Our reactions towards Amnesty International calling upon M23 to protect Human Rights Defenders and civilians in Goma DRCongo

                              Monday January 28th, 2025

Here is the attached statement ” Statement on Human Rights Defenders in Goma DRC January 2025

We do not know yet what happened to all these Activists who resisted against the DRC Government incapacity to protect civilians and opposed this war imposed by M23/Rwanda. 

Our reaction to Amnesty International statement calling upon the M23 backed by Rwanda to protect Civilians and Human Rights Defenders in North Kivu, the Democratic Republic of Congo

Basing of the information from Radio France International (RFI) in the morning January 28th, 2025 broadcasted at 8:30 am time of Goma, Amnesty International called upon M23 backed by Rwanda to protect the civilians and Human Rights Defenders in the region.

While we appreciate and welcome this statement, and especially the concerns about Human Rights Defenders, we observe that Amnesty International is the first organization that has showed clearly concerns about the situation of human rights defenders in North Kivu currently. However the risks towards Human Rights Defenders in Goma were expected and should have been avoided, if there was a small piece of will.

We observe that most of other human rights organizations are silent in this particular moment when human rights defenders in North Kivu urgently need their solidarity, especially in this period when efforts should have been to make them feel that they are not left alone.

We are so preoccupied that not much has been done in order to ensure that human rights defenders are protected  and enjoy the necessary support to manage and reduce risks, as per now we have no information of anyone who could have enjoyed the support from human rights organizations. The United Nations Mission in DRC evacuated her personnel but surprisingly abandoned human rights defenders who are at high risks, and the only message we could get from UN officers “please stay at home, don’t move and make sure you are safe”.

Much as we appreciate the intention from Amnesty International, however calling upon the M23/Rwanda to protect Human Rights Defenders when we all know how Rwanda is hostile against human rights defenders is also another way of avoiding responsibilities to real extend solidarity to human rights defenders in Goma who should be evacuated at this moment. Instead of deploying the energy to work on human rights defenders risks reduction which is the most effective, Amnesty International is making unrealistic demands. Where has M23/Rwanda protected Human Rights Defenders and why should Goma become exceptional?

Actually we expected Amnesty International to work in that direction to advocate for the relocation of human rights defenders especially those who are critical and highly wanted by M23/Rwanda who are in difficult situation, strengthen the efforts of human rights defenders, and to promote effective security risks reduction, which are not observed now.

We strongly condemn the attitude of some human rights organizations who were alerted and who foresaw the danger but decided not to support efforts of prevention proposed by human rights defenders in Goma. Any human rights defender who will face a problem it will be attributed to all those who were asked to decide but chose not to decide in favor of the security risks management of human rights defenders in Goma, by bringing excuses why they should not help at that particular moment rather than bringing more reasons why they should help when it was time.

At this moment the situation of many human rights defenders in Goma particularly is the worst, many are not living in their homes, they are spending days and nights without food where they are hiding from, some are being hunted by M23/Rwanda, others are sick and cannot get treatment, you cannot imagine their psychologic situation now, among others.

It is pity that for no clear reason brought forward, human rights organizations that have the mandate to ensure the protection of human rights defenders opted to either keep silence or decided not to help those in difficult situations in Goma, the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The Secretariat

%d bloggers like this: