70posters with the toll-free number in the courtsKalamu, Ndjili and Matete
7corruption alerts received and documentedMay–June 2024
61students from 4 universities at the inter-club meetingDecember 2024
The problem
Justice out of reach for most Congolese
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the justice sector institutions lack the capacity and independence to advance their own reform and provide quality, fair and equitable services to all Congolese.
The lack of an independent judiciary is caused by and enables corruption, and it supports inequitable justice across the country. It is therefore the overarching issue facing the justice system and the rule of law in the DRC. This corruption, and the resulting lack of public trust, affects the internal governance of the judiciary and the ability of the country to mobilise its resources for its own development.
Courts without the means to work
The judiciary has a limited reach in the country. Deprived of the resources it needs to fulfil its mandate, it cannot ensure equal access to justice – and petty corruption grows within the system.
Political interference
Political interference puts at risk the independence of the judiciary and citizens’ right to a fair trial.
Justice that has a price
Poverty, lack of adequate judicial resources and widespread corruption prevent Congolese from seeking justice, further marginalising youth and women.
Reporting corruption is still risky
In May and June 2024, CERC received and documented 7 alerts of corruption in the justice system. 3 could not be followed up because the victims or witnesses withdrew for fear of reprisals – which is why protecting whistleblowers is part of our advocacy.
Corruption alerts in the justice system, May–June 2024
Theory of change
How justice can change
Our work in the justice sector rests on this theory of change.
1
If courts build integrity
Judicial institutions increase internal transparency, accountability and integrity, and improve their capacity and commitment to fight corruption.
2
If citizens watch
Civil society is empowered to monitor, influence and support the justice system to prevent and fight corruption.
3
If justice comes within reach
The justice system increases equal and equitable access to justice for all through more sustainable mechanisms.
4
Then trust grows
Judicial independence and public trust in the judiciary will increase, allowing the judiciary to deliver justice to the people of the DRC effectively.
Goal
To strengthen the institutional independence of the judiciary and that of individual judges, to advance the justice system’s efforts to fight corruption and promote equal and equitable access to justice in the DRC – and ultimately improve public perception and trust of the judiciary.
Objectives
Increased transparency, accountability and integrity in the justice system, to promote equal and equitable justice and support the DRC’s anti-corruption efforts
Empowered civil society to demand the government’s commitment to judicial independence and contribute to judicial reform
Increased equal and equitable access to justice for all
Who we work with
Citizens and litigants
A safe channel to report corruption, and information on their rights near the courts.
Judicial authorities
The prosecutors and heads of division of the public prosecutor’s offices of Kalamu, Ndjili and Matete supported the social alert system.
Civil society
Focal points appointed by ACVDP, PONJA PONJA, C4, GREM, COCOLUCO, AFEVOPHA and CERC collect complaints from their communities.
University students
Integrity clubs in four Kinshasa universities, with as many women as men and 30% marginalised or under-represented students.
Story · Pan-African University, Kinshasa
Students break the silence on sexual corruption
On 3 December 2024, 61 students (18 women and 43 men) from the integrity clubs of the University of Kinshasa, the Pan-African University, Reverend Kim University and Bel Campus University met to diagnose corruption at university. 80% of the students surveyed said they had faced an attempt at sexual corruption. Together they drew up a joint action plan, including advocacy for a law to protect whistleblowers.
The social alert system is a mechanism that encourages citizens to act in time, and in the right way, to report corruption in the justice system – at the judicial police, the public prosecutor’s offices and the courts. Each alert is collected by a focal point, checked and documented by CERC, and answered with advocacy, public reporting, awareness raising or legal assistance.
CERC set it up with RCN Justice & Démocratie under the Justice Reform Support Programme (PARJ2), run by a consortium of RCN J&D, Lawyers Without Borders (ASF) and TRIAL International and funded by the European Development Fund, and the REPLIC project, funded by the Belgian Development Cooperation. The programme has three specific objectives: better access to the law and to quality justice for all, a stronger fight against impunity and for human rights, and a stronger fight against corruption.
Four building blocks
Knowing the risks. Systematic collection of data on corrupt practices, to know the acts, the vulnerabilities and their trends
Watching and alerting. Focal points watch for cases and acts of corruption and send precise alerts
Getting the word out. Alerts reach everyone concerned, in a form that is clear and usable
Being able to respond. Local and national response plans, kept up to date, with people ready to act
Focal points
Collect and report
Collect and document cases of corruption in their communities
Share the alerts with CERC and RCN J&D
Take part in the response activities organised by CERC
CERC
Receive, check and respond
Train and inform the focal points, and support their field work
Receive, analyse and document the alerts
Organise the response, and guide and support the victims
Keep the network of focal points and partners alive
RCN Justice & Démocratie
Supervise and advise
Support CERC in coaching the focal points
Supervise the field activities
Check validated alerts and advise on the response
The alert
What an alert must say
Who? What? Where? How? When? Why?
The exact date of the events
The corrupt practice involved
The facts, the place, the people involved and any witnesses
The name or post, and the office, of the person reported
Sent in writing by WhatsApp, e-mail or SMS – and kept confidential: shared only with CERC and RCN J&D, with personal data protected
What we watch for
Corruption in the justice system
Judicial decisions bargained for money
Interference by political, administrative and security authorities (influence peddling)
Provisional release sold beyond the bail, and bail money embezzled
Cases and strategic posts given out through patronage and nepotism
Case documents taken from the files
Sexual harassment of litigants and their lawyers by magistrates
Magistrates and lawyers colluding to exploit litigants
Arbitrary arrests, missed deadlines for judgments, embezzled running costs
The response
From alert to action
Advocacy: letters, calls and meetings with the authorities – the anti-corruption agency (APLC), the OSCEP, the Superior Council of the Judiciary and its disciplinary chambers
Public reporting: press releases and conferences, a toll-free number, social media, group SMS, petitions
Awareness raising in communities, on social media and on billboards
Legal assistance for the victims
Legal basis: Article 33 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (protection of reporting persons); Article 149 quinquies of the Congolese Penal Code (no prosecution of a witness, expert or victim who reports corruption in good faith); the SADC Protocol against Corruption (2001) and the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption (2003).
Results 2024
Citizens can now report corruption in the courts
In 2024, with RCN Justice & Démocratie – under the Justice Reform Support Programme (PARJ2) funded by the European Union and the REPLIC project co-funded by the Belgian Development Cooperation – CERC set up a social alert system against corruption in the courts of Kalamu, Ndjili and Matete.
9 focal points from civil society, equipped with 9 phones and 8 SIM cards, collect complaints from their communities. 70 posters with the toll-free number were put up in the courts, and about 60 litigants and small business owners near the courts (27 women and 33 men) learned how to use it.
In December 2024, CERC and the Congolese Association for Access to Justice (ACAJ) trained ACAJ members and a blogger to prevent, detect and fight corruption where they live and work.
Centre de Recherche sur l’Anti-Corruption (CERC) · info@cerc.cd · www.cerc.cd
CERC is a Congolese non-governmental organisation with special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) since 2021.
Exaucée
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How the social alert system works
The social alert system is a mechanism that encourages citizens to act in time, and in the right way, to report corruption in the justice system – at the judicial police, the public prosecutor’s offices and the courts. Each alert is collected by a focal point, checked and documented by CERC, and answered with advocacy, public reporting, awareness raising or legal assistance.
CERC set it up with RCN Justice & Démocratie under the Justice Reform Support Programme (PARJ2), run by a consortium of RCN J&D, Lawyers Without Borders (ASF) and TRIAL International and funded by the European Development Fund, and the REPLIC project, funded by the Belgian Development Cooperation. The programme has three specific objectives: better access to the law and to quality justice for all, a stronger fight against impunity and for human rights, and a stronger fight against corruption.
Four building blocks
Collect and report
Receive, check and respond
Supervise and advise
What an alert must say
Corruption in the justice system
From alert to action
Legal basis: Article 33 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (protection of reporting persons); Article 149 quinquies of the Congolese Penal Code (no prosecution of a witness, expert or victim who reports corruption in good faith); the SADC Protocol against Corruption (2001) and the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption (2003).