DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
Bemba to appeal against bribery sentence but will miss poll
The former DRC vice-president was barred from the elections because of his bribery conviction
Former Democratic Republic of Congo vice-president Jean-Pierre Bemba will appeal against his sentence for bribing war crimes witnesses and hopes to overturn his conviction, his lawyer said on Wednesday. The conviction has resulted in Bemba being barred from Congolese elections. On Monday the International Criminal Court (ICC) confirmed a one-year sentence and €300,000 fine against Bemba for tampering with witnesses in his main trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Any fresh appeal will come too late to get Bemba on the official list of candidates for the Democratic Republic of Congo’s December 23 election, from which he has been barred by the bribery conviction. Bemba has already lost an earlier appeal, but his lawyer Melinda Taylor said he had a right to launch a fresh challenge as Monday’s decision was by lower trial judges and not the ICC’s higher appeals chamber. "I have also identified several grounds of appeal which could, if upheld by the appeals chamber, result i...
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