By Enyichukwu Enemanna
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) says it has filed a case against Rwanda at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing its neighbouring nation of breaching multiple international treaties.
DR Congo in a statement on Friday said Rwanda had dispatched forces and backed armed groups to carry out unlawful military operations on its territory following the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
DRC Justice Minister Guillaume Andali said his country is seeking redress for alleged breaches of conventions covering genocide prevention, racial discrimination, women’s rights and torture.
Rwanda has repeatedly dismissed evidence that it backs rebel groups in the country, including the M23.
UN experts and Western governments are among various parties that have alleged that Rwanda is supporting the M23, a major armed group in DR Congo’s east.
DRC is asking the Netherlands-based ICJ to order Rwanda to cease its alleged crimes and award reparations to the Congolese authorities and its victims.
This is not the first time DR Congo has filed a case against Rwanda at the ICJ.
An initial case was dropped by the Congolese authorities in 2001. In 2006 the ICJ dismissed a second case, saying it could not proceed because Rwanda had not recognised its jurisdiction.
The decades-long conflict in DR Congo is rooted in the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
About 800,000 people, mostly from the Tutsi community were slaughtered by ethnic Hutu extremists.
One of the Hutu groups, the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which includes some of those responsible for the Rwandan genocide, is still active in eastern DR Congo.
Rwanda describes the FDLR as a “genocidal militia” and says its continued existence in eastern DR Congo threatens its own territory.
Rwanda accuses the Congolese authorities of working with the FDLR, an allegation DRC denies.l009
