Jean-Pierre Bemba
Congolese politician / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo (born 4 November 1962)[1] is a politician in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). He has served as Deputy Prime Minister of Defense since 2023.[2][3] He was previously one of four vice-presidents in the transitional government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 17 July 2003 to December 2006.[4] He led the Movement for the Liberation of the Congo (MLC), a rebel group turned political party. He received the second-highest number of votes in the 2006 presidential election. In January 2007, he was elected to the Senate.
Jean-Pierre Bemba | |
---|---|
Deputy Prime Minister of Defense | |
Assumed office 23 March 2023 | |
President | Félix Tshisekedi |
Prime Minister | Sama Lukonde |
Preceded by | Gilbert Kabanda Rukemba |
Vice President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo | |
In office 17 July 2003 – 6 December 2006 | |
President | Joseph Kabila |
Preceded by | Position established |
Succeeded by | Position abolished |
Personal details | |
Born | Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo (1962-11-04) 4 November 1962 (age 61) Bokada, Equateur Province, Republic of the Congo |
Nationality | Congolese |
Political party | Movement for the Liberation of the Congo |
Parent |
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Alma mater | ICHEC Brussels Management School |
Occupation | Politician |
In 2008, during a trip to Europe, Bemba was arrested on International Criminal Court charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes.[5] He spent the following 10 years in prison at The Hague, The Netherlands; 8 years awaiting trial and verdict, then 2 more years after conviction in 2016.[6] In 2018, the verdicts were overturned on appeal.[7] The court ruled that because the Rome Statute which sets the court's rules do not limit the amount of time a person can spend in prison awaiting trial, Bemba was not entitled to compensation. It called on member states to urgently review the relevant provisions in the statute.[8] No such review has yet taken place. In 2018, Bemba returned to the DRC where he has since been active in national politics.[9]