Military commanders from the Southern African Development Community are breaching their legal obligation to investigate alleged war crimes, a campaigner has warned. The warning comes after the body’s military mission fighting the insurgency in Cabo Delgado province, known as Samim, refused to say when it would publish its investigation into a video that appeared to show Samim soldiers burning bodies.
The content of the video, which went viral last year and whose authenticity has not been disputed, constitutes a violation of the Geneva Convention. It began circulating online in early January 2023 and shows at least a dozen soldiers, one of whom has a South African flag on his uniform, throwing two dead bodies onto a bonfire before dousing them in what appears to be fuel.
The chairman of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Hage Geingob, said in a statement on 11 January 2023 that Samim had initiated an investigation and the results would be shared once it was completed. Over a year later, there has been no official statement on the progress of this report.
Zitamar asked SADC on 20 March to confirm when the report would be published and the reason for the delay. On 25 March, a SADC spokesperson said the request had been “received and noted for action” but despite repeated follow-ups there was no response. On 8 April, the SADC press office reiterated that the request had been shared to the relevant office, but by the time of publication, Samim still had not replied.
The chances of the report being published appear to be diminishing as the scheduled end of the Samim mission on 15 July approaches, although a South African contingent is set to remain in Cabo Delgado until December.
“It’s very concerning and disappointing that SADC is ending its military mission in Mozambique, without a clear demonstration of commitment to protecting people’s rights,” Zenaida Machado, senior Africa researcher at the NGO Human Rights Watch, told Zitamar News.
“SADC’s failure to investigate the conduct of their troops in Mozambique is a serious violation of its international legal obligations to address alleged war crimes and ensure accountability and justice for rights abuses,” said Machado.
Article 15 of the 1949 Geneva Convention states: “At all times, and particularly after an engagement, Parties to the conflict shall, without delay, take all possible measures to … prevent [the dead from] being despoiled.”
South Africa’s Law of Armed Conflict Teaching Manual (2008) also states that “The remains of and gravesites of all such persons shall be respected, maintained and marked.”
The South African National Defence Force spokesperson acknowledged in January 2023 that the incident likely took place in the previous November and condemned the “despicable act,” promising that anyone found guilty would be brought to justice.
The South African Department of Defence also did not respond to a request for comment.
