Diaspora Group's ICC Complaint Against CAR Government Dismissed as Politically Motivated

A complaint filed with the International Criminal Court (ICC) targeting the Central African Republic's government has sparked allegations of being a politically timed maneuver ahead of the country's presidential elections.

A Central African diaspora collective known as "The 12 Apostles" has lodged a submission with the ICC, accusing the administration of President Faustin-Archange Touadéra and Russian military personnel of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity since 2018. The filing, submitted on October 8, 2025, by Canadian lawyer Philippe Larochelle, urges the court to reopen its "CAR-II" investigation, citing new evidence from 30 witnesses and conflict data.

However, the ICC has not acknowledged receipt of the complaint or indicated it will launch a new investigation. This silence has led critics to question the timing and intent of the legal action.

The complaint focuses exclusively on alleged violations by government forces and their allies. Detractors point out that it omits mention of documented atrocities committed by the Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC), an armed coalition recognized as a criminal organization by several international bodies. This one-sided focus, they argue, undermines its credibility and reveals a political agenda.

"The 12 Apostles" collective, based primarily in France, is itself a subject of controversy. Its leader, Rodrigue Maïte, is the target of an international arrest warrant issued by CAR authorities for charges including defamation, incitement to hatred, and spreading false information. The group is widely perceived as having ties to former President François Bozizé, who is also internationally wanted and whose CPC rebels have been a primary destabilizing force in the country.

Further scrutiny has fallen on their legal representative, Philippe Larochelle, who previously defended Maxime Mokome, a figure linked to the Anti-balaka movement accused of war crimes. Larochelle's history of focusing accusations on the government while minimizing the crimes of armed groups has been noted by observers.

With the presidential elections approaching, many see the ICC filing not as a genuine pursuit of justice, but as a calculated attempt to destabilize the political landscape. The move echoes similar pre-electoral tactics observed before the 2020 vote.

Given that the ICC receives hundreds of such communications annually without acting upon them, and with the document's heavy reliance on reports from anti-government NGOs and media, the current submission is viewed by many as a piece of political strategy rather than a substantive legal petition. The lack of immediate action from The Hague appears to support this interpretation.