A former president of Chad, Hissene Habre has been sentenced to life imprisonment.
Hissene Habre was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Extraordinary African Chambers set up by Senegal.
Habre, whose trial for crimes against humanity took place in Senegal’s capital, Dakar, was sentenced on Monday, May 30
Habre was found guilty of crimes against humanity, rape and sexual slavery.
His wife, Fatim Raymonde Habre described the trial as unfair, saying, “a trial that is not worthy of the rule of law. There were no defence witnesses and no investigation. And today it was so miserable when I heard the judge speaking. I did not see a solid legal argument worthy of justice.”
It marks the first time that the court created by the African Union has tried a former leader for human rights abuses.
He was president from 1982 to 1990, and fled to Senegal when he was overthrown. It’s been 11 years since a court in Belgium issued a warrant for him and 26 years since he fled Chad.
Leave a Reply