Kinshasa: the legal basis for mobile courts explained by a barrister

Kinshasa, January 19^th, 2026 (CPA) – The legal and social basis for mobile courts was explained by a lawyer registered with the Kinshasa-Matete Bar Association in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) during an interview with the CPA on Monday. ‘First, we must refer to the legal basis found in Articles 45, 46 and 47 of Organic Law No. 13/011-B of  April 11^th, 2013 on the organization and jurisdiction of the courts,’ said Attorney Plamedie Pola. She summarized these articles to demonstrate how the aforementioned law organizes mobile court hearings in the following terms: ‘Article 45 gives courts the power to move their hearings when they deem it useful for the proper administration of justice, Article 46 organizes this movement by creating secondary seats with registries to receive procedural documents, and Article 47 ensures that the main judicial activity is not paralyzed during these movements.’ Attorney Pola presented the advantages and disadvantages of organizing mobile courts, particularly with regard to the trial of urban bandits commonly known as Kulunas. ‘With cases involving Kulunas, holding mobile court hearings also has an awareness-raising effect on the population. However, it can damage the image of some defendants. In the minds of some people, appearing in court immediately equates to being considered guilty,’ she said.  She added that certain disadvantages can be cited, such as social pressure in certain parts of the city, the fact that lawyers and judges are also exposed and sometimes not sufficiently secure, and the difficulty of accessing certain areas, which can be an obstacle for lawyers in representing their clients, thus threatening the right to defense procedures without minimizing social effects such as raising public awareness of compliance with the law and strengthening confidence in the justice system when it demonstrates its effective presence in certain areas.  To reinforce her argument, she recounted a personal anecdote: ‘During a recent hearing in a hard-to-reach neighborhood in the municipality of Ngaliema, the presence of the court and lawyers in robes aroused great interest among the population. Several residents saw this as a sign of the seriousness of the case, with some saying that the fact that the court was being held in their street showed the importance of the case.’  ‘Between the children’s admiration and the hearing of the parties taking place in front of the crowd, it was a real awareness-raising exercise for justice. However, this proximity to the public can sometimes border on the confidentiality requirements of certain cases,’ added the rights defender. Attorney Pola explained that mobile court hearings improve access to justice and speed up proceedings.