By Chris Muhizi for MCN.
The Council has imposed punitive measures against nine Congolese and Rwandan nationals who have committed significant human rights violations and abuses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and have sustained the country’s ongoing armed conflict, instability, and insecurity.
ADF, APCLS, CODECO/ALC, FDLR/FOCA, M23, Twirwaneho, ADF, APCLS, CODECO/ALC, and one member of the Congolese Armed Forces (FARDC) and one member of the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) are among the non-state armed organizations listed below that are active in the Eastern and North Eastern regions of the country.
The situation in the country will continue to be closely watched by the EU. It is prepared to add any new names to its list of people who have committed grave human rights abuses or violations, who have obstructed elections, who are behind the continuation of an armed conflict, who have caused instability and insecurity, or who have incited violence.
In reaction to serious violations of human rights and interference with the electoral process, the Council first enacted autonomous individual restrictive measures from the EU in 2016 with regard to the situation in the DRC.
On December 5, 2022, the Council decided to change the designation criteria to allow for the application of specific restrictive measures against natural or legal persons, entities, or bodies that contribute to, support, or profit from the armed conflict, instability, or insecurity in the DRC as well as those responsible for inciting violence or taking advantage of these conditions, including through the illegitimate exploitation and trade of natural resources.