Chad: Bringing Another African Dictator to Justice

by: D. Pandian

Hissene Habré held the position of President of Chad from 1982 to 1990.  He is currently being faced with charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and torture related to his time in power.

Habré was born to ethnic Toubou herders.  Due to his excellence in academics, Habré was noticed by a French military commander who arranged for Habré to study in France.  On returning to Chad, Habré was sent to persuade two rebel chiefs to lay down their arms, but in a turn of events ended up joining them. During his time as a major rebel group leader Habré helped to orchestrate a hostage situation in 1974.  Among the hostages was Francoise Claustre, a French ethnologist and the wife of a highly ranked French official.  Despite his involvement in this hostage crisis, the French government supported his seizing power from the elected President in 1982.

Habré’s seizure of power came at a time when Libyan forces, lead by Colonel Qaddafi, were attempting to take over northern Chad.  Through the extensive financial and technical assistance of CIA and French government, Habré pushed back Libyan forces by 1983.

It was also during this time that the gross abuse of human rights began under Habré.  Ethnic groups seen as a opposed to Habré were systematically targeted during his time in power: the Sara in 1984, the Hadjerai in 1987, and Chadian Arabs and the Zaghawa in 1989-90.

After being removed from power in 1990, Habré fled to Senegal.  A Truth Commission organized in 1992 estimated that Habré’s regime had carried out 40,000 politically motivated murders and 200,000 cases of torture in the eight years he was in power.  Many of these incidents were orchestrated by Habré’s political police force, the Documentation and Security Directorate (DDS).  This group answered directly to Habré and all directors of the organization came from Habré’s ethnic group.  Part of the case against Habré has been formed by the extensive documentation of activities left by this organization.

Survivors of torture under Habré’s regime have been trying to bring him to justice ever since he fled the country in 1990.  Through cooperation with Human Rights Watch, survivors built a case against Habré that included the accounts of killings and tortures of hundreds.  Efforts to bring Habré to justice were thwarted for a long time.  Initially, a Senegalese court refused to put Habré on trial claiming a lack of jurisdiction.  Due to mounting pressure, the Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade gave Habré a month to leave the Senegal; however, due to the fear that Habré might flee to a country where he would be safe from prosecution, the UN convinced Wade to prevent Habré from leaving its territory at all.

Victims of Habré’s regime managed to lodge a complaint against Habré in Belgium courts, under its universal law allowing jurisdiction over those accused of human rights abuses wherever they are committed.  It was at this point that African leaders decided handle Habré’s prosecution within Africa.  In July 2006, a panel of the African Union recommended that Habré be tried in Senegal, Chad or another African nation that has adopted the international Convention Against Torture, rather than in Belgium.  The AU then decided that Senegal should serve as the location of Habré’s trial.  In order that jurisdiction would be properly established, the Senegalese National Assembly adopted a law that permits the country to prosecute cases of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and torture, even where they are committed outside of Senegal on January 31, 2007.  Though these are immense steps towards trying Habré, it is predicted that Habré’s trial will only take place in 2009 due to financial and logistical details. 

Sources:

BBC - Profile: Chad's Hissene Habre - 3 July 2006

Economist.com - How the Mighty are Falling - 5 July 2007

Human Rights Watch - The Case Against Hissène Habré, an "African Pinochet"

Amnesty International - Chad: The Habré Legacy - 16 October 2001

Jurist - Trying Habré in Senegal: An African Solution to an African Problem? - 6 July 2006

Trial Watch - Hissene Habré - 13 July 2007