ICJ ruling prompts Congo to reassess Uganda damages News
ICJ ruling prompts Congo to reassess Uganda damages

[JURIST] Congo's Information Minister Henri Mova-Sakanyi said Tuesday that the country is reassessing the damages it will request from Uganda following an International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling [PDF text; JURIST report] that Uganda violated the Congo's sovereignty during a 1998-2003 war [BBC backgrounder] and was responsible for human rights abuses and the plundering of Congolese natural resources. The ICJ ordered Uganda to pay reparations, and Mova-Sakanyi said that the Congo will complete its reparations evaluations by the end of the week. Prior to the court's ruling, the Congo had estimated damages to be $10 billion, but that number is being re-evaluated as part of a standard procedure. If the two countries cannot negotiate the payment, the court will determine the amount of reparations. The Congo brought Uganda before the ICJ [application, PDF] in 1999, saying that Ugandan forces were responsible for killings, torture and other rights abuses and asking for compensation for the removal of property. AP has more.

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