Agenda Item 10: Technical assistance and capacity-building

Interactive dialogue on:  Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Central African Republic

Statement by: International-Lawyers.Org and Geneva International Centre for Justice (GICJ)

10 July 2019

Thank you Ms Vice President

We thank the Independent expert on the situation of human rights in the Central African Republic for her oral update.

We commend the the steps taken for the peace process, especially through the Bangui Forum on National Reconciliation, the signature of the Bangui Peace Agreement in February and the signature of a peace agreement for the Haut-Kotto region in Bria on April 2019.

We call for their full respect and for the application of sanctions in the event of breaches, as no peace process will take place as long as there is impunity.

We recommend greater participation of the population through consultations, especially of the most vulnerable as women, children, elderly, disabled people and ethnical minorities, that are often disproportionately affected by conflict but have rarely a role to play during the peace process.

As the Independent Expert underlined in her 2018 report, violations have been perpetrated by both armed groups and national authorities.

It is necessary to put and end to these violations and ensure their non-recurrence to work towards reconciliation, peace and justice, in particular by creating strong and independent judicial institutions to investigate and make perpetrators accountable.

Ms Vice President,

International-lawyers.org and the Geneva International Centre for Justice call the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to support CAR in the construction of peace by providing technical assistance in the establishment of strong institutions, and hope for the full cooperation of the Central African Republic.

I thank you.

Justice, Human rights, Geneva, geneva4justice, GICJ, Geneva International Centre For Justice