Bosco Ntaganda (born 5 November 1973) is a convicted war criminal and the former military

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

of the

National Congress for the Defense of the People The National Congress for the Defence of the People (french: Congrès national pour la défense du peuple, CNDP) is a political armed militia established by Laurent Nkunda in the Kivu region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in December 2006 ...

(CNDP), an armed

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

group operating in the

North Kivu North Kivu (french: link=no, Nord-Kivu) is a province bordering Lake Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its capital is Goma. North Kivu borders the provinces of Ituri to the north, Tshopo to the northwest, Maniema to the s ...

province of the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

(DRC).

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human ...

(29 April 2008).
DR Congo: Suspected War Criminal Wanted
'. Retrieved on 13 May 2008.''Nkunda Faces ICC Dilemma''

Institute for War and Peace Reporting The Institute for War & Peace Reporting (IWPR) is an independent nonprofit organization that claims to train and provide publishing opportunities for professional and citizen journalists. History IWPR was founded in 1991 under the name Yugofax. ...

, 1 May 2008. Retrieved on 9 October 2011. He is a former member of the

Rwandan Patriotic Army french: Forces rwandaises de défense sw, Nguvu ya Ulinzi ya Watu wa Rwanda , image = Rwanda Defense Force emblem.png , alt = , caption = , image2 = , alt2 = , caption2 ...

and allegedly a former Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the

Patriotic Forces for the Liberation of Congo The Union of Congolese Patriots (french: Union des Patriotes congolais, or UPC) is a political and militia group in Ituri, northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, formed towards the end of the Second Congo War. It was founded by Thomas Lub ...

(FPLC), the military wing of the

Union of Congolese Patriots The Union of Congolese Patriots (french: Union des Patriotes congolais, or UPC) is a political and militia group in Ituri, northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, formed towards the end of the Second Congo War. It was founded by Thomas Lub ...

. Until March 2013, he was wanted by the

International Criminal Court The International Criminal Court (ICC or ICCt) is an intergovernmental organization and International court, international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands. It is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to pro ...

(ICC) for the war crimes of enlisting and conscripting children under the age of fifteen and using them to participate actively in hostilities. Prior to his surrender, Ntaganda had been allegedly involved in the rebel group

March 23 Movement The March 23 Movement (french: Mouvement du 23 mars), often abbreviated as M23 and also known as the Congolese Revolutionary Army (''Armée révolutionnaire du Congo''), is a rebel military group that is for the most part formed of ethnic Tutsi. ...

, a military group based in eastern areas of the DRC. On 18 March 2013, Ntaganda voluntarily handed himself into the U.S. Embassy in Rwanda, asking to be transferred to the ICC. On 22 March, he was taken into custody by the ICC. On 8 July 2019, the ICC convicted him of war crimes. He was subsequently sentenced to 30 years for crimes against humanity.

Early life

Ntaganda was born in the small town of

Kinigi Kinigi is a town in Northern Province, Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa ...

, situated in the foothills of Rwanda's Virunga mountain range in the

Musanze District Musanze is a district in the Northern Province of Rwanda. Its capital city is Ruhengeri. Geography and tourism Musanze is Rwanda's most mountainous district, containing the largest part of the Volcanoes National Park, and its head office at Ki ...

. When he was a teenager, Ntaganda fled to Ngungu-Masisi in eastern DRC after attacks on his fellow ethnic

Tutsi The Tutsi (), or Abatutsi (), are an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region. They are a Bantu-speaking ethnic group and the second largest of three main ethnic groups in Rwanda and Burundi (the other two being the largest Bantu ethnic g ...

s started taking place in

Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...

. He attended secondary school there but did not graduate; at the age of 17 he joined

Rwandan Patriotic Front The Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF–Inkotanyi, french: Front patriotique rwandais, FPR) is the ruling political party in Rwanda. Led by President Paul Kagame, the party has governed the country since its armed wing defeated government forces, winn ...

rebels in southern

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The ...

. At some point he acquired Congolese citizenship.

Rwandan and Congolese military career

Ntaganda fought with the

Rwandan Patriotic Army french: Forces rwandaises de défense sw, Nguvu ya Ulinzi ya Watu wa Rwanda , image = Rwanda Defense Force emblem.png , alt = , caption = , image2 = , alt2 = , caption2 ...

in the early 1990s and participated in the overthrow of the

Hutu The Hutu (), also known as the Abahutu, are a Bantu ethnic or social group which is native to the African Great Lakes region. They mainly live in Rwanda, Burundi and the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, where they form one of the p ...

-led Rwandan government in 1994 following the

Rwandan genocide The Rwandan genocide occurred between 7 April and 15 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. During this period of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi minority ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Twa, were killed by armed Hutu ...

. He subsequently joined the

(FPLC), the military wing of the

(UPC), and became its chief of military operations. During this time, he is alleged to have been involved in numerous massacres and other serious human rights abuses. When Ntaganda was in charge of the UPC, he told child soldiers; "''When you're a soldier, you get a woman for free. Everything is free''." In January 2005, Ntaganda was offered a position as a

general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". O ...

in the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo as part of a peace process, but he refused the offer. On 1 November 2005, a

United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, ...

committee imposed a travel ban and

asset freeze Asset freezing is a form of interim or interlocutory injunction which prevents a defendant to an action from dealing with or dissipating its assets so as to frustrate a potential judgment. It is widely recognised in other common law jurisdictions ...

on him for violating an

arms embargo An arms embargo is a restriction or a set of sanctions that applies either solely to weaponry or also to " dual-use technology." An arms embargo may serve one or more purposes: * to signal disapproval of the behavior of a certain actor * to maintai ...

.Security Council Committee established pursuant to Resolution 1533 (2004) concerning the Democratic Republic of the Congo (7 November 2007). . Retrieved on 13 May 2008. In 2006, following conflicts within the UPC, he returned to

, his home province, and joined

Laurent Nkunda Laurent Nkunda (or Laurent Nkundabatware Mihigo (birth name), or Laurent Nkunda Batware, or as he prefers to be called The Chairman; born February 2, 1967) is a former General in the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and is ...

(CNDP).Bavier, Joe (9 May 2008).
Congo rebels demand proof of ICC suspect's guilt
'.

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was est ...

. Retrieved on 13 May 2008. As of April 2008, he was believed to be living in the

Masisi Masisi is a town in the North Kivu Province in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It is the administrative center of the Masisi Territory. Location Masisi lies approximately by road, northwest of the provincial capital of ...

district of North Kivu, serving as the CNDP's chief of staff.''Warrant of Arrest against Bosco Ntaganda unsealed''
press release International Criminal Court, 29 April 2008. Retrieved on 9 October 2011 The CNDP has since been incorporated into the regular Congolese armed forces and Ntaganda was acting as a

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". O ...

in the army, despite being wanted by the ICC. In 2012, he was living openly in the city of

Goma Goma is the capital of North Kivu province in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu, next to the Rwandan city of Gisenyi. The lake and the two cities are in the Albertine Rift, the ...

in the DRC, on Avenue des Tulipiés, about 100 yards from the Rwandan border. According to DRC authorities, General Bosco Ntaganda had "crossed from Goma to the town of

Gisenyi Gisenyi, historically rendered as Kisenyi, is a city in Rubavu district in Rwanda's Western Province. Gisenyi is contiguous with Goma, the city across the border in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Overview The city features a resort on t ...

, Rwanda, twice in 2011, in March and again in September, despite the travel ban imposed on him. Congolese authorities reported that on both occasions Ntaganda had gone there to attend a burial, having sought official authorization to do so from his military hierarchy and from immigration authorities. Rwandan officials said that they have no objections to Ntaganda crossing the border. They claim that his status as a sanctioned individual "is not a Rwandan problem, but a Democratic Republic of the Congo problem", adding that "Bosco contributes to peace and security to the region, which converges with Rwanda's aims". A

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...

group of experts reported in late 2011 that Ntaganda controlled the Mungwe and Fungamwaka mines, near Numbi, through the Great Lakes Mining Company, managed by Edson Musabarura. Ntaganda also derived profits from mineral exploitation at Nyabibwe, through his alliance with Colonel Saddam Ringo. At Rubaya, Ntaganda gained large revenues from taxation levied by "parallel" mine police. Ntaganda ordered his troops to intervene on behalf of Krall Metal Congo at Lueshe. On 4 April 2012, it was reported that Ntaganda and 300 loyal troops defected from the DRC and clashed with government forces in the

Rutshuru Rutshuru is a town located in the North Kivu province of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, and is headquarters of an administrative district, the Rutshuru Territory. The town lies in the western branch of the Albertine Rift between Lake ...

region north of

. On 11 April 2012, president

Joseph Kabila Joseph Kabila Kabange ( , ; born 4 June 1971) is a Congolese politician who served as President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo between January 2001 and January 2019. He took office ten days after the assassination of his father, Pres ...

called for Ntaganda's arrest. On 16 March 2013, Sultani Makenga's forces "seized control ... of the town of Kibumba ... Ntaganda and an estimated 200 fighters fled into the forest while hundreds of others crossed the border into Rwanda," including "about 300 uniformed M23 rebels loyal to Ntaganda."

Indictment by the International Criminal Court

On 22 August 2006, a Pre-Trial Chamber of the ICC found that there were reasonable grounds to believe that Ntaganda bore individual criminal responsibility for war crimes committed by the FPLC between July 2002 and December 2003, and issued a warrant for his arrest. He was charged with the war crimes of enlisting and conscripting children under the age of fifteen and using them to participate actively in hostilities. The arrest warrant was originally issued under seal because the court decided that "public knowledge of the proceedings in this case might result in Bosco Ntaganda hiding, fleeing, and/or obstructing or endangering the investigations or the proceedings of the Court". In April 2008, the court ruled that circumstances had changed and unsealed the warrant. On 18 March 2013, Ntaganda handed himself in to the U.S. embassy in

Kigali Kigali () is the capital and largest city of Rwanda. It is near the nation's geographic centre in a region of rolling hills, with a series of valleys and ridges joined by steep slopes. As a primate city, Kigali has been Rwanda's economic, cult ...

, Rwanda, where he requested transfer to the

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

. Though the reasons for his surrender are unknown it was speculated that he was either pressured to do so by Rwanda or feared infighting within the M23 movement and its military leader Sultani Makenga, which had recently militarily forced a faction around Jean-Marie Runiga Lugerero and Baudouin Ngaruye, which was allegedly connected to Ntaganda, to flee the DRC into Rwanda. Though Rwanda was not a signatory to the

Rome Statute The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court is the treaty that established the International Criminal Court (ICC). It was adopted at a diplomatic conference in Rome, Italy on 17 July 1998Michael P. Scharf (August 1998)''Results of the ...

, the media speculated it would be forced to turn him over to the ICC. The U.S. also had listed him on its War Crimes Rewards Program. On 22 March, he was detained by the ICC. He made his first appearance before the ICC on 26 March. At his first appearance before the ICC in the Hague on 26 March 2013, Ntaganda denied his guilt.

Trial

Ntaganda's trial at the ICC began on 3 September 2015. He pleaded not guilty to eighteen charges brought against him, including rape, murder, recruitment of child soldiers and sexual slavery of civilians. The trial was expected to last many months with the prosecution calling eighty witnesses, thirteen of them expert and the rest victims. Three of the witnesses were former child soldiers in Ntaganda's

(FPLC). On 8 July 2019 he was convicted on all 18 counts and on 7 November 2019 was sentenced to 30 years in prison, the longest sentence ever handed down by the ICC. He is the first person to be convicted of sexual slavery by the ICC. On 8 March 2021 the ICC ruled that Ntaganda′s victims should be compensated with USD $30 million, the highest amount ever rewarded. Since Ntaganda does not have the money to pay, the Court will use its own funds to compensate victims. Ntaganda subsequently appealed his conviction. On March 30, 2021, the ICC Appeals Chamber rejected his appeal and confirmed the conviction.

References

External links