The former Chadian head of state, Hissène Habré, wants a six-month temporary release for health reasons. Sentenced to life imprisonment since 2017 by an African court in Dakar for crimes against humanity, the former president of the Republic of Chad is expected to be released on Tuesday 13 April 2021. However, his request may run into a major obstacle. The victims of the events for which he is being prosecuted are totally against any release of the one who is presented as a dictator.
Hissène Habré, the former Chadian president, seems no longer able to stand in prison. He applied for provisional release for six months for purely health reasons. Nevertheless, the president of the Senegalese League for Human Rights, Assane Dioma Ndiaye, is convinced that the victims of the regime of the 78-year-old former Chadian head of state will never be in favour of their executioner’s release. “The victims do not understand this singular or discriminatory attention, depending on whether it is Mr.Hissène Habré or the victims. And no one seems to be taking care of them: they are not compensated since the trial, these victims are left behind. You understand, when the person who is considered your executioner, who has been convicted, the African Union doesn’t do anything about it, and Mr. Habré’s lawyers from time to time manage to have these kinds of releases. They can be explained for humanitarian reasons, but this consideration must not be selective: we must also know that there are victims who today die from day to day. And so that’s why the victims never understand and will never tolerate a possible release, even temporary.”
Hissène Habré led Chad from 1982 to 1990. He was ousted from power by the current head of state Idriss Deby Itno. He was convicted of crimes against humanity for carrying out a repression that resulted in the death of 40,000 citizens. He is currently serving a life sentence in Senegal, where he had sought refuge since 1990.
