Gambiaj.com – (BELLINZONA, Switzerland) – Appeal proceedings in the case of former Gambian interior minister Ousman Sonko opened Monday in Bellinzona, Switzerland, nearly two years after he was convicted of crimes against humanity for abuses committed during the rule of former Gambian president Yahya Jammeh.
The appeal before the Swiss Federal Criminal Court (FCC) offers a renewed judicial review of the May 2024 judgment that found Sonko guilty of multiple crimes committed between 2000 and 2016.
The court sentenced him to 20 years in prison, marking one of the most significant applications of universal jurisdiction in Europe against a former senior official.
Sonko, who was arrested in Switzerland in 2017 following a denunciation filed by the Geneva-based organization TRIAL International, became the highest-ranking official ever convicted in Europe under the principle of Universal Jurisdiction, which allows national courts to prosecute serious international crimes regardless of where they were committed.
In its 2024 ruling, the FCC found Sonko responsible for several abuses linked to Jammeh-era repression, including the killing of a perceived political opponent in 2000, torture and illegal detention related to a failed coup plot in March 2006, and the killing of a politician in 2011.
The court also held him liable for the unlawful detention and torture of peaceful demonstrators in 2016, including one killing.
However, the court dismissed all charges related to sexual violence. Judges concluded that some of the alleged acts were barred by statutory limitations, while others were deemed isolated incidents that did not meet the threshold for crimes against humanity.
The current appeal has been filed by multiple parties. Sonko has challenged the judgment in its entirety, while the Office of the Attorney General and ten civil parties are contesting specific aspects of the ruling.
The proceedings are expected to last at least two weeks. Five plaintiffs from The Gambia have traveled to Switzerland to attend the hearings.
“I sincerely hope that this process will bring truth, accountability, and justice,” said plaintiff Ramzia Diab Ghanim, expressing hope that victims’ voices will be heard and that the trial will contribute to healing for those affected by abuses under Jammeh’s rule.
The appeal comes as The Gambia continues efforts to establish a special tribunal to prosecute crimes committed during the Jammeh era.
The Sonko case is part of a wider wave of international prosecutions targeting individuals linked to the former regime, including the conviction in Germany of Bai Lowe and proceedings in the United States against Michael Sang Correa, both former members of the feared “Junglers” death squad.
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