The Mwangachuchu trial, which is being held at the High Military Court in Kinshasa, is experiencing a new breakthrough: the national director of general intelligence of the PNC, Vital Umiya Awashango, has appeared as an informant. He was questioned about securing the mine of the Bisunzu Mining Company (SMB), the subject of proceedings against Edouard Mwangachuchu, national deputy, who is suspected of having links with the M23 rebels. Other police officials will also appear as informants in upcoming hearings.
During his hearing, Awashango explained the recruitment conditions of the various police units in the North Kivu region, when he took office just after the defeat of the M23 rebels in 2012. Faced with a question from the Court on the presence of M23 elements in the police, he replied that, initially, all the people they found were recruited and that the checks were carried out afterwards. However, there was no CNDP, everyone was from the national police.
The principal commissioner, Robert Mushamalirwa, head of unit who at the time ensured the security of the SMB, was also present during the hearing to answer questions from the Court. He gave details concerning the strength of the unit, which was made up of 80 men, a figure much higher than what had been advanced by the former chief of police in North Kivu. The police were given US$90 each, but the SMB did not pay the funds to the provincial PNC police station as a reward, Awashango said.
The hearings continue with the appearance as informants of other police officials and the next will be held on June 9th. The proceedings against Edouard Mwangachuchu are multiple and relate in particular to treason, participation in an insurrectionary movement, espionage and the illegal possession of weapons of war. The weapons were found in the premises of his company SMB in Masisi and in his residence in Kinshasa.
This trial is an important step for Congolese military justice, which seeks to demonstrate its ability to punish the perpetrators of crimes against the State and to restore peace and security in the North Kivu region.