Law enforcement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Encyclopedia
Law enforcement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has historically been focused on furthering the state's aims with no regard for human rights
. The Police nationale congolaise (Congolese National Police) is the police throughout the territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
.
When the Independent State of the Congo was first formed by Leopold II
, the Force Publique
acted as both the state's military force and as a policing organisation for the country. The Force Publique were split into garrison and territorial troops after World War I
, with the territorial troops primarily responsible for internal security. In 1959, the territorial troops effectively became the gendarmerie, and by independence in 1960 there were three police forces: the gendarmerie, the local police, and the Chief's Police.
In 1972 – Decrees 72-031 dated 31 July and 72-041 dated 30 August – Mobutu merged the primarily urban Zairian (formerly Congolese) National Police and the gendarmes (largely rural) into a unified organisation, the Genarmerie Nationale (GDN). The gendarmerie were thus enlarged substantially and became a component of the Forces Armees Zaireois, alongside the Land Forces, Navy, and Air Force. Only the collectivity police remained outside the FAZ.
For a long time, the former decrees creating the “Gendarmerie” and the “Garde Civile” remained in use, particularly in areas under rebel control. Nevertheless, the Government of Kinshasa has issued a Decree-Law – 002/2002 dated 26 January 2002 – for the Congolese National Police for the whole country, even though it cannot be yet implemented in certain areas.
Historically, secret police organisations in the Congo, and Zaire (1971–97) included:
Secret police organisations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1997–present include:
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
. The Police nationale congolaise (Congolese National Police) is the police throughout the territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
.
When the Independent State of the Congo was first formed by Leopold II
Leopold II of Belgium
Leopold II was the second king of the Belgians. Born in Brussels the second son of Leopold I and Louise-Marie of Orléans, he succeeded his father to the throne on 17 December 1865 and remained king until his death.Leopold is chiefly remembered as the founder and sole owner of the Congo Free...
, the Force Publique
Force Publique
The Force Publique , French for "Public Force", was both a gendarmerie and a military force in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1885, , through the period of direct Belgian colonial rule...
acted as both the state's military force and as a policing organisation for the country. The Force Publique were split into garrison and territorial troops after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, with the territorial troops primarily responsible for internal security. In 1959, the territorial troops effectively became the gendarmerie, and by independence in 1960 there were three police forces: the gendarmerie, the local police, and the Chief's Police.
In 1972 – Decrees 72-031 dated 31 July and 72-041 dated 30 August – Mobutu merged the primarily urban Zairian (formerly Congolese) National Police and the gendarmes (largely rural) into a unified organisation, the Genarmerie Nationale (GDN). The gendarmerie were thus enlarged substantially and became a component of the Forces Armees Zaireois, alongside the Land Forces, Navy, and Air Force. Only the collectivity police remained outside the FAZ.
- In 1984 – Decree 84-036 dated 28 August – a new force called “la Garde Nationale”, was created and confined to protocol/honorary duties. This unit became very quickly a strong political police dedicated to the safeguard of Mobutu’s regime.
- On 22 April 1997, with the advent of the “Alliance des Forces Démocratiques de Libération” – AFDL –, its President, Laurent Désiré Kabila restored the Congolese National Police by merging personnel from both the “Gendarmerie” and the “Garde Civile”. AFDL military personnel also joined the force.
For a long time, the former decrees creating the “Gendarmerie” and the “Garde Civile” remained in use, particularly in areas under rebel control. Nevertheless, the Government of Kinshasa has issued a Decree-Law – 002/2002 dated 26 January 2002 – for the Congolese National Police for the whole country, even though it cannot be yet implemented in certain areas.
Historically, secret police organisations in the Congo, and Zaire (1971–97) included:
- Centre Nationale de Documentation (CND) (National Documentation Center) - 1969-novemberNovemberNovember is the 11th month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of four months with the length of 30 days. November was the ninth month of the ancient Roman calendar...
1983 - Agence Nationale de Documentation (AND) (National Documentation Agency) - november 1983-August 1990
- Service National d'Intelligence et de Protection (SNIP) (National Service for Intelligence and Protection) - August 1990 - May 1997
Secret police organisations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1997–present include:
- Détection Militaire des Activités Anti-PatrieDEMIAPDEMIAP was the military intelligence organization of the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
(DEMIAP) (Military Detection of Anti-Fatherland Activities) - Agence nationale de renseignementsAgence nationale de renseignementsAgence Nationale de Renseignements is a government intelligence agency of theDemocratic Republic of the Congo. The role of the agency is to ensure «internal security and external security » of the state....
- National Intelligence Agency
Further reading
- ed. by Dilip K. Das & Michael Palmiotto, World Police Encyclopedia, published by Taylor & Francis. 2004,
- World Encyclopedia of Police Forces and Correctional Systems,second edition, 2006 by Gale.
- Sullivan, Larry E. Encyclopedia of Law Enforcement. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, 2005.