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Trial Proceedings
Closing statements of the
Office of the Prosecutor
Deputy Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda commenced
the Prosecution closing statements, stating
that the evidence had proven, ‘not just beyond
reasonable doubt but beyond any possible
doubt’, 1115 that Lubanga was guilty of the war
crimes charged against him by means of having
systematically recruited children under the
age of 15 as soldiers in his movement known
as the UPC/FPLC, and having used them in
hostilities. Bensouda argued that the Chamber
had ensured that the accused had received a fair
trial in every respect, and asked the Chamber to
convict him for the commission of war crimes in
order to send the clear message that there will
be no impunity for those who recruit children
into an armed group. She drew the Chamber’s
attention to one piece of evidence of particular
importance for the Prosecution: a video showing
Lubanga at Rwampara, a UPC/FPLC training
camp, ‘in his role as supreme commander of his
militia addressing recruits and inspiring them to
fight’. 1116 The video showed Lubanga addressing
the recruited soldiers, saying ‘It is the second
time I come here’. 1117 The Prosecution argued
that this statement showed that supervising
his troops was a regular and normal activity for
Lubanga, 1118 and that the video was a voluntary,
public and taped confession of Lubanga’s
crimes. Bensouda then described the harsh daily
training camp life of child soldiers, who were
beaten, learned how to fight and kill and lived in
constant fear. 1119
Trial lawyer for the Prosecution, Nicole Samson,
summarised the testimonies and documents
that were presented as evidence in the case.
She stated that recruitment took place across a
1115 ICC-01/04-01/06-T-356-ENG, p 3 line 25; p 4 line 1.
1116 ICC-01/04-01/06-T-356-ENG, p 7 lines 8-9.
1117 ICC-01/04-01/06-T-356-ENG, p 7 line 16.
1118 ICC-01/04-01/06-T-356-ENG, p 7 lines 15-18; ICC-01/04-
01/06-2748-Red, paras 250-285.
1119 ICC-01/04-01/06-T-356-ENG, p 9 lines 14-21; ICC-01/04-
01/06-2748-Red, paras 185-206, 198, 200, 202, 204.
wide region of UPC-controlled territory between
September 2002 and August 2003, and was part
of a deliberate and clearly conceived plan. 1120
The Prosecution argued that most child soldiers
were victims of coercive recruitment campaigns
or their parents were forced to give them up,
both of which were presented as evidence
of the crime of conscription; children were
conscripted, abducted and trained to be ready
to participate actively in hostilities. 1121 Samson
explained that according to the Prosecution,
active participation in hostilities not only
meant direct participation in combat, but also
combat-related activities such as scouting,
spying, being a messenger, guarding military
check-points, military objectives or a military
commander, and sending out soldiers to procure
girls so that the commander could sleep with
them. 1122 To prove the age of the children,
the Prosecution put forward statements of
witnesses who were former child soldiers, as well
as eye-witness testimony, videos, and forensic
scientific assessments of their bone and dental
growth. With respect to witness credibility,
Samson emphasised that the broad range of
witnesses (soldiers, commanders, political
officers, and neutral observers such as NGO and
UN employees) all described in detail that the
UPC/FPLC recruited children under the age of 15,
and argued that there is no credible evidence
suggesting that the testimonies of all these
witnesses was ‘one big, organised plot’. 1123
1120 ICC-01/04-01/06-T-356-ENG, p 11 lines 11-13, 19-24; ICC-
01/04-01/06-2748-Red, para 170.
1121 ICC-01/04-01/06-T-356-ENG, p 12 lines 19-22; p 13 lines
2-5; ICC-01/04-01/06-2748-Red, paras 171-183.
1122 ICC-01/04-01/06-T-356-ENG, p 15 lines 17-20; p 16 lines
1-4; ICC-01/04-01/06-2748-Red, paras 139-143.
1123 ICC-01/04-01/06-T-356-ENG, p 21 lines 23-24; ICC-
01/04-01/06-2748-Red, para 153. Concerning witness
credibility, the Prosecution’s final written conclusions
dedicated a section addressing the credibility of each
child soldier witness.
205