Impunity for War Crimes Increases Violence in CAR: Amnesty International

The human rights watchdog blames the Central African Republic authorities and the United Nations for failing to carry out effective investigations. Criminals, who kill civilians, use children as soldiers and burn villages, emerge unscathed, Amnesty International reports.

MOSCOW, December 11 (Sputnik) — The impunity of war criminals in the Central African Republic (CAR) contributes to further violence and fear in the country, Amnesty International said Thursday.

"The failure to hold accountable those implicated in the killing of civilians, the use of child soldiers and the burning of villages means they are not only able to walk free, but also to continue terrorising the population without fear of repercussions," Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International deputy regional director for West and Central Africa, was quoted as saying in a statement published on the watchdog's website.

Amnesty International noted that some of the 20 individuals that the organization named back in July as suspected of committing war crimes were still involved in the carrying out of atrocities and obstructing justice in CAR.

In the statement, the organization also blamed the CAR authorities and the United Nations for failing to carry out effective investigations.

The Central African Republic has been caught up in violence since March 2013, when Seleka rebels seized control of the capital Bangui, overthrowing the country's president Francois Bozize.

In April 2014, the United Nation's Security Council licensed a peacekeeping operation, known as the Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), to prioritize the protection of civilians, according to the United Nations.