Hissène Habré: 22 Years of Impunity Coming to Theatric End

By George Okore

DAKAR--Friday’s inauguration of a special court in Senegal marks a turning point in the long campaign to bring former Chad President Hissène Habré to justice. 

The court, inaugurated by its administrator Ciré Aly Ba will try Habre of thousands of political killings and systematic torture during his presidency, from 1982 to 1990. He has been living in exile in Senegal for more than 22 years. The pre-trial phase, including an investigation by four Senegalese magistrates, is expected to last 15 months. It will potentially be followed by a trial in 2014.

More than 22 years after fleeing Chad, the former President will finally account for crimes committed while in office – a case expected to provide international legal theater as an African state tries a former head of another state  for crimes against humanity. Habré, 70 is accused of political killings and systematic torture when he ruled Chad. He has been living in exile and under house arrest in Senegal for over 21 years waiting to face justice but the host country has been under intense international pressure to try him. Former President Abdoulaye Wade frustrated Habré’s trial in Senegal citing jurisdiction and funding bottlenecks.

President Macky Sall, elected in March has promised to prosecute Habré in Dakar, with court proceedings expected to begin by the end of the year. In late January 2000, seven citizens from Chad filed a case in Senegal, accusing the former president of torture. But Wade intervened that Senegalese courts had no jurisdiction to try the case, a move denounced by the whole world including United Nations.

After charging that Senegalese courts could not try him, some victims obtained Belgium citizenship and subsequently filed a case against Habre in Brussels.  In September 2005, the Belgian court found Habré guilty and requested his extradition to face trails there. However, Wade controlled judiciary countered that Senegalese courts lacked jurisdiction to honour the extradition request.

Instead, Senegal in July 2006 promised to try him in Dakar instead of extraditing him to Belgium. Subsequent constitutional amendments gave Senegalese courts extraterritorial jurisdiction over the crimes. A year later, African Union stepped in and mandated Senegal to put Habré on trial and adjustments to Senegalese penal code and constitution enhance the possibility of trials in Dakar.

Meanwhile, Habré launched a fresh legal action against Senegal at the increasingly influential ECOWAS Court of Justice, charging that Senegal has violated his rights to a fair trial. Meanwhile, a Chadian court in August 2008 sentenced Habre to death in absentia for allegedly undermining constitutional order, integrity and state security. The ruling was condemned as cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment and that he would be unfair to try him in Chad where he already faces death penalty.

In February 2000, Presiding Demba Kandji indicted Habré for complicity to torture and human right abuses.  Politics took rein as Wade, elected President in March 2000 and appointed one of Habre’s lawyers Madické Niang as legal advisor. Within few months, the case had been frustrated. 

Following Senegal’s inaction, the torture victims, and now Belgian citizens, turned to Belgium judiciary which filed a lawsuit against Senegal in 2009 at The Hague based International Court of Justice (ICJ). On July 20, 2012, the court ruled that Senegal must prosecute without further delay or extradite Habré to Belgium.

The ruling has been described as great victory for victims. “Senegal made history in 1999 as the first country to join International Criminal Court and would again repeat the feat as the first country to prosecute human rights crimes of a foreign leader. The Senegalese government is demonstrating its resolve to fight impunity at the highest levels,” says Alioune Tine, President of Dakar-based African Assembly for the Defense of Human Rights (RADDHO).

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited Senegal on August 1 and promised assistance towards Habré’s prosecution.  Following the assurances, a four day negotiation between Senegal and African Union (AU) finally agreed on August 22, 2012 to from a special tribunal in Dakar to try Habré for war crimes committed while in power.

The deal has been wholesomely accepted by international community including Chad- who’s Justice Minister Abdoulaye Sabour Fadoul describes as important step in the long campaign to bring Habré to justice. The deal signed  by  Senegalese Justice Minister Aminata Toure and AU representative Robert Dossou, sets timetable for the court to be operational by the end of the year. It will have Extraordinary African Chambers to be created inside existing Senegalese court structures to handle investigations, trials and appeals.

The trial and appeals court will each consist of two Senegalese judges and Presided by a judge from another African country. The court will prosecute person (s) most responsible for international crimes committed in Chad between 1982 and 1990, including genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and torture. It is expected, however, that only Habré will be tried before the court.

To ensure that trials are efficient and fast- tracked, prosecutors may pursue the most serious of Habré’s crimes, rather than all the alleged crimes. Prosecutors may also introduce as evidence, previous Belgian and Chadian investigations into Habré’s crimes.

Victims will participate in proceedings as civil parties, represented by legal counsel, and to seek reparations from the court or from a voluntary victims’ fund. Reparations will be available even in cases where victims do not participate in the trials. The court’s statute provides for trial proceedings to be recorded for broadcast in Chad and for public access to the trials.

In November 2010, after years of wrangling, Senegal and donor countries agreed on €8.6 million (US$11.4 million) budget for the trials in Senegal. Commitments came from Chad (2 billion CFA francs or US$3,743,000), European Union (€2 million), Belgium (€1 million), Netherlands (€1 million), AU (US$1 million), Germany (€500,000), France (€300,000) and Luxembourg (€100,000).

Human rights campaigners led by Amnesty International maintain that Senegal had used the finance argument as an excuse to further delay proceedings.  Nearly two years have elapsed since the donors’ initial funding pledges but Senegal is rapidly seeking new funding commitments.  However, Justice Minister Aminata Touré has assured that unlike the previous administration, Sall’s government will not delay the start of proceedings when full funding has been obtained.

Habré is accused prevalent political killings and systematic and his one-party rule witnessed widespread atrocities, including ethnic campaigns. A Chadian Truth Commission formed between December 1990 and May 1992 found that his political police killed over 1,208 people and virtually emptied out Chadian his eight-year rule.

The commission investigated illegal detentions, assassinations, disappearances, torture, and mistreatment of persons. It also probed human rights violation, illicit narcotics trafficking and embezzlement of state funds. The Commission concluded that Habré’s government was responsible for estimated 40,000 political assassinations.

Among the institutions during his regime, Documentation and Security directorate was particularly   found responsible for cruelty, contempt and terrorizing the population. The Commission reported that foreign governments were involved in funding and training the perpetrators. The Commission’s report took on new importance in 2000 and 2001, when Human Rights organizations used it to support efforts to have Habré prosecuted for violating international criminal law.

The Chad conflict has interesting anecdotes. After independence from France in 1960, the country remained at war with itself. Numerous factions led by hugely ambitious politicians and warlords have been fighting each other since 1965. Habré used to lead one of those factions- the Northern Armed Forces (NAF).

With end of civil war, the August 1979 Lagos Accord established a national unity government in Chad. Soon, personal differences between President Goukouni Oueddei and Defense Minister (Habré) limited the government's effectiveness, worsened by perceptions that the President was indecisive puppet of then Libyan leader Muamar Gadhaffi.

In 1981, fighting erupted between adversarial forces loyal to the two leaders. Habré deposed Oueddei in a coup on June 7, 1982, thanks to massive financial, logistics and military support of US, France and Sudan- all sworn enemies of Ghadaffi. Upon becoming president, Habré abolished post of prime minister, ushering in a period of turmoil as Habré began widespread repression including torture and killings.

Files of Habré’s political police, the Direction de la Documentation et de la Sécurité (DDS), discovered by Human Rights Watch in 2001, reveal the names of 1,208 people who were killed or died in detention and 12,321 victims of human rights violations. Interventions by French, Zairian (Congolese) and Libyan forces failed until one of his former generals Idriss Deby Itno overthrew him in December 1990 and became president in February 1991.   Habré fled to neighboring Cameroon while searching for more permanent refuge until another former French colony Senegal came to his aid.