Former DR Congo militia leader, Roger Lumbala, aged 65, is set to stand trial in France for alleged atrocities constituting crimes against humanity. Reports from RFI and AFP revealed that an investigating judge has ordered the trial of Lumbala, who has been in detention in France since his apprehension towards the end of 2020.
Lumbala, a onetime opposition lawmaker and former leader of the RCD-N party, is linked to an armed group implicated by United Nations investigators in a range of heinous acts including extrajudicial killings, rapes, and even cannibalism during the civil war that engulfed DR Congo from 1998 to 2002.
In a joint statement, prominent non-governmental organizations including the Clooney Foundation for Justice, TRIAL International, Minority Rights Group, and Justice Plus, affirmed that the enough evidence exists to indict Roger Lumbala for complicity in crimes against humanity and conspiracy to commit such crimes. The slated trial is anticipated to take place in Paris in the year 2025.
