HISTORIC LEGAL ACTION AGAINST THE DRC AT THE EAST AFRICAN COURT OF JUSTICE

The Collectif des Avocats des Parties Civiles, in collaboration with representatives of the Banyamulenge, Tutsi of North Kivu and Hema communities, filed an historic legal action against the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) at the East African Court of Justice on 11th April 2025.

Maitre Bernard Maingain

A coalition of lawyers is backing a landmark case filed by the Banyamulenge, Tutsi of North Kivu, and Hema communities against the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) at the East African Court of Justice (EACJ). This case follows the DRC’s recent accession to the Treaty for the Establishment of the East

African Community (EAC Treaty) and seeks accountability for decades of state-enabled ethnic persecution, systematic violence, and structural exclusion.

Since 2021, this same collective of lawyers has filed multiple cases in domestic courts in the DRC and has sought the intervention of international courts, calling on the DRC to stop ongoing atrocities against the above-named communities. The DRC government failed to act and instead intensified its actions, further entrenching the suffering of these communities. The current case accuses the DRC of :

1. collaborating with and supporting armed groups responsible for mass atrocities including Wazalendo (formerly Mai-Mai), CODECO, Red Tabara, and FDLR militia groups ;

2. engaging in extrajudicial killings, forced displacement, and ethnic cleansing ;

3. committing widespread cannibalism, and sexual and gender-based violence ;

4. engaging in hate speech, incitement to violence and genocidal rhetoric, and denying the Tutsi of North Kivu and the Banyamulenge communities citizenship, legal identity, and freedom of movement ;

5. carrying out arbitrary arrests, unlawful detention, and enforced disappearance ;

6. pillaging civilian villages, farms, livestock and other property ; and

7. imposing economic blockades, closing community bank accounts, and restricting trade.

These acts violate the DRC’s obligations under the EAC Treaty and international human rights law instruments including the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. The Applicants ask the EACJ to :

i) Declare the DRC responsible for the violations against the Banyamulenge, Tutsi of North Kivu, and Hema communities.

ii) Direct the DRC to make reparations in favour of these communities.

iii) Direct the DRC to guarantee citizenship, economic access, and non-repetition measures Call to Action :

We urge the international community, regional institutions, civil society, and the media to support this effort and give visibility to these long-silenced and persecuted communities. Their case is not only legal—it is a call for justice, recognition, and dignity.

The East African Court of Justice must not only hear this case—it must also act with courage. The world must finally listen !

Issued today, 11th April 2025.

BERNARD MAINGAIN
Lawyer (Brussels)

JEAN PAUL SHAKA
Lawyer (New York)

INNOCENT NTEZIRYAYO
Lawyer and Co-ordinator of Collectif (The UK)

JOHN S NYANJE
Lawyer (Nairobi)