Statement on ICC Commencement of Confirmation of Charges Hearing in Bosco Ntaganda case

Today, the confirmation of charges hearing in the case against Bosco Ntaganda (Ntaganda) will commence before Pre-Trial Chamber II of the International Criminal Court (ICC). 'According to the communities affected by the crimes for which Ntaganda is charged, this case brings before the ICC one of the most notorious perpetrators of violence in eastern DRC,' said Brigid Inder, Executive Director of the Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice.

'Bosco Ntaganda is reported to have terrorised communities in at least three provinces within eastern DRC as a senior military leader for more than a decade and is known locally as the “Terminator”,' said Ms Inder.

Ntaganda has been charged with 13 counts of war crimes and five counts of crimes against humanity, in his alleged capacity as the Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of operations and organisation of the Forces Patriotiques pour la Libération du Congo (FPLC), the military wing of the Union des Patriotes Congolais (UPC).  The crimes alleged by the ICC took place in the Ituri region in Eastern DRC between September 2002 and September 2003.

Read the full statement by the Women's Initiatives for Gender Justice.