Senegal/Belgium/Chad

Belgium seeks to force Senegal to prosecute Habré

Article published on the 2009-02-20 Latest update 2009-02-20 17:19 TU

Former Chadian President Hissène Habré leaving court in Dakar in November 2005
(Photo: AFP)

Belgium has filed a case against Senegal in the International Court of Justice, the court said on Friday. Brussels is requesting an order from the court to force Senegal to put former Chadian ruler Hissène Habré on trial or to extradite him to Belgium.

Habré fled to Senegal in 1990 after he was toppled from power. Two years later a report accused his government of killing 40,000 Chadians.

The former President was charged in 2000 in Senegal but the Dakar Court of Appeal rejected the case five months later, saying that "crimes against humanity" were not part of the country's criminal law.

"Belgium is saying it's time finally to provide justice to Hissène Habré's victims who've been fighting for 18 years to have their day in court," Reed Brody of New York-based NGO, Human Rights Watch told RFI.

Asked whether Belgium's case would simply prolong the process of bringing Habré to trial, Brody said, "Hopefully, Senegal is not going to wait for that decision."

It has been two and a half years since Senegal agreed to an African Union request that Habré be prosecuted.