The trial of Congolese rebel leader Roger Lumbala began Wednesday in Paris over atrocities committed two decades ago during the Second Congo War.
Lumbala has been charged with “criminal conspiracy to prepare crimes against humanity” and “complicity of crimes against humanity” during the conflict from 1998 to 2003.
Lumbala faces a possible sentence of life in prison. A verdict is expected Dec. 19 following the trial at the Paris criminal court.
The 67-year-old led the Congolese Rally for National Democracy, a rebel group backed by neighboring Uganda and accused of atrocities against civilians, particularly targeting the Nande and Bambuti ethnic minorities in eastern Congo in 2002 and 2003.
The group committed widespread torture, executions, rape, forced labor and sexual slavery, according to United Nations reports.
After the war, Lumbala served as minister of foreign trade in Congo’s transitional government from 2003 to 2005 and later as a member of parliament. The Congolese government issued an arrest warrant in 2011 over his alleged support of the M23 rebel group, prompting him to flee to France.
Lumbala was arrested in Paris in 2020 and indicted by a French court in 2023.
The trial is possible under a French law recognizing universal jurisdiction for crimes against humanity. His case marks the first time a Congolese political or military leader has been tried for mass atrocities before a national court under the universal jurisdiction principle.
Several groups representing civil parties including the Clooney Foundation for Justice, TRIAL International, Minority Rights Group, Justice Plus and PAP-RDC issued a joint statement last month praising what they called a “historic trial.”
“For too long, perpetrators have escaped justice, some even rising to positions of power,” said Daniele Perissi, head of Congo's program at TRIAL International. “This trial is a historic step in breaking that cycle of impunity."
Congo has been wracked by deadly conflict in its mineral-rich east since the 1990s with more than 100 active armed groups. The conflict escalated earlier this year when the M23 rebel group seized two key cities with the help of neighboring Rwandan forces.
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Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed to this report.
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