Trafficking of Congolese children: the woman from Namur denies the facts but risks up to 12 years in prison
Julienne Mpemba's trial, which began on June 24, is coming to an end. The Namur native of Congolese origin risks up to 12 years in prison for child trafficking. The children had been taken from their families in Congo to be adopted in Belgium.
It took seven years for the case to finally come to a conclusion . In a few days, Julienne Mpemba will know whether she has been found guilty or not. The 47-year-old woman from Namur of Congolese origin is suspected of human trafficking, adoption fraud, kidnapping of minors, hostage-taking, fraud, corruption and forgery . In 2016, the federal prosecutor's office revealed that at least three of the 11 children who arrived in Belgium in 2015 had been kidnapped. They had been given other identities and dates of birth even though they were not intended to be adopted . These illegal procedures had nevertheless gone under the radar of the Authorized Adoption Organizations (OAA), the French Community and the Belgian and Congolese authorities (several people and organizations were prosecuted but all the cases ended in dismissal).
The trial began on June 24 and, on Wednesday July 3, the pleadings and replies were on the menu for this third day of hearing. Who is Julienne Mpemba? Arriving alone in Belgium, during her youth, she studied law at UCL. With her degree in hand, she then found a job as a lawyer in the Walloon Region. She also ran on the socialist lists during the 2014 European elections. " Because she was sensitive to the poverty in Congo, she decided to create a non-profit organization in 2008 with the aim of sponsoring abandoned children. She herself adopted a little Congolese boy, notes her counsel. She knows the reality of adoption. From 2011, the project will change and become more ambitious. During 2012, several idealists launched the adoption component and created the Tumaini orphanage, which means "hope", in collaboration with the French Community (FWB). Mrs. Mpemba found premises in Congo, nannies and an administrative team to supervise all the young children who were often in poor health. The aim is to offer them a chance."
"She got into debt for these children"
Two waves of adoptions took place in 2012 and 2013. But on September 25, 2013, a moratorium was issued by Joseph Kabila, the former president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, saying that children could no longer leave the country for adoptions. " Everyone is in a terrible situation at that time," continues the defense counsel. "We had to feed these children, provide them with medical care, pay the rent for the orphanage, the salaries of the nannies, ... But there is no support, no social security, no subsidy, no help to run this orphanage. So it is Mrs. Mpemba who is struggling on her own funds. She has gone into debt everywhere to run the structure and accommodate these children."
The orphanage manager, who at that time still worked and lived in Namur, then turned to the parents to whom the children had been promised to ask for financial help. Some helped, others refused to pay more (between €14,000 and €28,000 for an adoption). But when the moratorium was lifted, Julienne Mpemba refused to send the children, demanding a large sum of money. After hiding the children, Julienne Mpemba was arrested in Congo. And the children were finally welcomed in Belgium by their adoptive parents.
"An annoying defense"
The lawyer from Namur, who now lives in Congo and follows her trial on screen, has always denied it. Passing the buck sometimes to the Belgian or Congolese authorities, sometimes to the head of an association in Gemena. " Will you find the evidence in the file? In the testimonies, the people who carried out this project with Mrs. Mpemba say that they are convinced that she had the best intentions in the world for the children. Of course, she made a number of management errors, but she had good motives to begin with. She did not enrich herself personally to the detriment of the children," the defense added.
Arguments which, at the time of the replies, will not have convinced the civil parties. " It is an annoying defense for my clients because it almost makes Mrs. Mpemba look like a victim," continues Florine Delplancke, one of the lawyers of the adoptive parents.
If the prosecution requests 12 years of imprisonment, the defense argues for exceeding the reasonable time limit. " She has no criminal record, she has already spent two years in prison and we are talking about facts that date back to 2012 and 2013. This procedure, this trial, is a disaster. And for the civil parties, they will also have to take responsibility at other levels, in particular with the juvenile court. You have the possibility of saying: I am stopping the proceedings and restoring peace. This will allow each of the civil parties to preserve the interests of the children."
In a few days, Julienne Mpemba will know if she is found guilty. If the woman from Namur is, the adoption will then be worthless. And what future, what will happen next for the Congolese children who have built themselves up in their families in Belgium?