Just over three months ago, the UN expert group on mercenaries sounded the alarm about serious “human rights violations” that can be attributed to Russian paramilitaries in the Central African Republic. Experts condemned the authorities’ increased use of these private security companies, which had been the target of a new uprising since the December election.
Mass executions, arbitrary detentions, torture and other forced disappearances … The accusations against the three Russian units pointed out inthe report of the UN expert group are very heavy. In a note prepared in the wake of and just published, Russia says it regrets “accusations” based on “unverified information, largely from the media” and which are approximate. And as usual, she denies in passing what she qualifies as “politically motivated communication”.
UN experts also pointed to the opacity surrounding the presence of these Russian paramilitaries in the Central African Republic, in particular their status and the legal basis on which they operate. Russia is also reacting to this point. The approximately 500 instructors present in the Central African Republic at the end of April were there at the request of the country’s legitimate authorities to “help train local defense and security forces”. Men who “are unarmed and do not engage in hostilities”, assures this note, despite many reports from local NGOs and the UN saying the opposite.
Mercenarism, a crime in Russia
But is this a way to distance oneself from these paramilitaries? The note reminds that mercenaries are a crime in Russia and that the law does not recognize the existence of private security companies. Therefore, she said, the three insulting units are unknown to the battalion in that country.
Russia also considers that the presence in the Central African Republic of Russian citizens under private agreements with non-state enterprises does not do so, before reminding them that they can be sued in person in the courts of that country, if they have committed crimes there.
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