{UAH} Habré verdict is a landmark decision

Frank Mujabi,

The African Union has got its own court called the African Court of
Justice, which sits in Abidjan. Its protocol has howver not been
ratified by most of its members, especially those notorious for
violating human rights like Uganda, so the court is virtually
redundant, despite having a budget of more than $50 million per annum.
It also operates like the International Court of Justice (ICJ), in
that a state party must first agree to be sued in the court for any
action to proceed. This is one of the reasons the ICC was created
because both the ICJ and the African Court of Justice proved totally
unable to go after brutal dictators because their own countries would
not agree for prosecutions to go ahead. Under the ICC statute, NO
Permision is required as the court has UNIVERSAL JURISDICTION to try
any offence referred to by the Security Council, or under its own
mandate if a country is unable or unwilling to put offenders on trial.

The Court that tried Hisenne Habre was an Special Ad-Hoc Court, set up
by a Special Resolution of the African Union, which permitted Hisenne
Habre to be tried by a Senegalese court. It is therefore just one-off
and not a permanent court.

It is worth noting that it was possible for the AU to put Hisenne
Habre on trial because he had lost support from his sponsors. Remember
he had been supported by the USA as a stooge against Colonel Gadaffi,
and he then fell out with Gadaffi when the Libyan megalomaniac
declared Chad to be a Federation with Libya. The USA eventually
shifted its support for him, when it wanted the long civil war in the
country to end, when an agreement was made with Gadaffi to end
supporting both sides in the civil war. Hissenne Habre was sent to
exile, arranged by the Americans, to neioghbouring Mauritania, little
did he know he was enterring a trap, like Samuel Doe of Liberia.
Mauritania then quickly deported him to Senegal and so the trial
began, which ahs taken more than 14 years. Hissene Habre's fate just
serves as an example to all African dictators like Kayibanda Museveni
who set themselves up as American puppets and enforcers. Time always
comes when the USA drops them as a hot potato.




Habré verdict is a landmark decision bringing justice for tens of
thousands of victims

Today's judgment convicting former Chadian president Hissène Habré
marks a significant moment for international justice and a huge relief
for the tens of thousands of victims who have waited for this day for
over 25 years, said Amnesty International.

Following a trial which began in July last year, the Extraordinary
African Chambers (EAC) in Dakar sentenced Habré to life imprisonment
after he was found guilty of crimes against humanity, war crimes and
torture committed in Chad between 1982 and 1990. He was found to have
personally committed rapes. The chambers rejected the seizure of his
property frozen during the trial.

"This verdict is a victory for those victims who fought tirelessly to
ensure Hissène Habré could not get away with crimes under
international law. It demonstrates that when there is enough political
will states can work together effectively to end impunity in even the
most entrenched situations," said Gaetan Mootoo, Amnesty International
West Africa researcher.

"It is moments like these that other victims around the world can draw
on in darker times when justice appears beyond reach. It will nourish
them with hope and give them strength to fight for what is right. This
landmark decision should also provide impetus to the African Union or
individual African states to replicate such efforts to deliver justice
to victims in other countries in the continent."

The trial against Habré opened in Senegal on July 20, 2015, and 69
victims, 23 witnesses and 10 expert witnesses testified during the
proceedings. Among other evidence, the prosecution relied upon
research reports from Amnesty International from the 1980s. A former
Amnesty International staff member also testified during the trial as
an expert witness.

The case sets a new benchmark for efforts to end impunity in Africa,
as it is the first universal jurisdiction case on the continent, and
the first time a former African leader has been prosecuted for crimes
under international law before a court in another African country.

The EAC is also due to hold reparations hearings and is mandated to
establish a trust fund for all victims, whether or not they
participated in the proceedings.

"Pressure must continue to be placed on Chad and potentially other
states to investigate and prosecute others accused of committing
serious human rights violations between 1982 and 1990, including
crimes of sexual and gender-based violence, in fair trials without
recourse to the death penalty. In particular, Chad should investigate
mass killings that were committed in September 1984 in the south of
the country," said Mootoo.

Background

Amnesty International has been campaigning since the 1970s in favor of
victims of human rights violations in Chad. The organization advocated
that perpetrators of human rights violations committed during the
Habré regime should be brought to justice. Despite major political
barriers, victims working with civil society groups led an unyielding
national, regional and global campaign which led to the establishment
in August 2012 of the Extraordinary African Chambers (EAC).

Chad's National Commission of Enquiry estimated that 40,000 people may
have died at the hands of Chad's security forces between 1982 and
1990. Government forces committed torture, arbitrary arrests,
extrajudicial executions and enforced disappearances throughout this
period. More than 50,000 letters and cards of Amnesty International
members were found in the archives of the Chadian Directorate of
Documentation and Security.

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