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Chad ex-leader seeks to annul court verdict for war crimes
Former Chad President Hissene Habre (R) raises his fist in the air as he leaves a court in Dakar escorted by a Senegalese policeman, November 25, 2005. PHOTO BY REUTERS/Aliou Mbaye
09/01/2017
DAKAR (Reuters) - Former Chadian leader Hissene Habre's lawyers on Monday sought to annul his conviction for war crimes and crimes against humanity, citing irregularities, in the first day of their appeal against the landmark verdict.
Habre was sentenced to life imprisonment in May for ordering killings and torture during his eight-year rule as president of Chad, which ended in 1990. His trial and conviction in Senegal was widely hailed as a moment of hope for African justice.
But Habre's defence lawyers on Monday asked for a new trial, arguing that the composition of the jury and other irregularities violated Habre's rights.
"The decisions must be annulled and invalidated," said Habre's lawyer Mounir Ballal. "I am not proud of the conditions in which the accused was tried."
One of the judges did not have the 10-year experience needed to sit on the special tribunal, set up by Senegal and the African Union, defence lawyers said. They say this invalidates the outcome.
However, American lawyer Reed Brody, who has worked with Habre's victims for 18 years and said the chances of overturning the conviction are very slim.
"I think the defence is grasping at straws," he said.
Habre, who fled to Senegal after being ousted in a coup, was not present for the appeal. The court is expected to give a final decision in April that cannot be reversed.
(Reporting by Diadie Ba; Writing by Nellie Peyton and Emma Farge)
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