On 16 April, 1996, the UN Human Rights Committee determined that the 1993 abduction of a military adviser to the then Prime Minister of Zaire, apparently by military intelligence forces, resulted in a violation of the victim's rights to liberty and security of the person under Article 9(1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (N'Goya v. Zaire Communication No. 542/1993). It was also found that the victim had suffered cruel and inhuman treatment, in violation of Article 7 of the Covenant, in mat he had been prevented from contact widi his family and with the outside world.

Despite repeated requests to the State party for information concerning the matter, the Committee had received no response. As a result, the Committee made some forceful comments about the responsibility of State parties under the Optional Protocol: