“…this profession requires taking responsibility, knowing that people put their future in their hands as a lawyer, which is why a lawyer does not have the right to favouritism or lightness. This profession must be practiced with precision and rigour.” – Arlette Kitumaini
Arlette Kitumaini is a Congolese (DR Congo) legal practitioner with over five years of experience defending human rights. She is deeply committed to protecting the rights of women and children and has dedicated her career to promoting justice and equality.
Holding a Master’s degree in human rights and democratization in Africa from the Centre for Human Rights at the University of Pretoria, South Africa, she combines academic and practical expertise to strengthen the protection of fundamental rights.
As a researcher focused on human rights and gender issues in Africa, Arlette is very active and consistently initiates innovative research projects and constructive dialogues, combining diverse legal perspectives with other research avenues to foster a more comprehensive and holistic understanding of how to concretise the realisation of human rights in Africa.
She has worked with several international organisations, including the World Health Organization (WHO), ActionAid, and UNFPA, in the fight against sexual abuse, exploitation, and harassment. She is a certified trainer of trainers and acts as a specialised investigator, actively contributing to the fight against gender-based violence. She supports victims of sexual violence and promotes justice through strategic litigation, advocacy, accountability, awareness-raising, and community action.
Arlette has made significant contributions not only to the technical review of the Pan-African Parliament’s Model Law on Gender Equality and Equity, but also provided technical support in drafting and research during and following the regional consultations on this Model Law.
She currently serves as Executive Secretary of CORD-DRC, where she uses her knowledge and experience to promote social justice, equality, and community development.
1. What ignited Arlette’s passion for the legal profession, and what continues to make the practice of law a deeply fulfilling pursuit for her?
Arlette Kitumaini’s journey proves that all inspiring stories are not necessarily born from tragedy; some naturally come from determination and strong values.
Arlette grew up in a working-class neighborhood, surrounded by bad influences. Fortunately, her parents gave her a solid education that protected her from all these anti-values.
Initially, she was not destined for the bar; her ambition was to be a magistrate. To be passionate about the law, no one had inspired her in this way, because in her family, near or far, no one practiced in the judicial environment. Neither did her parents had the chance to go to school long enough to wear the gown, but they sacrificed everything so that their children would accomplish what they had not been able to achieve. Her passion for law was simply natural. From an early age, she told her friends and colleagues loud and clear that she loves the law and that she will be a magistrate.
Arlette is part of the first generation of her family to go to university and carry this title. It was after her mother’s death that her father advised her: “Arlette, you want to become a magistrate, but with the administrative machinery of our government, we don’t know when the next competition will take place. Tests to become a lawyer are organised; why not try your luck rather than remain passive?” She listened to his dad’s advice, and that’s how she got into the profession of lawyers. Her father did everything to support her efforts, and her brother-in-law, whom she considers a second father, fully invested in finding her a firm.
There she met her mentor (may his soul rest in peace), who nurtured her passion for law. However, Arlette failed her very first test, which was her very first academic failure. Given the difficult times her family was going through at that time, she was desperate to give up and thought this was not her way and it wouldn’t work, but her mentor, convinced of her potential, told her: “You shouldn’t fail, I know what you’re worth.” He invested himself so that Arlette presented herself to another test, and she successfully passed, and this was her new start!
By practicing the legal profession, the active listening of customers revealed Arlette’s empathy. From Monday to Friday, receiving these people who put their fate in her hands made her measure the heaviness and nobility of this responsibility. His mentor quickly entrusted her with files requiring absolute discretion, thanks to his reserved and discreet character.
This relationship of trust has transformed her practice of law into a real fulfillment. She realised that listening to desperate persons, giving them hope and wise advice, is already starting to heal them. From desperation to smiling and hope that everything can be fixed, she realised that every time she contacted a client, she saved lives! It is through this experience that Arlette will understand that being a lawyer means offering both legal assistance and psychological support. Welcoming a person in tears and seeing them leave with a smile: if it’s not a miracle, what is it?
This journey has taught Arlette that you don’t always get what you want right away, but that you can shape what you have into what you want. Today, she is proud to be the voice of the voiceless, the defender of the defenseless, and to be the pride of her family and community. In all this, she gives thanks to God.
2. In Arlette’s opinion, what qualities define a truly exceptional lawyer in today’s world?
For Arlette, a lawyer isn’t something you just make up; he operates within a strict framework, that of professional ethics. His demeanour must inspire confidence from the very first glance. He stands proudly, acts with integrity, and demonstrates impartiality by defending only those cases he deems just in his heart and conscience. Above all, a lawyer knows how to put themselves in their client’s shoes to handle every case with a genuine sense of responsibility and true empathy.
Arlette says that a lawyer must be a real secret box for his clients. Knowing that professional secrecy is not an option but an absolute duty, a lawyer must protect the confidences received in the exercise of his duties in order to deserve and maintain the trust of those who come to rely on him. Confidentiality is part of his DNA.
Independence is equally essential; a lawyer must be free from any conflict of interest and remain in control of his decisions. He owes unwavering loyalty to his clients, his colleagues, the judiciary and the entire judicial community. But goodwill is not enough; the lawyer must be educated, with good morality, sharp, always aware of the law to offer tailored and informed advice. In this job, laziness has no place. A file doesn’t sleep! It is treated with diligence, rigour, and without wasting a minute.
3. What is the next groundbreaking project or initiative that Arlette is or would be working on and what impact is she hoping it will make?
Arlette sees herself investing in children’s education and the economic empowerment of women. She is already working in the latter area through her organisation, Community Outreach for Resilience and Development (CORD-RDC), of which she is a Founding Member.
When she looks at her background and the neighborhood where she grew up, Arlette sees all these children who have not had the chance to go to school or pursue a real education. Looking at what they have become, admittedly, by the grace of God, a few have managed to get out of it, but the majority have sunk. In her neighbourhood, most of the girls who dropped out of school ended up getting pregnant or getting married early. The main cause is simply the fact that the parents could not afford their education, and marriage became the only perceived outcome. Arlette believes that education is the foundation of a child’s future.
Arlette says that if she had the grace to study properly and become the woman she is today, she does not see herself as not being a bridge for other children from poor families to shape their future.
For Arlette, schooling the child is not enough; she believes that investing directly in the economic empowerment of mothers, allowing them to acquire their financial independence, enables them to be able to pay the school fees of their children and to provide for the basic needs of the home.
What if some people wonder why strengthen women and not men? Because for Arlette, women are the mainstay of the home. She knows how to manage daily life with unparalleled rigour and is ready to make all the sacrifices for the future of her children. Investing in a woman is about securing an entire family.
4. Which legal minds and books have shaped or is shaping Arlette’s thoughts and perspectives?
The first thinker who has shaped and continues to shape Arlette’s thinking is herself. Arlette takes herself as an example because when she sees where she started from and what she is today, she realises how much her journey has forged her, taught her patience, resilience, and the “Never give up”. What she went through now serves as her support and shield. Alongside this, Arlette learns every day. In this profession, she meets the wisdom of many thinkers, and she learns from each of them.
Beyond the law, the book “We are all perfectly imperfect” by Muniba Mazari, the “Iron Lady of Pakistan”, inspires Arlette enormously. The author inspired Arlette through her story and journey to transform suffering into strength, to refuse victim posturing and cultivate gratitude. For Arlette, the author reminds her that failure is a permissible option, but that abandonment is never. Those are some of the principles that guide her in her daily life.
5. What advice or guiding principles would Arlette offer young legal professionals and advocates trying to find their place and purpose in the legal terrain?
Arlette advises young legal professionals never to be afraid to get started. We must keep in mind that a good lawyer is not the one who knows everything, but the one who knows where everything is. The real secret is to learn on a daily basis, to cultivate a permanent curiosity, knowing that this job is delicate and requires discretion.
Arlette reminds young lawyers that this profession requires taking responsibility, knowing that people put their future in their hands as a lawyer, which is why a lawyer does not have the right to favouritism or lightness. This profession must be practiced with precision and rigour.
Finally, for Arlette, it is necessary to preserve time for one’s self. Spending one’s days listening to the trials of others and looking for solutions is heavy, and it can quickly wear one out mentally. Relaxing is a necessity. In addition, knowing how to maintain an essential boundary between being empathetic, that is to say understanding the suffering of the other, and personalising the files of clients to the point of making it one’s own burden. In this profession, to make this distinction is to preserve one’s mental health in order to better serve others.
Click here to read our previous millennial, Mayara Matsinhe Cossa
