Case of Chad Ex-Dictator at the World Court
THE HAGUE, Netherland, May 28, 2009/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague will rule at 10 a.m. on May 28, 2009, on Belgium’s application for a court order to prevent the former dictator of Chad, Hissène Habré, from leaving Senegal. He is wanted on charges of crimes against humanity and torture during his brutal rule, from 1982 to 1990.
Belgium has filed suit at the court to force Senegal either to prosecute Habré itself or to extradite him to Belgium. That case is likely to take years to resolve. Hearings were held from April 6 to 8 on Belgium’s request for an interim order to bar Habré from leaving Senegal pending the court’s final judgment on the merits. During those hearings, Senegal gave a solemn undertaking to the court that it would not permit Habré to leave Senegal pending the ICJ’s final ruling.
Habré was indicted in Senegal in 2000, but its courts ruled that he could not be tried there. His victims then turned to Belgium, which had a “universal jurisdiction” law allowing it to prosecute serious foreign crimes. After a four-year investigation, in September 2005 a Belgian judge charged Habré with crimes against humanity, war crimes, and torture committed during his rule, and requested his extradition.
Senegal then turned to the African Union for advice. In July 2006, the AU called on Senegal to prosecute Habré “in the name of Africa,” and President Abdoulaye Wade accepted the mandate. But two-and-a-half years later, Senegal has refused to act until it receives €27 million from the international community for all the costs of the trial, and Wade has said that if Senegal does not receive the funding he would allow Habré to leave Senegal. In the face of Senegal’s inaction and threats, Belgium took the case to the ICJ.
Reed Brody of Human Rights Watch, who has worked with Hissène Habré’s victims for 10 years, will be in The Hague and will be available for comment.
SOURCE
Human Right Watch (HRW)
