MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the assassination of Floribert Chebeya in DRC
15.6.2010
pursuant to Rule 122 of the Rules of Procedure
Isabelle Durant, Heidi Hautala, Raül Romeva i Rueda, Bart Staes, Malika Benarab-Attou, Michail Tremopoulos, Barbara Lochbihler, Nicole Kiil-Nielsen on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group
See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B7-0376/2010
B7‑0377/2010
European Parliament resolution on the assassination of Floribert Chebeya in DRC
The European Parliament,
- having regard to its previous resolutions on the situation of Democratic Republic of Congo the and in particular deteriorating situation the east,
– having regard to Rule 122(5) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. Chocked by the sudden assassination of Mr. Floribert Chebeya on 1 June 2010 a well known human rights defender in DRC;
B. Whereas Floribert Chebeya's was asked to appear before the inspector general of the national police, Gen. John Numbi, and his death took place after this meeting,
C. Whereas Chebeya's family was not authorized to have full access to his body and conflicting police statements about the cause of his death raise serious concerns,
D. Recalling that Floribert Chebeya was the executive director of one of Congo's largest and most respected human rights organizations, the Voix des Sans Voix (Voice of the Voiceless), based in Kinshasa,
E. Whereas he was among Congo's most vocal human rights defenders, regularly exposing human rights violations by the country's security services and the government over many years,
F. Whereas he had been threatened and intimidated repeatedly by Congolese authorities as a result of his work,
G. Whereas human rights defenders and journalists in DRC face increasing difficulty to do their job in an independent manner,
H. Recalling that the killings of human rights defender Pascal Kabungulu Kibembi in 2005 and journalists such as Franck Ngyke, a journalist, and his wife, Hélène Mpaka, Serge Maheshe in June 2007, Didace Namujimbo in November 2008,
I. Whereas the investigations and subsequent trials into each of these past killings were led by the Congolese military authorities and were marred by serious irregularities,
1 Condemns the killing of Mr. Floribert Chebeya and calls believes that his death must be fully investigated to put an end to impunity,
2 Welcomes that the authorities responded to the request made by Mr Chebeya's family to carry out an independent autopsy by inviting an independent Dutch forensics expert team led by Dr Franklin Van de Groot to determine the cause of death;
3 Calls for the establishment of an independent commission of inquiry under the auspice of the UN and with the participation of Congolese authorities as well as well as a representatives Congolese human rights organizations, community,
4 Calls on the Congolese authorities to fully cooperate with the international commission of inquiry;
5 Considers that the Congolese authorities should take every possible step to bring Chebeya's killers to justice as well killers of Pascal Kabungulu Kibembi, a human rights defender, Franck Ngyke, a journalist, and his wife, Hélène Mpaka in 2005 , Serge Maheshe, journalist, in 2007 and Didace Namujimbo , a journalist, in November 2008,
6 Deplores the worsening situation of human rights defenders in DRC and calls on DRC government to step up the fight against impunity, uphold the rule of law and to ensure that those responsible for breaching human rights are brought to justice,
7 Instructs its president to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the DRC government, the president of the African Union and the UN Secretary-General.