incurable illnesses, for the remainder of their lives.
- Guarantee that victims but also their relatives who were affected by the crimes have accessto psychological support at no cost, for as long as necessary. The reparations programmemust include professional counselling services as well as activities to train professionals
40

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »who are identified locally, to guarantee that psychological support will be available on an
ongoing basis.
- Programmes must be conducted within communities to raise awareness on sexual violence
and the consequences of that violence, including sexually transmitted diseases, genderequality, discrimination against single women or widows, and witchcraft, to contribute to
reducing the stigmatization and exclusion of the victims and their families.
- Guarantee that victims and their children have access to education and employment, byoffering to fund school fees, adult education programmes and professional training.
- Give victims the means to regain control over their lives that have been destroyed by
the crimes, and to meet their needs and those of their families, by offering them tools toundertake income-generating activities. Depending on the profession or the views thatthe victims express regarding professional development, the Court could decide to grant
agricultural tools and machinery to improve production, merchandise or money enablingvendors to invest in inventory for resale, or sewing machines for them to make and sell
clothing.
- Provide housing assistance to victims who are not eligible for compensation. In effect, somepeople did not lose their homes in the attacks but they are still experiencing difficulty finding
housing because of the poverty caused by the crimes.
Satisfaction- Conduct broader programs to raise awareness to inform all victims of the crimes of which
Jean-Pierre Bemba was found guilty; to inform people that the ICC found him responsible formurder, rape and pillaging; that he was sentenced to 18 years of prison in the first instance;
and to notify the victims about the appeal and the reparations proceedings underway.

2. To the Trust Fund for Victims of the ICC- Allocate sufficient funds to supplement the amount in the reparation order, so that the debt
of Jean-Pierre Bemba is paid insofar as possible and to ensure the speedy and effective
implementation of the reparations granted to the victims.
- Allocate funds to cover not only the cost of the collective reparation measures ordered by
the Court, but also to cover individual reparation measures, including compensation.
- If the resources of Jean-Pierre Bemba and those allocated to reparations in this case by
the Fund are not sufficient to cover all of the debt, especially the amount of compensation
ordered, take measures to step up the search for financing so that other stakeholders cancover the debt of the guilty party by making voluntary contributions to the Fund.
- Immediately launch the implementation of assistance activities authorized by the PreTrial Chamber since 2012, which have been budgeted for several years and are constantly
being suspended for security reasons.62 The Fund must immediately perform a new needs
evaluation and finance projects in places where the security of victims and intermediaries
can be guaranteed.

3. To the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International
Criminal Court- Pay the voluntary contributions that can be specifically earmarked for reparations in the
Bemba case to the Trust Fund for Victims.

62. P
 re-trial Chamber II, Decision on the “Notification by the Board of Directors in accordance with Regulation 50 a) of
the regulations of the Trust Fund for Victims to undertake activities in the Central African Republic”, 23 October 2012,
ICC-01/05-41 ; Trust Fund For Victims Suspends Its Activities In The Central African Republic, 25 March 2013 [http://
www.trustfundforvictims.org/news/trust-fund-victims-suspends-its-activities-central-african-republic].

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »41

- Allocate an additional budget to the Registry and the Trust Fund for Victims to enable themto have sufficient personnel and the means to identify, locate and inform all of the victims
who are eligible to receive reparation.

4. To the Support Units of the Special Criminal Court and its bodies- Integrate the provisions relating to the reparations into the founding texts of the SCC.
- Create a Trust Fund for Victims financed by mandatory contributions from governments andinstitutions participating in the joint project, as well as voluntary contributions. Establish
the bodies of the Fund quickly so that those bodies will be able to begin fundraising forvoluntary contributions well before the reparations phase to guarantee the effective andrapid implementation of reparations once they are ordered.
- Cooperate with the International Criminal Court to guarantee that communications andawareness-raising strategies for victims are harmonized, ensuring the same harmonization
between the two courts regarding approaches on reparations.

5. To the Authorities in the Central African Republic- If Jean-Pierre Bemba does not personally have enough assets to pay the entirety of his debt,
make a voluntary contribution to cover the amount of his debt to the Trust Fund for Victimsof the ICC.
- Cooperate with the Court and the Trust Fund for Victims of the ICC to enable them to
implement the reparations ordered within the country.
- Adopt measures to guarantee the security of the personnel of the court and the Fund, theirintermediaries, and the victims throughout the entire reparations procedure.
- Adopt measures to guarantee that the reparations granted will continue on an ongoingbasis, especially as they relate to combating corruption and insecurity.
- Adopt the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the SCC as soon as possible to ensure theoperationalization of the Court.
- Guarantee reparation for the victims of sexual violence by creating a national victims’ fund.

42

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »APPENDIX - LIST OF PEOPLE METInternational Criminal Court- Mike P. J. Cole, Representative/Bureau Chief, External Affairs, Central African Republic,
Division of External Operations, Registry-	Blaise Pascal Zalagoye Dogui, External Affairs, Central African Republic, Division ofExternal Operations, Registry-	Gervais Bodagay, Assistant in charge of Awareness-raising on the Ground, External
Affairs, Central African Republic, Division of External Operations, Registry

United Nations- Jasper Pauw, Head, Special Criminal Court Support Unit at United Nations Multidimensional
Integrated Stabilization Mission (MINUSCA)- Gaston Asitaki, Joint Project to Support the Fight against Human Rights Violations andto Resume Justice in the Central African Republic, UNDP

Embassies- His Excellency Mr. Christian Bader, Ambassador, Representative of the French Republicin the Central African Republic

Non-governmental Organizations- Tatiana Flores Acuna, Director, American Bar Association- Ben Kabagambe, Assistant Program Director, American Bar Association, Rule of Law
Initiative (ABAROLI)- Adrien Nifasha, Country Director, Lawyers Without Borders

FIDH - « All I want is reparation »

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FIDH - « All I want is reparation »Keep your eyes open

Director of
publications:
Dimitris
Christopoulos
Editor:Marceau Sivieude
Authors /Coordination :Karine Bonneau
and Daisy Schmitt
Design :FIDH

Establishing the facts - Investigative and trial observation missions
Supporting civil society - Training and exchange
Mobilising the international community - Advocacy before intergovernmental bodies
Informing and reporting - Mobilising public opinion

This publication has been produced with the support of the Oak Foundation. The
contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of FIDH and can in no way
be taken to reflect the views of the Oak Foundation.

CONTACT US
FIDH
17, passage de la Main d’Or
75011 Paris - France
Tel: (33-1) 43 55 25 18
www.fidh.org
Twitter: @fidh_en / fidh_fr / fidh_es
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/FIDH.HumanRights/

Dépôt légal novembre 2017 - FIDH (Ed. anglaise) ISSN 2225-1804 - Fichier informatique conforme à la loi du 6 janvier 1978 (Déclaration N°330 675)

FIDH is an international
human rights NGO federating
184 organizations
from 112 countries.

About fidh
FIDH takes action for the protection of victims of human rights violations, forthe prevention of violations and to bring perpetrators to justice.
A broad mandate
FIDH works for the respect of all the rights set out in the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights: civil and political rights, as well as economic, social and culturalrights.

A universal movement

FIDH was established in 1922, and today unites 184 member organisations in
112 countries around the world. FIDH coordinates and supports theiractivities and provides them with a voice at the international level.

An independent organisation

Like its member organisations, FIDH is not linked to any party or religion and isindependent of all governments.

www.fidh.org