In a historic case that will include the testimony of a serial rape victim after a multi-decade wait for justice, Switzerland is scheduled for the trial of a former Gambian minister under toppled tyrant Yahya Jammeh for crimes against humanity today (Monday).
According to Swiss advocacy organization TRIAL International, which brought the case against former interior minister Ousman Sonko, he will be the highest-ranking official to face trial in Europe under the doctrine of universal jurisdiction, which permits the prosecution of serious crimes anywhere, as reported by Reuters.
In a lawsuit that rights advocates believe will guarantee international accountability for the greatest atrocities, nine Gambian plaintiffs will travel to Switzerland for the trial, which is set to take place at the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona from January 8–30.
Sonko, 54, is being tried for the second time in history for crimes against humanity in Switzerland. He is accused of murder, several rapes, and torture between 2000 and 2016. He refutes the accusations.
“It has been a long period of waiting, waiting with anger, anxiety. But I am very optimistic now and I feel so happy. I am smelling justice,” said Madi Ceesay, a 67-year-old plaintiff who says he was detained and tortured under Sonko.
Philippe Currat, the defendant’s attorney, intends to request that the case be dropped by the court, citing issues with the hearings and investigations.
“Since the beginning I have been stupefied by the way this file has been handled,” he told Reuters, saying some of the evidence in the indictment was based on “secret” hearings in Gambia and that interviewees had not been informed of their rights.
inta Jamba is one of the plaintiffs; the indictment states that she was raped by Sonko on several occasions between 2000 and 2002, following his claimed coup attempt and murder of her husband.
According to the accusation, he once held her captive for five days in 2005 while beating and brutally raped her. He financed her two miscarriages after she became pregnant through him.
“Me and my family have been struggling with this for almost 25 years now,” she said in a message sent to Reuters. “Without justice I will never have peace in my life.”
Currat claims he has evidence showing Sonko was out of the country for a significant portion of the time leading up to the rape allegations.
Additionally, he will contend that several of the alleged crimes against humanity—including the charges of rape—occurred prior to the effective date of a pertinent Swiss legislation in 2011 and are therefore inadmissible.
Sonko, 54, was detained in Switzerland at the beginning of 2017 when he was applying for asylum. After Jammeh was forced to flee after losing an election, his 22-year reign of terror came to an end in January 2017.
Sonko may receive a life sentence, which is the harshest punishment imaginable.
Currat claims he received insufficient medical attention, was denied food, and endured inhumane treatment while incarcerated in Switzerland.