THE HAGUE: International war crimes judges on Friday awarded $10 million in landmark reparations to “hundreds or thousands” of former child soldiers left brutalized and stigmatized after being conscripted into a ruthless Congolese militia.
Warlord Thomas Lubanga, 56, was jailed for 14 years after being convicted in 2012 at the International Criminal Court (ICC) of abducting boys and girls and press-ganging them into his Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC) in the eastern Ituri region of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo).
The judges said Friday that Lubanga, who is serving his sentence in a Congolese prison, was also liable for compensation to 425 victims, identified by the court. At the time of the crimes in 2002-2003, all were under 15.
They stressed, though, that it was difficult to determine the exact number of child soldiers drawn into Lubanga’s militia — many of whom were exploited as bodyguards or sex slaves — saying there were “hundreds or even thousands of additional victims.”
Each of the 425 named victims had suffered harm amounting to $8,000, giving a total of $3.4 million, presiding judge Marc Perrin de Brichambaut said.
But in a surprise move, the judges then awarded a further $6.6 million to help any others who may now come forward.
The award is collective, and will be used in projects to help victims rebuild their lives and integrate back into society.
Local rights groups welcomed the award, saying it was a relief for victims, many of whom are now in their 30s with children of their own.
“What is important to us, is not the amount attached to this award... the main thing is that it has been recognized that there are victims in this case,” said Xavier Maki from the Justice Plus group.
The award, equivalent to €8.5 million, will be administered by the independent Trust Fund for Victims, which has already drawn up a three-year project to help Lubanga’s victims, and set aside €1 million for the case.
Fund director Pieter de Baan told AFP the $10 million award was a victory for the victims.
“It is really important that this is an acknowledgement that if harm is suffered on a mass scale by victims, you need to take it seriously, you need to recognize that and you need to put an amount to it,” he said.
But the fund, which is solely supported by donations from ICC member states, said it would be “challenging” to come up with the money, after the court also declared Lubanga penniless.
“We don’t have $10 million. We didn’t know what was coming, we had no idea. We have in our reserves €5.5 million,” he said, adding he would be appealing for more funds from ICC member-states.
The fund will assess the needs of each victim, and provide medical and psychological treatment. Other forms of help will include educational and vocational training.
The NGO Child Soldiers International, which works to stop children being used in conflicts, welcomed Friday’s award as the “recognition of the great suffering experienced by the children exploited and abused” by Lubanga.
They hoped it would “act as a catalyst in showing that those who recruit and exploit children in conflict will be held accountable for their crimes,” said program manager Sandra Olsson.
Ituri remains “a highly militarised province” and the use of child recruits remains prevalent, she warned, urging the authorities and international bodies “to ramp up” efforts to free children and prosecute abusers. Lubanga can appeal the decision, and his lawyers have argued he should not pay anything.
“Who are these victims that the court is going to compensate?” asked Pele Kaswara Tahigomu, a leading member of Lubanga’s party in Bunia, adding the ruling was “just another move against” Lubanga.
Lubanga’s is the ICC’s third reparations award. In March, judges awarded $250 each to 297 victims of another Congolese warlord, Germain Katanga.
And in August, the court ruled a Malian militants caused €2.7 million in damage when he destroyed several Timbuktu shrines in 2012.
ICC awards DR Congo child soldiers $10m in damages
ICC awards DR Congo child soldiers $10m in damages
Putin says China is Russia’s ally, backs its stance on Taiwan
- The two countries have not declared a formal military alliance, but have signed a ‘no limits’ partnership deal in 2022
- Putin suggested that Taiwan was trying to stir up a Ukraine-style crisis in Asia in order to attract outside support
The two countries have not declared a formal military alliance, but Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping signed a “no limits” partnership deal in 2022, less than three weeks before Putin sent his troops into Ukraine.
In May this year they agreed to deepen what they called their “comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation” for a new era.
“We do not believe that China is pursuing an aggressive policy in the region,” Putin said at the Valdai discussion club in the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi.
He suggested that Taiwan was trying to stir up a Ukraine-style crisis in Asia in order to attract outside support.
China views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, despite strong objections by the government in Taipei, and regularly holds wargames near the island.
“A lot is going on around Taiwan,” Putin said. “Everyone formally acknowledges, yes, Taiwan is part of China. But in reality? In reality, it is acting in a completely different direction. Provoking the situation toward escalation.
“We do support China. And because of this, we believe that (China) is conducting a completely reasonable policy. And also because it is our ally. We have a very large trade turnover, we co-operate in the security sector.”
Taiwan’s foreign ministry said China and Russia were the real problem.
“The regime of Russia’s Putin launched a war of aggression against Ukraine, leading to misery for Ukraine’s people and sanctions and condemnation from the international community,” it said in a statement.
“China and Russia together continue to undermine the rule-based international order and have become a serious threat to world peace and stability.”
Putin compared military drills between Russia and China to those the United States holds with Japan.
“These exercises do not threaten anyone,” Putin said. “They are aimed at ensuring our security.”
Swiss ‘burqa ban,’ condemned by Muslims, to take effect from Jan. 1, 2025
- Anyone who unlawfully flouts the ban faces a fine of up to $1,144
- Facial coverings remain permitted for reasons relating to health, safety
ZURICH: A contentious Swiss prohibition on facial coverings in public spaces widely known as the “burqa ban” will take effect on Jan. 1, the government said on Wednesday.
Narrowly passed in a 2021 referendum in neutral Switzerland, and condemned by Muslim associations, the measure was launched by the same group that organized a 2009 ban on new minarets.
The governing Federal Council said in a statement it had fixed the start of the ban, and that anyone who unlawfully flouts it faces a fine of up to 1,000 Swiss francs ($1,144).
The ban does not apply to planes or in diplomatic and consular premises, and faces may also be covered in places of worship and other sacred sites, the government said.
Facial coverings will remain permitted for reasons relating to health and safety, for native customs, or due to weather conditions, it said. They would also be allowed on artistic and entertainment grounds and for advertising, it added.
If such coverings are needed for personal protection in exercising freedom of expression and assembly, they should be permitted provided the responsible authority has already approved them and public order is not compromised, it said.
Two separatist militants, two government-run militia members killed in Indian-administered Kashmir
- Militants in the Indian-administered portion of Kashmir have been fighting New Delhi’s rule since 1989
- Many support rebels’ goal of uniting the territory, either under Pakistani rule or as independent country
NEW DELHI: Two suspected militants were killed in a gunfight with government forces in Indian-administered Kashmir, officials said Friday, while assailants killed two members of a government-sponsored militia elsewhere in the disputed region.
The region, divided between India and Pakistan but claimed by both in its entirety, has experienced an increase in violence in recent weeks.
The Indian military said a joint team of soldiers and police raided a village near northwestern Sopore town late Thursday following a tip about the presence of a group of militants.
The militants “fired indiscriminately” at the troops, leading to a gunbattle in which two were killed, the military said in a statement.
Troops were continuing to search the area, it said. There was no independent confirmation of the incident.
Meanwhile, assailants killed two members of a government-run militia called the “Village Defense Group” in the remote southern Kishtwar area late Thursday, officials said.
Police blamed rebels fighting against Indian rule in Kashmir for the killings.
The two were abducted from a forested area where they had gone to graze cattle on Thursday. Their bodies were found late Thursday, police said.
The militia was initially formed in the 1990s as a defense against anti-India insurgents in remote Himalayan villages that government forces could not reach quickly. As the insurgency waned in their areas and as some militia members gained notoriety for brutality and rights violations, the militia was largely disbanded.
However last year, after the killing of seven Hindus in two attacks in a remote mountainous village near the highly militarized Line of Control that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan, authorities revived the militia and began rearming and training thousands of villagers, including some teenagers.
The Kashmir Tigers, which Indian officials say is an offshoot of the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad militant group, claimed responsibility for the killings of the two in a statement on social media. The statement could not be independently verified.
Militants in the Indian-administered portion of Kashmir have been fighting New Delhi’s rule since 1989. Many Muslim Kashmiris support the rebels’ goal of uniting the territory, either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country.
India insists the Kashmir militancy is “Pakistan-sponsored terrorism.” Pakistan denies the charge, and many Kashmiris consider it a legitimate freedom struggle. Tens of thousands of civilians, rebels and government forces have been killed in the conflict.
Philippine president signs new laws to assert South China Sea rights, sovereignty
- China summons Philippine ambassador to lodge solemn representations over the new laws
- Unclear if laws could reduce incidents with China in Manila’s exclusive economic zone
MANILA: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed two laws on Friday aimed at strengthening the country’s maritime claims and bolstering its territorial integrity, as tensions with China over disputed areas in the South China Sea persist.
The Maritime Zones Act and the Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act would define the Philippines’ maritime entitlements and set designated sea lanes and air routes to reinforce sovereignty and maritime rights under international law.
China has summoned the Philippine ambassador to lodge solemn representations over two new laws, its foreign ministry said on Friday.
Marcos hailed the laws as a demonstration of the Philippines’ commitment to uphold an international rules-based order, and protect its rights to exploit resources peacefully in its exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
“Our people, especially our fisher folk, should be able to pursue their livelihood free from uncertainty and harassment,” Marcos said. “We must be able to harness mineral and energy resources in our sea bed.”
While the two laws were envisioned to help US ally the Philippines to monitor and defend against potential encroachment, questions remain about how they will be enforced and if they will impact Chinese activity in the Philippine EEZ.
China asserts its claim of sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea through an armada of coast guard ships, some of which are accused by its neighbors of aggressive conduct and of trying to disrupt energy and fisheries activity in their EEZs.
Senator Francis Tolentino, one of the authors of the maritime zones measure, said he does not expect tensions in Philippine EEZ will be instantly reduced with the implementation of the new laws.
“China will not recognize these, but the imprimatur that we’ll be getting from the international community would strengthen our position,” Tolentino told a press conference.
China’s embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the new laws and senator’s remarks.
Tolentino also said the laws would reinforce a 2016 arbitration ruling on the South China Sea, which declared China’s expansive claims had no basis under international law. China has rejected the 2016 decision.
Hungary PM Orban says Europe cannot finance Ukraine war alone
- Viktor Orban: ‘The Americans will quit this war, first of all they will not encourage the war’
BUDAPEST: The United States under the presidency of Donald Trump will “quit” the war in Ukraine and Europe cannot finance this war alone, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban told state radio on Friday before an informal summit of EU leaders in Budapest.
“The Americans will quit this war, first of all they will not encourage the war,” Orban said. “Europe cannot finance this war alone ... some still want to continue sending enormous amounts of money into this lost war but the number of those who remain silent ...and those who cautiously voice that we should adjust to the new situation, is growing.”
