Justice, interrupted: What the international trial of Hissene Habre left unfinished in Chad
The dictator Hissène Habré was successfully prosecuted and condemned for his horrific crimes in Chad by international courts applying universal jurisdiction. But years later, Chad is still one of the most fragile countries in the world, corruption runs rampant, and the victims of Habré have not been compensated.
What are the lessons learned from Habré’s international trial and what are their implications for building the rule of law locally?
A conversation between:
- Me Delphine Djiraibé, founder of the Public Interest Law Center, prosecutor in the trial of Hissène Habré, and Martin Ennals Award Laureate 2023
- Mr. Reed Brody, author of "To Catch a Dictator", Human Rights Watch advisor and spokesperson
- Me Philippe Currat, human rights lawyer, Chair of the Board of the Martin Ennals Foundation
Moderated by:
- Dr. Annyssa Bellal, Executive Director, Geneva Peacebuilding Platform (GPP) and Senior Researcher, Centre on Conflict, Development and Peacebuilding (CCDP) at the Geneva Graduate Institute
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Me Delphine Djiraibé
Delphine Djiraibé is a renowned human rights lawyer and one of Chad's first female lawyers. She has challenged authorities for 30 years to secure basic rights for Chadians and initiated the prosecution of Chad's former dictator, Hissène Habré. As head of the Public Interest Law Center, she provides legal assistance, trains volunteer paralegals, and fights for women's and girls' rights. She has received several awards, including the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award and the Franco-German Human Rights and the Rule of Law Prize, for her unwavering mission to build the rule of law and offer justice in Chad.
Mr. Reed Brody
Reed Brody worked for 18 years alongside the victims of Chad’s dictator Hissène Habré, an has helped pursue despots such as Augusto Pinochet of Chile, Jean-Claude Duvalier of Haiti, and Yahya Jammeh of Gambia. He has uncovered abuses by US-backed “contras” in Nicaragua, led UN missions in El Salvador and Congo, and exposed Bush administration torture. His latest book, about the Habré case, is “To Catch a Dictator” (Columbia University Press, 2022).
Me Philippe Currat
Philippe Currat is Chairman of the Board of the Martin Ennals Foundation. A Swiss lawyer, he is on the list of counsel admitted to plead before the International Criminal Court. He was a member of the Human Rights Commission of the Geneva Bar Association for ten years and was Secretary General of the International Criminal Bar. He teaches at the University of Lille and participates in numerous international programs to strengthen judicial capacity in the area of international crimes.
Dr. Annyssa Bellal
Annyssa Bellal is an international lawyer with more than 18 years of experience in the area of conflict studies, both at the academic and policy levels, with a particular expertise on the issue of armed non-state actors. Dr Bellal was formerly a Strategic Adviser on International Humanitarian Law and Senior Research Fellow at the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian law and Human Rights. She also worked as a legal adviser for the Swiss NGO Geneva Call, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights as well as the Swiss Department of Foreign Affairs. In 2011, she acted as the Head of the International Humanitarian Customary Law Project at the International Committee of the Red Cross. Dr Bellal holds a PhD (summa cum laude) in Public International Law from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies and an LLM in Philosophy of Law from the University of Grenoble. She also holds a Master of Advanced Studies in International Relations and an MA in Law from the University of Geneva.
organizers
