Friday, 8 February 2013
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Facing Justice
(February 8, 2013)- In Chad, it’s often said that you can’t find a family that doesn’t have a victim from the Hissène Habré years.
Habré, the dictator who ruled Chad from 1982 to 1990, is accused of thousands of political killings, systematic torture, and waves of ethnic cleansing campaigns.
After his overthrow in 1990, Habré allegedly emptied Chad’s treasury and fled to Senegal, where he has been comfortably living for 22 years.
Since 2000, survivors of Habré’s regime have sought justice through every possible avenue, including through the courts of both Senegal and Belgium. The case has gone to the United Nations and even the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
The victims' saga became what Bishop Desmond Tutu, the Nobel Peace Prize winner, described as an “interminable political and legal soap opera.”
Now, however, Habré may finally face trial. It is only the tenacity and perseverance of his victims that have kept the case alive for so many years.
In July 2012, the ICJ ordered Senegal to prosecute Habré “without further delay” if it did not extradite him. On August 22, 2012, Senegal and the African Union signed an agreement creating “Extraordinary African Chambers” within the Senegalese judiciary system to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and torture committed in Chad between 1982 and 1990. The Tribunal should be operational in early 2013.
A fair trial for Hissène Habré would be a tremendous step forward to show that African courts can deliver justice for crimes committed in Africa.
Habré, the dictator who ruled Chad from 1982 to 1990, is accused of thousands of political killings, systematic torture, and waves of ethnic cleansing campaigns.
After his overthrow in 1990, Habré allegedly emptied Chad’s treasury and fled to Senegal, where he has been comfortably living for 22 years.
Since 2000, survivors of Habré’s regime have sought justice through every possible avenue, including through the courts of both Senegal and Belgium. The case has gone to the United Nations and even the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
The victims' saga became what Bishop Desmond Tutu, the Nobel Peace Prize winner, described as an “interminable political and legal soap opera.”
Now, however, Habré may finally face trial. It is only the tenacity and perseverance of his victims that have kept the case alive for so many years.
In July 2012, the ICJ ordered Senegal to prosecute Habré “without further delay” if it did not extradite him. On August 22, 2012, Senegal and the African Union signed an agreement creating “Extraordinary African Chambers” within the Senegalese judiciary system to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and torture committed in Chad between 1982 and 1990. The Tribunal should be operational in early 2013.
A fair trial for Hissène Habré would be a tremendous step forward to show that African courts can deliver justice for crimes committed in Africa.
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