On September 28, the judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) were to hear prosecution and defense arguments before ruling on the opening of the Lubanga trial. This hearing was posponed for the second time. Back in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), many are at a loss as to how the prosecutor could produce such feeble results after two years of investigation [IJT-9-39]. Already disappointed that the most senior officials are not being prosecuted, the Congolese are now frustrated to see only one defendant - Thomas Lubanga - charged with only one crime, the enlistment of child soldiers [IJT-52].
On June 16, 2003, at the swearing-in of Luis Moreno Ocampo as ICC prosecutor, Richard Dicker from Human Rights Watch said, "As we say in our country: you never get a second chance to make the first impression. We have been waiting for this day for a long time. We will not abet an office of well paid lawyers," the American activist continued. "[Moreno Ocampo] is going to lead a championship team. We expect him to become a champion of justice, and for him to be seen as such by victims from the Congo to Columbia." Three years later, with only one accused charged on only one count, in a country where the recent wars have caused millions of victims, the ICC is being harshly criticized for its lack of results in the DRC. On July 31, Human Rights Watch and seven other international NGOs known for their support for the Court wrote an open letter to the prosecutor stating: "We are disappointed that two years of investigation by your office in the DRC has not yielded a broader range of charges against Thomas Lubanga [...] you, as the prosecutor, must send a clear signal to the victims in Ituri and people of the DRC that those who perpetrate crimes such as rape, torture and summary executions will be held to account."

In Bunia, the capital of Ituri, members of local NGOs who followed the investigation are even more disappointed by this lack of results. Although no one wants to say it publicly, with the ICC being their best hope for justice, an open anger is sometimes expressed. "There is too much amateur work at the office of the prosecutor. It's not that the charges don't exist; it's that the prosecutor has done mediocre work. Despite the scope of the crimes, he has been unable to gather evidence. The only reason for this is amateur work and conflicts with the trial chamber. And we in Ituri will be the ones to pay the price. If the office of the prosecutor does not change its working methods, it will not make any progress." Suspended one month before the presidential and legislative elections on July 30, the ICC's investigations in the Congo still have not resumed. However, the situation in the Congo is not the only problem. The prosecutor sent only "two, non-core teams of five investigators and analysts." One team is working on the Lubanga case, while the other team is working on a case concerning crimes committed by a member of the rival ethnic group's militia in Ituri. The prosecutor is still looking into the possibility of deploying a third investigation team, outside Ituri.

There are no other investigations underway in the DRC. According to many sources, the prosecutor is not bringing other charges against Lubanga because he has not gathered enough other evidence that is sufficiently solid to meet the court's standards. One Congolese lawyer put it this way, "Investigating cases of child soldiers in Ituri is like picking a ripe mango that fell at your feet. It could not be any easier." In fact, it was the local NGOs who brought young girls and boys under the age of 15 to the prosecutor so that the investigators could interview and select them in Bunia. According to UNICEF, 7,000 child soldiers were demobilized in Ituri from 2004 to June 2005 and 200 more were recently released following the July 2006 negotiations with militia leader Peter Karim. No one is contesting the importance of this charge against the former president of the Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC). "Lubanga destroyed the lives of thousands of children," said one human rights activist in Bunia. "His arrest has attracted our attention and given us moral encouragement." He feels that "starting with children is perhaps a good strategy because they are more likely to talk."

According to an advisor to President Joseph Kabila in Kinshasa, "the problem now is ensuring that ICC justice is not perceived as vengeance. After arresting Lubanga, the prosecutor should have quickly arrested others. Even before Lubanga's arrest, it was taking a long time and people were beginning to insult the ICC. The enthusiasm that resurfaced at the time of his arrest quickly faded away. We were expecting him to be prosecuted for the gaping wounds left by the most serious crimes, and instead he was charged with enlisting child soldiers. That is ridiculous and incomprehensible, especially since the Court was capable of doing more." According to him, "if the Court does not take decisive, rapid action, cooperation will come to a standstill, no matter who takes office" [following the second round of the presidential elections on October 29].