In accordance with paragraph 2 (g) of the Guidelines for the conduct of its work, the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1533 (2004) concerning the Democratic Republic of the Congo makes accessible a narrative summary of reasons for the listing for individuals, groups, undertakings and entities included in its sanctions list.
Eric Badege was designated for sanctions on 31 December 2012 pursuant to the criteria set out in paragraph 4 of resolution 2078 (2012).
Eric Badege was a Lieutenant Colonel and focal point for M23 in Masisi and commanded certain operations that destabilized parts of Masisi territory in North Kivu province. As a military commander of M23, Badege was responsible for serious violations involving the targeting of children or women in situations of armed conflict. After May 2012, Raia Mutomboki, under the command of M23, killed hundreds of civilians in a series of coordinated attacks. In August 2012, Badege carried out joint attacks which involved the indiscriminate killing of civilians. These attacks were jointly orchestrated by Badege and Colonel Makoma Semivumbi Jacques. Former M23 combatants claimed that M23 leaders summarily executed dozens of children who attempted to escape after being recruited as M23 child soldiers.
According to a September 11, 2012 report by Human Rights Watch (HRW), a Rwandan man, 18, who escaped after being forcibly recruited in Rwanda told HRW that he witnessed the execution of a 16-year old boy from his M23 unit who had tried to flee in June. The boy was captured and beaten to death by M23 fighters in front of the other recruits. An M23 commander who ordered his killing then allegedly told the other recruits "[h]e wanted to abandon us," as an explanation for why the boy had been killed. The report also states that witnesses claimed that at least 33 new recruits and other M23 fighters were summarily executed when they attempted to flee. Some were tied up and shot in front of other recruits as an example of the punishment they could receive. One young recruit told HRW, "[w]hen we were with M23, they said [we had a choice] and could stay with them or we could die. Lots of people tried to escape. Some were found and then that was immediately their death.
Badege fled to Rwanda in March 2013 and was living there as of early 2016.