According to the UN, the mining and trade of gold provides the largest source of revenue to armed groups involved in the ongoing Democratic Republic of Congo conflict, which is considered to be one of the deadliest in the world.
Our Docket initiative has been gathering evidence and working with relevant law enforcement agencies to ensure that those involved in the illegal gold trade are brought to justice, including through prosecutions in European courts.
We have been supporting prosecutors in the opening of a formal criminal investigation into the complicity of major European gold traders in international crimes committed by armed groups operating in the Great Lakes Region.
The Docket has also been supporting survivors of Sexual and Gender Based Violence committed during the Second Congo War (1998-2003) as they testify against former Congolese warlord Roger Lumbala in France.
Lumbala was arrested in Paris in December 2020 and has been under investigation for his role in atrocities committed during the Second Congo War. Our team was able to identify the survivors with its local partner, facilitated their journey to France, and secured for them the opportunity to testify before a French investigative judge.
