HRW: The Case Against Hissène Habré

In February 2000, a Senegalese court indicted Chad's exiled former dictator, Hissène Habré, on torture charges and placed him under house arrest. It was the first time that an African had been charged with atrocities by the court of another African country. In March 2001, however, Senegal's Court of Final Appeals ruled that he could not be tried in Senegal for crimes allegedly committed in Chad. The victims are now seeking Habré's extradition to stand trial in Belgium and have also filed a complaint against Senegal with the United Nations Committee against Torture. In the meantime, the case has opened new possibilities for justice in Chad itself.