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Media Statement, 21st December 2005
The decision of the International Court of Justice to order Uganda
to pay repatriation (could be as much as US$10 billion) to the Democratic
Republic of Congo for its role in looting during the 1998-2003 war,
is a case of justice finally being done.
The UN’s highest judicial body ruled that Uganda’s intervention
violated the DRC’s sovereignty, and led to the killing and
torture of civilians and the destruction of villages.
It is estimated that close to 5 million innocent people lost their
lives in the Congo during a period where in addition to Uganda six
of the armies from neighbouring nations behaved like scavengers
over rich deposits of precious metals in this tragic country.
GOAL’s John O’Shea said,
“The court’s verdict represents a telling blow to the
Irish Government, who have insisted on maintaining its strong financial
links with the Museveni regime - despite some reservations on the
part of Ministers Dermot Ahern and Conor Lenihan.
"My attempts over recent years at meetings of the Joint Oireachtas
Committee on Foreign Affairs, to convince the group of the seriousness
of this situation proved unsuccessful in one meeting after another.
In fact, I was told that some of the information was inaccurate
and that Uganda had not invaded the Congo.
Hopefully this latest confirmation of Uganda’s role in the
rape of the Congo will prompt the Irish Government to finally recognise
the folly of channelling tax payers funds (€33 million this
year) through this discredited Ugandan regime.”
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