By: Patience Mama Loum
Following the verdict of Ousman Sonko, which found him guilty to which he was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment, the Swiss Criminal Chamber has made requests for Sonko to pay compensations to the victims (private claimants) that testified against him during the opening trial in January.
This will serve to compensate for the pain and suffering they sustained, said the court.
According to the court, the money that was seized from Ousman Sonko and deposited to the Office of the Attorney General has been forfeited and will be used to compensate the private claimants to “cover their civil claims”.
In the same vein, Sonko will not be granted damages nor compensation for pain and suffering. Sonko’s request for an investigation into the conditions of his detention and to establish its unlawfulness was also dismissed.
The court has also dismissed the rape charges against Sonko, involving the widow of the deceased State Guard Almamo Manneh.
“In our context, there is a culture of silence on SGBV because of the risk of stigmatization. So,when a woman is strong enough to report what she went through, she should be supported. But these cases are not easy to address by a court,” says Didier Gbery, ICTJ Head of Office in TheGambia.
The Criminal Chamber, however, stated that it does not have criminal jurisdiction and does not find this to be a serious case of crimes against humanity, although it does not see it as a less serious case.
“I hope this case encourages authorities to prosecute allegations of SGBV, believe the victims, and develop prosecutorial strategies that can support the cases while protecting the victims,” he added.
Ousman Sonko has been convicted of multiple counts of intentional homicide, torture, and false imprisonment, all of which fall under crimes against humanity under universal jurisdiction, as part of a systematic attack against the civilian population.
According to women’s rights activist and founder of Women in Liberation and Leadership (WILL), Fatou Baldeh (MBE), “Universal Jurisdiction has “really set the tone for us”.
“We have seen perpetrators being held accountable and I hope it inspires The Gambia to hold to account, especially perpetrators, who are working freely in our country,” she stated
“Most importantly, I hope this verdict gives victims of the Jammeh era the hope that justice will be served and that they will live to see those who committed crimes against them held responsible for what they did because as we know, many of these victims are dying and the people, who are alive, are losing hope. So, I really hope that this gives hope to victims that they will see justice.”
Sonko will serve 20 years imprisonment, sevenof which he has already served, meaning he will serve the remaining 13 years after which, he will be expelled from Switzerland for a period of 12 years.
“The long arm of the law is catching up with Yahya Jammeh’s accomplices all around the world, and hopefully will soon catch up with Jammeh himself.
“Jammeh’s henchmen have been convicted in Germany and now in Switzerland and another trial is approaching in the United States. Most importantly, the Gambia government, after many years, is finally moving towards the prosecution of Jammeh himself now in Equatorial Guinea,”said Reed Brody, International Human Rights Lawyer.
