By Omar Bah
Switzerland’s top criminal court yesterday convicted the former interior
Ex-Gambia’s Interior Minister sentenced to 20 years
By Omar Bah
Switzerland’s top criminal court yesterday convicted the former interior minister for crimes against humanity over his role in repression committed by the West Gambian security forces under Yahya Jammeh.
Ousman Sonko, the former interior minister of Gambia from 2006 to 2016 during ex-President Jammeh’s tenure, has been handed a 20-year prison sentence. The trial began in January and was seen by advocacy groups as a chance to secure a conviction under “universal jurisdiction,” enabling the prosecution of grave offenses committed overseas.
The verdict was announced in the Swiss federal criminal court in the southern town of Bellinzona. Benoit Meystre, the legal adviser for TRIAL International, was present at the proceedings and noted that Sonko, who was in the courtroom, displayed minimal reaction when the verdict was translated into English.
Sonko applied for asylum in Switzerland in November 2016 and was arrested two months later. The Swiss attorney general’s office said the indictment against Sonko, filed a year ago, covered alleged crimes during 16 years under Jammeh, whose rule was marked by arbitrary detention, sexual abuse, and extrajudicial killings.
Sonko faced accusations of supporting, participating in, and failing to prevent attacks against opponents in Gambia. The crimes involved killings, torture, rape, and numerous unlawful detentions, according to prosecutors. Reflecting on the verdict, international lawyer Reed Brody commented to ARPS Media: “The conviction of Ousman Sonko, a key figure in Yahya Jammeh’s brutal regime, marks a significant step on the path to justice for Jammeh’s victims. The long arm of the law is reaching Yahya Jammeh’s associates worldwide and hopefully will soon reach Jammeh himself.” Brody went on to say, “Jammeh’s accomplices have been convicted in Germany and now in Switzerland, and another trial is looming in the United States. Most importantly, after many years, the Gambian government is finally making progress towards prosecuting Jammeh, who is currently in exile in Equatorial Guinea.”
Award-winning journalist Madi MK Ceesay, who was arrested under Sonko’s orders and testified in the trial, believes that the verdict will send a solid signal to Jammeh, who is currently in exile in Equatorial Guinea. “The trial shows that justice will always catch up with the perpetrator, no matter what,” Ceesay stated. Sonko was convicted of homicide, torture, and false imprisonment as crimes against humanity, while the rape charges against him were dropped, as reported by Brody on X.
Sonko, a member of the Gambian military since 1988, was named commander of the State Guard in 2003, where he was tasked with overseeing Jammeh’s security, according to Swiss prosecutors. He assumed the role of inspector general of the Gambian police in 2005. Sonko was dismissed as interior minister in September 2016, just a few months before the end of Jammeh’s regime, and he subsequently sought asylum in Europe. It’s important to note that Ousman Sonko should be distinct from the prominent Senegalese politician Ousmane Sonko, who has a slightly different spelling of his first name.
