Three Congolese witnesses of Congolese war crimes for the International Criminal Court (ICC), were deported, Sunday, despite concerns about their safety in Congo, reports NL Times.
The trio, who were held in a Congolese prison before being called to The Hague in 2011 as witnesses of war crimes, had their asylum claims rejected by Dutch authorities.
Amnesty International, strongly opposed the Dutch decision, and warned that the three witnesses would face severe rights violations upon arrival in Congo.
Human Rights Watch in a letter to the Dutch State Council, warned that it was the government’s legal obligation to fully satisfy itself that the witnesses would not be subject to the death penalty, torture or denied justice through arbitrary detention in Congo.
The trio, who were held in a Congolese prison before being called to The Hague in 2011 as witnesses of war crimes, had their asylum claims rejected by Dutch authorities.
Amnesty International, strongly opposed the Dutch decision, and warned that the three witnesses would face severe rights violations upon arrival in Congo.
Human Rights Watch in a letter to the Dutch State Council, warned that it was the government’s legal obligation to fully satisfy itself that the witnesses would not be subject to the death penalty, torture or denied justice through arbitrary detention in Congo.