The former Guinean dictator Moussa Dadis Camara and his ten co-defendants have been appearing since September 28 before a criminal court in Conakry, which is trying them for murder, rape and acts of torture perpetrated during the repression of a rally of the opposition on September 28, 2009.
A few defendants who were still free were incarcerated in Conakry’s main prison the day before the trial, including Captain Dadis Camara who had returned from exile a few days before the start of the trial.
But this Tuesday, his lawyer, Me Pépé Antoine Lamah, challenged the placement of his client in detention, citing security reasons. He demanded « respect » for Camara, as a former head of state, and his placement under house arrest.
“Whether we like it or not, at some point in Guinea’s history, Captain Moussa Dadis Camara ruled this country; so have a little respect for him. Failing to release him, we must arrange a villa for him,” Lamah asked.
But prosecutor Alghassimou Diallo said that « Dadis Camara is referred to the criminal court like all the others, he will be treated in the same way as the others ».
Camara and ten other former military and government officials are accused of being responsible for the deaths of at least 157 people and the rape of 109 women during an opposition demonstration in Conakry’s stadium. The former Guinean number one says he would plead not guilty.
The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Asad Ahmad Khan, took part in the official opening of the trial. It « is a very important moment, a moment that the people of Guinea have been waiting for a long time, since 2009 », he, among other things, told the press on his arrival in this West African country. .
By OMA Newsletter N° 883 of 05/10/2022
Article published under the direction of Dr. Najib Kettani
The OMA, NGO with an Intercontinental vocation
For the development of cultural exchanges
Valuing human potential
The promotion and consolidation of Africa’s development, and
Inter-African integration
