24 September 2009
Briefing
Conviction of Golden Misabiko, and threats against four other human rights activists – a signal that the mining interests of the DRC’s political and military establishment are “off limits”
Rights and Accountability in Development (RAID), which closely monitors human rights in the Congolese mining sector, expressed its profound concern about the conviction of Golden Misabiko, the 53-year-old President of the Katangan branch of the Association africaine de defense des droits de l’homme, ASADHO-Katanga, a respected Congolese human rights organization. Mr Misabiko was charged with “propagation de faux bruits” (spreading of false information) which purportedly constitute “a threat to the internal security of the state” (« atteinte à la sûreté interne de l’Etat ») under article 199 bis of the Congolese Criminal Code. On 23 September 2009, a Lubumbashi court sentenced Mr Misabiko in absentia to four months in detention with a further eight-month suspended prison term. Mr Misabiko’s lawyers are expected to lodge an appeal.
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