Authorities in Switzerland have charged former Gambian interior minister, Ousman Sonko, with crimes against humanity after he fled to the European nation to avoid punishment back home.
– Key points to note
Sonko is accused of taking part in violent repression of civilian population in Gambia when he served as minister from 2006 to 2016. Switzerland’s attorney general announced charges against him on Tuesday.
Before becoming minister, Sonko served as commander of Gambia’s national guard and was responsible for the security of former authoritarian leader, Yahya Jammeh, whose government systematically persecuted critics and opponents.
– There is a Nigeria angle
Sonko was minister until September 2016, when he was dismissed and left The Gambia. In its final report published 2021, Gambia’s Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission recommended the prosecution of Sonko for allegedly ordering the torture and execution of opponents of the regime.
The commission also recommended his prosecution for acts of sexual violence allegedly committed in 2005 and 2015. They also accused him of playing a role in the killing of West African migrants, some Nigerians, in 2000 and 2005.
– Learn more
Sonko first for Sweden and then to Switzerland, where he applied for asylum and lived undisturbed in a centre for asylum seekers for several weeks.
He was taken into custody in Switzerland after journalists tracked him down and alerted authorities to his presence.
Swiss investigations into Sonko lasted more than six years.
Sonko “is accused, in his various capacities and positions, of having supported, participated in and failed to prevent systematic and generalized attacks as part of the repression carried out by the Gambian security forces against all opponents of the regime,” the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland said in a statement announcing the charges.”
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