The Requesters state that the Central Bank of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), under the Project’s umbrella, liquidated the three state-owned banks mentioned above, which led to the dismissal of 3480 employees. According to the Requesters the conditions determined for their retrenchment were drafted “unilaterally” by the consultant hired by the Government, financed under the Project and agreed upon by the World Bank. They complain that according to the Governor of the Central Bank of the DRC the only choice they had was “to take the deal or leave it,” which according to them violates their rights. The Requesters state that the amounts owed to them were not paid within the mandatory time, the last payment being made in 2009 that is with several years delay. Further they add that the payments were not made in close proximity to their location and they had to travel up to 200 kilometers to receive their money. According to them, this lack of proximity extended the “hardship endured by the workers” and constitutes a basis for payment of a proportional indemnity. The Requesters state that this operation led to “disastrous social conditions” for the affected ex-employees. Among other impacts they include: displacement of households; numerous divorces; and no less than 3345 children not benefiting from school education over the past four years. They also state that this operation led to delinquency and the widespread of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. The Requesters describe their increasing frustration and intolerance against those who denied them “the right to a decent live and respect as human beings.” The Requesters state that the attempted reintegration efforts failed. They claim that the situation was insufficiently assessed and participants were not “prepared to re-orient their lives.” According to the Requesters, they were “damned to unemployment, too old to apply for new employment, and therefore left under a social guillotine.” The Requesters refer to Article 1(n) of the Credit agreement, providing that the amount of the severance payments comply with the Congolese Labor Code. The Requesters state that the calculation used in their case violates paragraph 77, 78, 103, 104 and 110 of the Congolese Labor Code. Further, they refer to a recalculation of the Congolese Labor Inspector in 2004, which estimated that a total amount of 60,008,447 USD should be paid in contrast with the consultant’s estimate of 13,409,686 USD that was to be paid. The Requesters state that they began contacting the World Bank office in Kinshasa on November 19, 2004, informing them about the outstanding payments and disagreement with the calculation of the total amount of the severance payments. The response received in April 2005 informed them about “renegotiations on the total amount of severance payments”, “the ignition of reintegration activities for the employees” and “the potential relocation of other project resources to this component to finance further activities.” The Requesters describe further communication with Bank staff dating up to August 2007 but express their dissatisfaction with the outcome of these communications. On November 24, 2009, they also contacted the Bank’s representative in DRC. Registration The above claims may constitute non-compliance by the Bank with provisions of the following Operational Policies and Procedures: OD 4.15 Poverty Reduction OP/BP 6.00 Bank Financing OpMemo Financing Severance Pay in Public Sector Reform Operations OP/BP 13.05 Project Supervision Third Registration Report, pgs 2-3, https://www.inspectionpanel.org/sites/default/files/ip/PanelCases/63-Third%20Notice%20of%20Registration%20%28English%29.pdf