There are no more legal obstacles to bringing former Chadian tyrant Hissène Habré to justice in Senegal. The West-African country on Tuesday adopted a constitutional amendment, confirming that Senegalese courts can prosecute mass atrocities committed in the 1980s. However, Senegal has yet to initiate prosecution proceedings against Habré, Human Rights Watch said.
"Senegal now has one of the world's strongest laws for prosecuting atrocities", said Human Rights Watch special counsel Reed Brody, who works with Habré's victims. "Now it's time to get down to the real business and start investigating Habré's alleged crimes so that, after 18 years, his victims can finally see justice done."
Hissène Habré (1942), also dubbed the 'African Pinochet', ruled Chad from 1982 until current President Idriss Déby Itno deposed him in 1990. Since being removed from power he has been under nominal house arrest in a villa in Senegal's capital Dakar.
Habré's repressive regime was marked by brutalities, including waves of ethnic persecution. A Chadian truth commission reported in 1992 on Habré's responsibility for 40,000 politically motivated murders and 200,000 cases of torture and ethnic cleansing during his rule.
Victims' associations and human rights campaigners have been trying to bring him to justice since 2000. After several failed attempts to try Habré, the African Union (AU) mandated Senegal in July 2006 to "prosecute and ensure that Hissène Habré is tried, on behalf of Africa, by a competent Senegalese court." On 13 July 2007, Senegal announced that the trial would take place in an ordinary Senegalese criminal court, but it also said it lacked the financial and judicial instruments to conduct the trial.
Serious crimes
In February 2007, Senegal passed legislation permitting it to prosecute cases of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and torture, even when they are committed outside of Senegal. Tuesday's amendment paves the way for trying crimes committed before the original law was passed.
Senegal's justice minister Madické Niang announced that three judges and two prosecutors have been named to investigate the Habré case. Although there is no formal prosecution yet, Human Rights Watch welcomed the amendment and the naming of the judges. However, the rights organisation reiterated the fact that it has been two years since the African Union mandate was given, and more than eight years since Habré was first indicted in Senegal.
Senegal has indicated that at least $45 million in aid is needed to fund the trial. So far, only Chad's former colonial power, France, has pledged financial and technical assistance. In January 2008, at Senegal's request, European Union experts visited the country to evaluate its financial and technical needs. The experts called on Senegal first to define a prosecution strategy and produce a precise calendar as well as a reasonable budget, none of which has been done so far.
Tags: chad , genocide, hissene habre, senegal, war crimes
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