The historic trial of Ousman Sonko, former senior executive of the Yahya Jammeh dictatorship, began this Monday, January 8 in Switzerland. This trial, made possible thanks to the principle of universal jurisdiction, marks a major step forward in the fight against impunity for crimes against humanity.
Ousman Sonko, who successively served as commander of the presidential guard, inspector general of police and minister of the Interior for a decade under the Jammeh dictatorship, is accused of crimes against humanity, torture, kidnapping and extrajudicial executions . He fled Gambia in 2016 to take refuge in Switzerland, where he was arrested in 2017 and placed in pre-trial detention.
This trial is of great importance because it is the first time that a man occupying such a position of responsibility has been tried in Europe according to the principle of universal jurisdiction. This means that Swiss justice has jurisdiction to judge crimes committed outside its territory, provided that they are particularly serious and cannot be tried in the country where they were committed.
The accusations against Ousman Sonko are particularly serious, and according to lawyer Reed Brody of the International Commission of Jurists, he was “a pillar of the regime” of Jammeh, responsible for numerous crimes. This trial therefore offers a unique opportunity to shed light on the atrocities committed during the dictatorship and to provide justice to the victims.
The opening of the trial was marked by a confrontation between the plaintiffs’ lawyers and the defense. The victims’ lawyers argued for acts of sexual violence to also be included, particularly electrical torture inflicted on the genitals. They also requested that aggravating circumstances be taken into account given the number of victims and the seriousness of the crimes.
For his part, the defense lawyer challenged the jurisdiction of the court for crimes committed before a reform of the Swiss penal code in 2011. He also requested the withdrawal of certain testimonies and evidence, which he considers inadmissible.
This trial arouses a lot of emotion among survivors of the atrocities committed under the Jammeh dictatorship. Madi Ceesay, journalist arrested and tortured during the period when Ousman Sonko was inspector general of police, expresses his hope of finally finding justice. “I have waited a long time for this day. I am filled with anger and pain. I hope that the judges can ease my pain. I am waiting for the truth to be heard and justice to be done,” he said. .
Ousman Sonko’s trial is expected to last at least three weeks and could mark a turning point in Gambian justice, where no crime committed under the Jammeh dictatorship has yet been tried. It also illustrates the importance of the principle of universal jurisdiction in the fight against impunity for crimes against humanity and offers a ray of hope for all victims who have waited too long for justice to be done to them.