The Issue of Justice

Military Courthouse in Minova

A major objective of this blog is to highlight women as more than just people victimized by sexual violence.  It is to point out their creativity, individuality and humanity.  However, this entry will focus more on the environment in which they exude these qualities than the women themselves.  The question is, 'how can justice be served, if there is no place to serve it?'

Impunity.  It is a common theme which runs throughout the discussion on violations against women in the DRC.  The 'exemption from punishment' that is pervasive in a country that struggles to meet its end of the social contract.  Impunity is discussed often with regard to the DRC, and there is a general awareness that it is the absence of governance systems which causes it.  But there is little understanding of what must be fixed specifically in order to meet this call for ending impunity for violent perpetrators.  I, myself, am new to certain discoveries, which have spurred my interest in investigating this topic further.

Below is an excerpt from the Special Report of the Secretary-General on the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Great Lakes region. It was a shocking discovery for me, which is why I'd like to share it here:

23. The prison system is characterized by inhuman conditions of detention, including lack of medical facilities and severe overcrowding. Very few prisons have an allocated budget for operational costs, and detainees regularly face malnutrition and lack of health services. Security installations are rudimentary, contributing to high rates of escape. Some 95 per cent of personnel working in correctional facilities are self-appointed and there is no training institution for prison personnel. No formal or practical coordination exists among the Ministries of Justice and Human Rights, Defence and the Interior, which are together responsible for the corrections sector. Of approximately 18,000 inmates in correctional facilities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, at least 70 per cent are held in pretrial detention. Only one military prison is currently operational. MONUSCO and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) will continue to work closely with the Government to finalize a joint initiative aimed at addressing the penitentiary situation and establish a minimum level of sustainable State authority and control in the conflict affected areas in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo through the deployment of trained and equipped police and judicial and corrections officials. The United Nations will also continue to ensure compliance with prison system standards and practices and assist the national authorities with the development of mechanisms designed to combat illegal and prolonged detention and improve prison conditions.

Only one military prison is currently operational! Some 95 per cent of personnel working in correctional facilities are self-appointed!? I'm not even sure what 'self-appointed' means, but I know it is concerning in terms of quality control and prisoner's rights.  The thing is--until reading this--I had never even thought about prisons in the DRC or the role they play in impunity.  Prisons are an integral part of the justice system, and although I think they are highly over-used in most countries in the world (some in particular), their presence is necessary.  Without the existence of a reliable prison system, the threat of justice is just that, a threat.  Because even if an individual is sentenced, if there is no physical location for them to do their time, it is highly unlikely that justice will be served.  The reason this plays such an integral part in the dialogue on women's agency is because it seems counter-intuitive to seek justice if it guaranteed to be inadequate--or even worse--pose a greater threat in the future.  As highlighted in other entries of this blog, a surprising percentage of the sexual violence occurring in the DRC is domestic--perpetrated by individuals the victim knows or is somehow associated with.  If this is the case--and there are no prisons to keep the violated party safe in the future--then the costs of seeking justice may far outweigh the benefits.

So what is the way forward from here? One option could be to focus energy and resources into (re)establishing a reliable prison system.  This would include not only updating the physical structures (which likely existed in abundance under the dictatorship of Mobutu), but adequately staffing the prisons and providing them with training.  The DRC has some abysmal rates of unemployment, and this could be a way of providing jobs and a sense of purpose for men and women alike.  I think the prisons are a part of the answer, but I don't think they are all of it.

Justice is an arbitrary term.  Although there are certain standards which have now been accepted nearly universally, it still remains highly individualized.  Something I've heard more and more about researching in the DRC is this idea on reconciliation.  The idea first crossed my radar when I was traveling in South Africa.  It took me some time to understand that their Truth and Reconciliation Commission was a form of justice in itself.  I think one of the important aspects of justice is that it allows the person who was wronged to break the past's hold on them so that they can live in the present and the future.  Putting someone in jail may do this.  But reconciliation--in whatever form that takes--may also be a way of doing this.  Recently I heard a woman from Mali speaking about the atrocities which are occurring there.  And rather than emphasizing retribution, she said all they really wanted to do was learn how to live together again.  I think this is important for the international community to realize when directing their efforts.  Justice is as much about fostering the re-establishments of communities as it is about making someone pay.  So I'll end it on this. I think the DRC needs a much stronger prison system if there is ever going to be a real fight against impunity.  I also think that this form of justice should go hand-in-hand with resourcing local programs that allow those individuals affected to piece back their lives, their community, in whatever way they see best.  Maybe it's mediation, maybe it's a truth and reconciliation committee. Whatever it is, the effort should recognize and appreciate the strength and ability inherent  in survivors.