Gambian ex-minister seeks acquittal for crimes against humanity
The defence for ex-Gambian interior minister Ousman Sonko on Wednesday urged a Swiss court to acquit him of crimes against humanity committed under the regime of ex-dictator Yahya Jammeh.
Lawyer Philippe Currat also called on the Federal Criminal Court in the southern city of Bellinzona, to order financial compensation for the years Sonko has spent in detention awaiting trial, Keystone-ATS news agency reported.
Prosecutors wrapped up their case against Sonko on Monday, seeking a life sentence for the 55-year-old accused of being responsible for killings, torture, rape and other sexual crimes.
The trial, which began in January and is due to wrap up on Friday, is taking place under the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows countries to prosecute alleged crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide regardless of where they were committed.
The NGO Trial International says Sonko is the highest-ranking state official ever to be tried in Europe for international crimes under universal jurisdiction.
Sonko has denied any knowledge of the acts he is accused of from 2000 to 2016, including nine counts of crimes against humanity.
Sonko told the trial he had no “operational powers”, angering civilians who filed separate complaints against him.
Lawyers for the victims argued this week there was no doubt he was part of Jammeh’s inner circle from the beginning almost until the end of the dictator’s reign, and fully supported the state’s repressive policies, Trial International reported.
Prosecutors have alleged that Sonko “supported, participated in and failed to prevent systematic and generalised attacks as part of the repression carried out by the Gambian security forces against all opponents of the regime”.
He is also accused of having “deliberately killed, tortured, raped and unlawfully deprived individuals of their liberty”.
Sonko sacked in 2016 after 10 years as a minister, was arrested in Switzerland on January 26, 2017, after requesting asylum.
His lawyer argued Wednesday that the trial should be seen as a bid to pressure Equatorial Guinea, where Jammeh has sought refuge since his fall from power seven years ago, Keystone-ATS said.
Currat suggested his client should receive 200 Swiss francs ($226) for every day he has been in detention since his arrest or 590,000 francs ($666,300) in total, the news agency said.
He also said Sonko should be given 290,000 francs due to allegedly illegal detention conditions, and another 10,000 francs for having been deprived of food for 33 hours in February 2020.
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