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Suspected perpetrators of crimes under international law in the Central African Republic (CAR), including some of the country\u2019s highest-ranking officials, are at risk of escaping justice unless the Special Criminal Court (SCC) receives the funding it requires to continue investigating and prosecuting cases, Amnesty International said in a new report.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe perpetrators are still here\u201d \u2013 The Central African Republic\u2019s Special Criminal Court on borrowed time, as victims await justice<\/em> examines the progress and challenges faced by the SCC, which has tried six cases since its inauguration on 22 October 2018, resulting in 19 people being convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity. However, victims of the most serious crimes committed during some of the bloodiest periods in CAR\u2019s history, including during the 2003 coup led by Fran\u00e7ois Boziz\u00e9 and the 2012\u20132014 internal armed conflict, are still waiting for all perpetrators in positions of high authority to be prosecuted.<\/p>\n Yet the court, which relies solely on voluntary contributions from states and international organizations, is at risk of closure by 2028. After an initial sense of hope, survivors and victims are beginning to lose faith.<\/p>\n \u201cVictims\u2019 right to justice, truth, and reparations must not depend on the shifting priorities of donors. Thousands of civilians were killed, raped, abducted, maimed, injured, displaced, or had their homes burned down during waves of violence and armed conflict over the last 25 years. Each one of them deserves justice,\u201d said Marceau Sivieude, Amnesty International\u2019s Regional Director for West and Central Africa.<\/p>\n \u201cAmnesty International calls on the Central African authorities, the United Nations, the European Union, and all partner states to provide \u2013 or continue to provide \u2013 financial support to the Special Criminal Court to meet its operating budget.\u201d<\/p>\n The Special Criminal Court was established at the request of the Central African people and civil society. If the court does not receive the resources it needs to continue its essential work, it will fail them.<\/p>\n Marceau Sivieude, Amnesty International\u2019s Regional Director for West and Central Africa<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Of the six cases tried by the SCC, verdicts have been handed down in the first four at least in the first instance, resulting in the conviction of 19 people for war crimes and crimes against humanity. In one case, victims also received reparations. The verdict in the fifth trial relating to attacks in Guen, western CAR, in 2014, is expected next December, while the Bossemb\u00e9l\u00e9 trial<\/a>, which lists former president Boziz\u00e9 among the accused, is currently underway.<\/p>\n Despite the remarkable progress in fighting impunity in the CAR, numerous grave crimes still remain unpunished. These include widespread campaigns of murder, rape, and looting committed in 2002\u20132003, in particular by security forces of former president Ange-F\u00e9lix Patass\u00e9 and fighters from Jean-Pierre Bemba\u2019s armed group that he enlisted to try to crush Fran\u00e7ois Boziz\u00e9\u2019s coup; as well as many crimes of killings, rapes, torture, and enforced disappearances committed between 2012 and 2014, in the context of conflict between Seleka and Anti-balaka armed groups.<\/p>\n Despite a significant improvement in the enforcement of arrest warrants issued by the SCC in the last few years, dozens of individuals are currently still wanted, and significant obstacles to their arrest remain. Fran\u00e7ois Boziz\u00e9 resides in Guinea-Bissau, while other suspects subject to arrest warrants are in Chad.<\/p>\n The SCC has tried a number of individuals, such as Boziz\u00e9, in their absence, but these in absentia <\/em>trials significantly undermine the process and defence rights, and fall short of victims\u2019 needs.<\/p>\n \u201cVictims want justice [to be done]. When their perpetrators are brought to justice their hearts will be at peace, when they see them in prison,\u201d said a representative from a Central African organization that supports victims. Other victims said they are satisfied with judgments in absentia.<\/p>\n In 2025, the United States withdrew its financial support for the SCC, leaving it to face an unprecedented funding crisis with more than US$4.15 million in commitments that remain unpaid. The United Nations and the European Union are currently the sole financial contributors to the court.<\/p>\n Funding cuts forced the court to lay off a quarter of its staff, including foreign experts, between August and September 2025. Its witness protection unit has lost more than half of its staff, which has the potential to compromise its ability to limit reprisals against witnesses. Due to the lack of staff and resources, the Office of the Prosecutor can no longer open any new investigations, while cases before the various Chambers suffer delays.<\/p>\n To the best of Amnesty International\u2019s knowledge, with the exception of the UN and EU, no state or organization has committed to future voluntary financial contributions to the SCC, \u00a0raising the prospect of the SCC\u2019s closure at the end of its mandate in 2028.<\/p>\n States and international organizations must providing urgent funding, preferably through multi-year commitments, so that justice can be served as long as it is necessary.<\/p>\n Marceau Sivieude, Amnesty International\u2019s Regional Director for West and Central Africa<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Despite progress, CAR\u2019s national courts currently lack the human and material resources, as well as the necessary independence, to handle cases currently before the SCC. \u201cIf the cases are transferred to the national courts, it will mean that they will be before our judges, and their superiors will influence them,\u201d a representative of victims said.<\/p>\n The International Criminal Court (ICC) also has jurisdiction over war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide committed in the CAR since 2002. It has opened two investigations at the request of the Central African government. However, in December 2022, the ICC Prosecutor\u2019s Office announced that it was closing its investigations<\/a>.<\/p>\n In the CAR, the intensity of the violence has decreased since its peak in 2021, but all parties to the conflict continue to commit serious human rights violations and crimes under international law in the northeast and southeast of the country.<\/p>\n \u201cThe SCC was established at the request of the Central African people and civil society. If the court does not receive the resources it needs to continue its essential work, it will fail them and embolden those who continue to commit atrocities today,\u201d said Marceau Sivieude.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Central African authorities must support and protect the SCC, and extend its mandate beyond October 2028 until the Court\u2019s mission has been accomplished. They must help to secure additional funding for its budget.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cStates and international organizations must fully cooperate by executing the SCC\u2019s arrest warrants and providing urgent funding, preferably through multi-year commitments, so that justice can be served as long as it is necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n This report builds on the research work that Amnesty International has been conducting for a decade on issues of justice, truth and reparation for crimes under international law in the CAR. For this report, the organization conducted a mission in April 2026 to Bangui, the capital, and interviewed 63 people. It also reviewed court decisions, legal texts, reports from international organizations, NGOs and donors, academic works, official statements, and news articles.<\/p>\n The report\u2019s findings were shared with the Central African authorities on 6 October 2026. Amnesty International had not received a response at the time of publication.<\/p>\n\n
\u2018Victims want justice [to be done]\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n
An unprecedented financial crisis<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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No alternative for trying the worst crimes in the CAR<\/strong><\/h2>\n
An essential jurisdiction amid persistent conflict<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Background <\/h2>\n