A defense witness today told court that the Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC) – the group Thomas Lubanga is alleged to have led – did not conscript any children. Instead, children who had no parents, and those who adored soldiers that extorted money from civilians, voluntarily joined the group. Claude Nyéki Django, the 20-year-old defense…
A defense witness told the Thomas Lubanga trial that his son appeared before the court as a prosecution witness and lied about serving as a child soldier in the Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC), the group which the International Criminal Court (ICC) says was led by Lubanga. Under cross-examination by the prosecution’s Manoj Sachdeva, the…
Thomas Lubanga’s defense opened today at the International Criminal Court (ICC), with his lawyers declaring that they would produce evidence to show that agents of the Office of The Prosecutor helped to fabricate the testimony of several witnesses who were called by the prosecution. Catherine Mabille, Lubanga’s lead counsel, said they would produce 16 witnesses…
Three years, 10 months, one week. That is how long for he has waited. This week, Thomas Lubanga gets to start telling judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) why they should set him free. The 49-year-old psychology graduate has pleaded not guilty to the war crimes over which he first appeared in court at…
The trial of Thomas Lubanga did not go ahead as usual today as the International Criminal Court held a ceremony swearing in two new judges to sit on the court. The new judges are Ms Silvia Fernández de Gurmendi (Argentina) and Ms Kuniko Ozaki (Japan) who swore their oaths in front of the other ICC…
The Lubanga defense today questioned the participating victim who begun giving evidence at the Lubanga trial on Tuesday, querying his account of how rebels abducted pupils from a school where he was the schoolmaster, and the authenticity of the medical records he presented before the court. Defense counsel Jean-Marie Biju-Duval put it to the witness…
The first participating victim to take the witness stand in the trial of former Congolese militia leader Thomas Lubanga told the court on Tuesday that the reason he was testifying was to inform the world about the crimes committed against his people by a militia group Lubanga is alleged to have led, and to ask…
Radhika Coomaraswamy, the UN secretary general’s special representative for children and armed conflict, on Thursday asked judges in the Thomas Lubanga trial to deliver justice to girls who were involved in armed conflict. Appearing as an expert witness on the day the trial resumed following a six month lull, Coomaraswamy’s testimony dwelt on the interpretations…
Before the defense case for Thomas Lubanga starts in full swing, it is worth reminding ourselves of his team’s opening statement to the court – made almost a year ago now. It may give us a sense of of the direction Mr. Lubanga’s team could take in making a case for his innocence, although the team provided…
In an historic moment — the first day of the first trial at the International Criminal Court – the chief Prosecutor, Luis Moreno Ocampo, introduced his first case. He described the ground-breaking nature of his case, the importance of the charges against Thomas Lubanga – the war crimes of conscription, enlistment and use of child soldiers — and…
Thomas Lubanga on trial at the International Criminal Court. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo is the first person to be tried by the International Criminal Court. A former rebel leader in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lubanga is accused of conscripting, enlisting, and using child soldiers. More
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