{"id":160108,"date":"2026-06-05T10:33:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T08:33:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/?p=160108"},"modified":"2026-06-05T10:38:41","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T08:38:41","slug":"court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html","title":{"rendered":"Court spares authorities in Yumbi massacres trial"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>On June 1, the High Military Court in Kinshasa handed down its verdict in the \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/tag\/yumbi-massacres\">Yumbi massacres<\/a>\u201d case, following a four-year trial. It pronounced 34 acquittals and 37 harsh sentences, but the parties involved say they are disappointed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<p>A tent has been set up in the compound of the Ndolo military prison, surrounded by four long walls, under which about 70 people have taken their seats. On June 1 victims, relatives of detainees and onlookers have come to hear the High Military Court\u2019s verdict. Before them is a courtroom where 55 detainees in blue and yellow prison uniforms with \u201chearing\u201d marked on the back, sit facing the seven members of the court. This is the final hearing in this trial, which began on May 25, 2021, at the same location. It is a \u201cmoment of truth\u201d awaited for more than seven years after atrocities committed in the western Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Three other detainees are ill and 16 others are appearing as free defendants, including three former provincial deputies and the only woman on trial. Four are on the run and three have died in custody. In total, there are 81 defendants on the list obtained from the court. Nine charges have been filed, including murder, deportation, and arson as crimes against humanity. 357 people have filed civil suits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The events date back to December 16\u201318, 2018. As the DRC prepared to hold general elections, the \u201cban\u2019a lac\u201d \u2013 meaning \u201cdaughters and sons of the lake\u201d as they like to call themselves \u2013 were killing one another. In Yumbi, 300 kilometres north of Kinshasa, there were house fires, murders by knife or gun, rapes and mutilations, including genital mutilations. For 48 hours, the territory was the scene of horrors. At least 535 people lost their lives and some 20,000 fled to neighbouring Congo-Brazzaville, on the other bank of the Congo River. About 50 mass graves were discovered, according to a UN report presented in March 2019 to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. The same report notes acts that were likely planned and organized, given a similar modus operandi in several locations, and carried out with the support of traditional leaders. The UN also cites the failure of provincial authorities to prevent these crimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At the same session of the Human Rights Council, Marie-Ange Mushobekwa, then Congolese Minister of Human Rights and chair of a national commission of inquiry on Yumbi, denounced in particular \u201cchildren under the age of ten massacred simply because they belong to a particular ethnic group, pregnant women killed and disembowelled, and foetuses mutilated.\u201d In February 2019, the new Congolese authorities that emerged from the December 2018 elections established the \u201cYumbi Commission\u201d, led by several ministries. The following May, the commission published its report, which documented 461 deaths and more than 1,500 homes set ablaze. It also highlighted the involvement of local \u201cpolitical and administrative authorities\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/RDCongo_proces-massacres-Yumbi-juges_@Caleb-Kazadi.jpg\" alt=\"The judges presiding over the military trial concerning the Yumbi massacres in the DRC.\" class=\"wp-image-160096\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/RDCongo_proces-massacres-Yumbi-juges_@Caleb-Kazadi.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/RDCongo_proces-massacres-Yumbi-juges_@Caleb-Kazadi-1000x750.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/RDCongo_proces-massacres-Yumbi-juges_@Caleb-Kazadi-1110x833.jpg 1110w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The judges of the High Military Court in Kinshasa did not find the Congolese state liable for the 2018 Yumbi massacre. Photo: Caleb Kazadi Photo: \u00a9 Caleb Kazadi<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-31-defendants-get-20-years-death-penalty-for-two-fugitives\"><strong>31 defendants get 20 years, death penalty for two fugitives<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>On June 1, it is 2:40 p.m. when the court convenes, accompanied, of course, by military honours. The presiding judge, Brigadier General Diamanga Freddy, begins with calling the defendants by name. Then, at 3:00 p.m., the rapporteur begins reading the judgment. It is nearly 300 pages long. The presiding judge proposes reading a summary. After an hour, he interrupts the reading and proceeds directly to pronounce the verdict, noting that the full document will be available in a few days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The first decision is logical: charges are dismissed against five deceased defendants, including Malala Ngobila, described as a leader on the Batende side. A handful of defendants have their cases dismissed due to procedural irregularities. Then come the acquittals. There are 34 of them. Some were cleared by the prosecution itself; others by the court, due to lack of evidence. The detainees in question cannot contain their relief and joy at regaining their freedom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Finally, the time for sentencing arrives: eight years in prison for two defendants, 12 years for two others, and 20 years for 31 defendants, including village chief Mbaka Matalala. It was he who received \u201cthe spoils of war\u201d: a woman\u2019s severed hand in a bag. Two defendants on the run both get the death penalty: Okako, alias Ocean, and Ngwe Djo Caris.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The defence team of course welcomes the acquittals, but they do not hide their disappointment otherwise. \u201cI am a bit disappointed,\u201d lawyer Alain Nsele tells Justice Info. \u201cHow can you convict someone when the evidence shows he wasn\u2019t in Yumbi? We didn\u2019t have any physical evidence of the hand in question. We have to appeal before the Court of Cassation. People were convicted simply because they are Batende. That\u2019s just awful.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<div class=\"ArticleNewsletterCTA\">\r\n\t\t<div class=\"ArticleNewsletterCTATitle\">FIND THIS ARTICLE INTERESTING?<\/div>\r\n\t\t<div class=\"ArticleNewsletterCTAText\">\r\n\t\t\t<a href=\"\/en\/newsletter\">Sign up now for our (free) newsletter<\/a> to make sure you don't miss out on other publications of this type. \t\t<\/div>\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n\t\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-state-is-spared\">The State is spared<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Disappointment also immediately set in among the civil parties, with several of their dissatisfied lawyers quitting the courtroom. \u201cWe did our job. Unfortunately, the High Court ruled as it saw fit,\u201d said attorney James Kamandondo. \u201cWhen the High Court decides to acquit the defendants we prosecuted, it\u2019s a feeling of desolation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Provoking more disappointment, the court ruled that the request to hold the Congolese state civilly liable was admissible but unfounded. This decision goes against the findings of reports by the UN and the Congolese government itself, in 2019. Both documents had clearly documented a failure on the part of the state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The military court established that the events in question \u201cform part of a widespread and systematic attack [against the civilian population], carried out as part of a land seizure policy devised during planning meetings, by men under orders (\u2026) operating according to the same modus operandi\u201d. In other words, crimes against humanity. The attackers [Batende], the court notes, entered Yumbi via the main road, armed with knives, gasoline and military weapons. They set houses on fire, killed people, \u201cpursued several who were trying to flee to the banks of the Congo River and killed some who had already boarded canoes and boats (Banunu)\u201d. In retaliation, the court adds, the Banunu burned Batende villages and also killed and wounded people there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-gentiny-ngobila-the-notable-absentee\">Gentiny Ngobila, the notable absentee<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>When the Yumbi case is mentioned, it is rare not to hear: \u201cAnd what about Gentiny in all this? What does he say?\u201d Gentiny Ngobila was the provincial chief of Mai-Ndombe, where Yumbi is located, at the time of the events. Although he was interviewed during the investigation phase, he did not appear even once during the trial hearings. Yet, throughout the proceedings, several requests were made to the court to hear the former governor, with the aim of shedding \u201cmore light\u201d on the matter. But the court did not deem his appearance\u2014which was the most anticipated\u2014necessary. \u201cJudges are professionals. When someone is named, they can discern the intent and determine whether it is well-founded or not,\u201d explains a court source. \u201cHis name was mentioned here mainly because it appears that members of the Batende (Ngobila\u2019s ethnic group) were chanting songs inciting violence against the Banunu, claiming they were acting on Gentiny\u2019s orders. But this has not been proven. It can happen that someone is named without actually being involved.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"articleLink articleLink--editorRecommanded articleLink--textInImage articleLink--textTop\" style=\"\">\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\r\n\t\t\t<div class=\"articleLinkSurTitle\">Recommended reading<\/div>\r\n\t\t\t<a class=\"articleLinkImageLink\" href=\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/85303-congo-special-report-mass-trial-yumbi-massacres.html\"><div class=\"articleLinkImageContainer \"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"540\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/RDCongo_proces-Yumbi-trial-massacres_portfolio_@Justin-Makangara-540x360.jpg\" class=\"articleLinkImage backgroundImageTag w-100 wp-post-image\" alt=\"Suspect in the Yumbi trial in Congo\" srcset=\"\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\" \/><\/div><\/a>\r\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/85303-congo-special-report-mass-trial-yumbi-massacres.html\" class=\"articleLinkTitle articleLinkTitle--default\">\r\n\t\t\tIn Congo, a special report from the mass trial for Yumbi massacres\r\n\t\t<\/a>\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On June 1, the High Military Court in Kinshasa handed down its verdict in the \u201cYumbi massacres\u201d case, following a four-year trial. It pronounced 34 acquittals and 37 harsh sentences, but the parties involved say they are disappointed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":99,"featured_media":160102,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[566],"tags":[2653,2772,3305,4304],"ji_location":[2197],"class_list":["post-160108","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national-tribunals","tag-crime-against-humanity","tag-judgment","tag-mobile-court-hearings","tag-yumbi-massacres","ji_location-democratic-republic-of-congo"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.3.1 (Yoast SEO v25.3.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Court spares authorities in Yumbi massacres trial<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"On June 1, the High Military Court in Kinshasa handed down its verdict in the \u201cYumbi massacres\u201d case, following a four-year trial. It pronounced 34 acquittals and 37 harsh sentences, but the parties involved say they are disappointed.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Court spares authorities in Yumbi massacres trial\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"On June 1, the High Military Court in Kinshasa handed down its verdict in the \u201cYumbi massacres\u201d case, following a four-year trial. 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It pronounced 34 acquittals and 37 harsh sentences, but the parties involved say they are disappointed.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html","og_site_name":"JusticeInfo.net","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/JusticeInfo\/","article_published_time":"2026-06-05T08:33:12+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-06-05T08:38:41+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":864,"url":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/RDCongo_proces-massacres-Yumbi_@Caleb-Kazadi.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Caleb Kazadi","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"Court spares authorities in Yumbi massacres trial","twitter_creator":"@calebkazadim1","twitter_site":"@justiceinfonet","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Caleb Kazadi","Est. reading time":"7 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html"},"author":{"name":"Caleb Kazadi","@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/d1f6c94965290d7d7977999e386477ae"},"headline":"Court spares authorities in Yumbi massacres trial","datePublished":"2026-06-05T08:33:12+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-05T08:38:41+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html"},"wordCount":1190,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/RDCongo_proces-massacres-Yumbi_@Caleb-Kazadi.jpg","keywords":["crime against humanity","judgment","mobile court hearings","Yumbi massacres"],"articleSection":["National tribunals"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html","url":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html","name":"Court spares authorities in Yumbi massacres trial","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/RDCongo_proces-massacres-Yumbi_@Caleb-Kazadi.jpg","datePublished":"2026-06-05T08:33:12+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-05T08:38:41+00:00","description":"On June 1, the High Military Court in Kinshasa handed down its verdict in the \u201cYumbi massacres\u201d case, following a four-year trial. It pronounced 34 acquittals and 37 harsh sentences, but the parties involved say they are disappointed.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/160108-court-spares-authorities-in-yumbi-massacres-trial.html#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/RDCongo_proces-massacres-Yumbi_@Caleb-Kazadi.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/RDCongo_proces-massacres-Yumbi_@Caleb-Kazadi.jpg","width":1200,"height":864,"caption":"55 of the 81 defendants in the trial over the Yumbi massacre in the Democratic Republic of the Congo heard the verdict handed down by the military court on June 1, 2026, in Kinshasa. 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