Sonko case: How a Swiss court failed survivors of sexual violence in The Gambia, and worldwide

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</header> <main id="internal" class="single-latest"> <div class="container main-wrapper"> <div class="container container-breadcrumbs container-1200"><div class="row"><div class="col-xs-12"><ul id="breadcrumbs" class="breadcrumbs"><li class="item-home"><a class="bread-link bread-home" href="https://trialinternational.org" title="Home">Home</a></li><li class="separator separator-home"> &rsaquo; </li><li class="item-cat item-custom-post-type-latest"><a class="bread-cat bread-custom-post-type-latest" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/" title="Latest">Latest</a></li><li class="separator"> &rsaquo; </li><li class="item-cat item-custom-post-type-latest"><a class="bread-cat bread-custom-post-type-latest" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/opinions/" title="Opinions">Opinions</a></li><li class="separator"> &rsaquo; </li><li class="item-current item-28405"><strong class="bread-current bread-28405" title="Sonko case: How a Swiss court failed survivors of sexual violence in The Gambia, and worldwide">Sonko case: How a Swiss court failed survivors of sexual violence in The Gambia, and worldwide</strong></li></ul></div></div></div> <div class="row content-row"> <div class="col-md-12 text-xs-right social-sharing"> <span class="tri-share-icon"> Share This: <i class="fa fa-share-alt" aria-hidden="true"></i> </span> <div class="hidden addthis_custom_sharing"></div> </div> <div class="the-content col-md-9"> <h1 class="latest-title orange text-uppercase nospacebelow"> Sonko case: How a Swiss court failed survivors of sexual violence in The Gambia, and worldwide </h1> <div class="sm-date orange">17.06.2024 ( <strong>Last modified:</strong> 14.06.2024 ) </div> <div class="clr20"></div> <div class="latest-body"> <p><em>Commentary written by activists Fatou Baldeh, CEO of Women in Liberation & Leadership (WILL); Nana-Jo Ndow, founder and executive director of African Network against Extrajudicial Killings and Enforced Disappearances (ANEKED); Sirra Ndow, country director at ANEKED; Fatoumatta Sandeng, Founder & CEO – Solo Sandeng Foundation; and Marion Volkmann-Brandau, human rights lawyer. <a href="https://therepublic.gm/sonko-case-how-a-swiss-court-failed-survivors-of-sexual-violence-in-the-gambia-and-worldwide/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR1PE3u66NjgmBb4yNtgCrf9KBBYwxFZ1-v975XysDk4VXcY0A3Bk4cdXwU_aem_AfVRAFHZlbLIc8unZkYbdT-ahN-Jp6AbK9sejlfu0ywZFiZdc_H_lGODzT2jAz3nl2gxhEmFXNc-X4-AsL-hAVRG" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Published in the Gambian Newspaper The Republic on 28 May 2024</a>.</em></p> <p><a href="https://therepublic.gm/sonko-case-how-a-swiss-court-failed-survivors-of-sexual-violence-in-the-gambia-and-worldwide/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR1PE3u66NjgmBb4yNtgCrf9KBBYwxFZ1-v975XysDk4VXcY0A3Bk4cdXwU_aem_AfVRAFHZlbLIc8unZkYbdT-ahN-Jp6AbK9sejlfu0ywZFiZdc_H_lGODzT2jAz3nl2gxhEmFXNc-X4-AsL-hAVRG"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-28406 size-full" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Illustration-article_The-Republic.webp" alt="Illustration article_Sonko case_The Republic" width="1280" height="1280" srcset="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Illustration-article_The-Republic.webp 1280w, https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Illustration-article_The-Republic-300x300.webp 300w, https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Illustration-article_The-Republic-1024x1024.webp 1024w, https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Illustration-article_The-Republic-150x150.webp 150w, https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Illustration-article_The-Republic-768x768.webp 768w, https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Illustration-article_The-Republic-210x210.webp 210w, https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Illustration-article_The-Republic-600x600.webp 600w" sizes="(max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px" /></a></p> <p>On the May 15, 2024 a court in Switzerland found <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/08/world/europe/gambia-switzerland-ousman-sonko.html">Ousman Sonko</a>, long term interior minister in The Gambia under the Jammeh regime, guilty of multiple counts of intentional homicide, torture and false imprisonment that were committed, as “part of a systematic attack on the civilian population” of the country. He is the highest ranking foreign official ever convicted by an European court.</p> <p>While Sonko’s conviction marks another milestone in the pursuit of justice for victims of human rights violations in The Gambia and globally, it is also disappointing for organisations and individuals working closely with and for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence. Indeed, while Binta Jamba bravely testified that Ousman Sonko raped and tortured her for years, after having murdered her husband, the charges were dropped because the court considered it to be an “individual crime” outside its jurisdiction.</p> <p>The decision disregards and distorts the cruel reality experienced by women and girls during the 22 years of the Jammeh regime: far from being a private matter, sexual violence by state officials was a criminal enterprise using state resources and means at their disposal. We are therefore alarmed that the court did not rule on the charge of rape despite it being as systematic as other crimes that Sonko has been found guilty of.</p> <p>Since the historical neglect of sexualized and gender-based violence during Nuremberg and Tokyo trials, significant progress has been made in both the statutes and jurisprudence of international criminal tribunals concerning these crimes. Yet, time and time again, national courts applying the principle of universal jurisdiction as well as international ones, have decontextualised sexual violence from the broader pattern of violence. There is a tendency to view rape as ‘isolated,’ often because justice actors misinterpret it as a private or opportunistic crime (‘sex without consent’), when in fact it is a tool used by repressive regimes just as torture and killings.</p> <p>Sexualised torture, rape and exploitation were common feature of the Jammeh regime and were perpetrated by many senior men, <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/06/26/gambia-women-accuse-ex-president-sexual-violence">including the president himself</a>. Several survivors and witnesses who spoke before the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) provided detailed accounts of how state officials, while acting in their official capacity, sexually assaulted women on many occasions. For example, sexual violence in detention was common as early as 1995 and affected women as well as men. What these testimonies revealed is certainly just the top of a horrific iceberg.</p> <p>Over the two years of its existence, the TRRC heard prominent enablers of the past regime and confronted them with many of the allegations made against them. However, they were never asked about their implication in sexual and gender-based violence. As a matter of fact, not once were witnesses from the security sector asked publicly about their knowledge of, or participation in, such crimes.</p> <p>And neither the TRRC nor the Swiss Court seemed to have investigated what could have well been a pattern of sequestration and rape by Ousman Sonko. When Binta Jamba <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/61636787c8ab91390c464c23/t/616376162bdbd16f2f3ec087/1633908255406/TRRC_09.pdf">testified</a> before the TRRC about her ordeal, she mentioned that on two occasions she was held captive in a house where she was raped and beaten by Sonko. The soldier who freed her from the room, told her that his “boss brought several other women here”. Who are these other women? And could Sonko really have had them guarded by a soldier if he was not in a position of power?</p> <p>Sexual violence committed by officials is not a “private matter”. If transitional justice mechanisms, such as truth commissions and courts, fail to adequately investigate sexual and gender-based violence, nothing will change for the many survivors and perpetrators will continue to enjoy the impunity they cherish.</p> <p>As The Gambia is in the process of setting up an Hybrid Court to prosecute the many crimes committed under the Jammeh regime, we call on the national and foreign jurisdictions to write history by fully and truthfully investigating and prosecuting sexual and gender-based violence at all levels. Only then will survivors feel that justice was served, for all.</p> <p><a href="https://therepublic.gm/sonko-case-how-a-swiss-court-failed-survivors-of-sexual-violence-in-the-gambia-and-worldwide/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR1PE3u66NjgmBb4yNtgCrf9KBBYwxFZ1-v975XysDk4VXcY0A3Bk4cdXwU_aem_AfVRAFHZlbLIc8unZkYbdT-ahN-Jp6AbK9sejlfu0ywZFiZdc_H_lGODzT2jAz3nl2gxhEmFXNc-X4-AsL-hAVRG" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Originally published in the Gambian newspaper The Republic</em></a>.</p> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-3 right-sidebar "> <div class="fixed-content"> <div class="subscribe"> <div class="title orange">Sign up to our newsletter </div> <form target="_blank" class="sidebar-subscribe-form form-inline" method="get" action="/newsletter"> <input type="email" name="subscribe_email" placeholder="Email" class="form-control"> <button type="submit" class="btn text-uppercase">Submit</button> </form> </div> <div class="donate"> <a class="donate-button" target="_blank" title="Donate_Lien" 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human rights violations... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/making-justice-work-civil-society-unites-in-the-global-fight-against-impunity/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/making-justice-work-civil-society-unites-in-the-global-fight-against-impunity/"><img src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Guatemala-City-21-June-2019-National-Day-of-the-Disappeared-achi-women-cheering-2-1024x724.jpg" alt="Featured Image" class="img-fluid" /></a> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/news-releases/">News releases</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/historic-conviction-in-germany-of-a-former-member-of-a-gambian-death-squad-for-crimes-against-humanity/">Historic conviction in Germany of a former member of a Gambian death squad for crimes a...</a> </h3> <small>14.06.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/countries-post/gambia/">The Gambia</a> </div> <div class="summary"> (Geneva, 30 November 2023) - Bai Lowe, a former member of the paramilitary unit known as the "Junglers", created by form... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/historic-conviction-in-germany-of-a-former-member-of-a-gambian-death-squad-for-crimes-against-humanity/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/historic-conviction-in-germany-of-a-former-member-of-a-gambian-death-squad-for-crimes-against-humanity/"><img src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Banner-2-DONALD-verdict_artice-et-home-1024x341.png" alt="Featured Image" class="img-fluid" /></a> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="carousel-item "> <div class="container container-1200"> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/news-releases/">News releases</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/shining-verdict-in-the-kokodikoko-case-drc/">Shining verdict in the Kokodikoko case (DRC)</a> </h3> <small>05.06.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/countries-post/democratic-republic-of-the-congo/">Democratic Republic of the Congo</a> </div> <div class="summary"> Three former militiamen, including the infamous warlord Kokodikoko, have been condemned for crimes against humanity. The... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/shining-verdict-in-the-kokodikoko-case-drc/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/shining-verdict-in-the-kokodikoko-case-drc/"><img src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Procès-Kokodikoko-cTRIAL-InternationaAmani-featured.jpg" alt="Featured Image" class="img-fluid" /></a> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/news/">News</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/the-ousman-sonko-case-a-historic-conviction-yet-a-missed-opportunity-to-recognize-sexual-violence-as-a-weapon-of-repression/">Sonko case: a historic conviction, yet a missed opportunity to recognize sexual violenc...</a> </h3> <small>05.06.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/countries-post/switzerland/">Switzerland</a> </div> <div class="summary"> The conviction of former Gambian Interior Minister Ousman Sonko in Switzerland for crimes against humanity on 15 May 202... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/the-ousman-sonko-case-a-historic-conviction-yet-a-missed-opportunity-to-recognize-sexual-violence-as-a-weapon-of-repression/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/news-releases/">News releases</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/gambian-former-minister-of-interior-ousman-sonko-convicted-of-crimes-against-humanity-in-historic-swiss-trial/">Gambian former Minister of Interior Ousman Sonko sentenced to 20 years in prison for cr...</a> </h3> <small>16.05.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/countries-post/gambia/">The Gambia</a> </div> <div class="summary"> (Geneva, 15 May 2024) – Ousman Sonko, Gambian former Minister of Interior, was convicted today of crimes against humanit... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/gambian-former-minister-of-interior-ousman-sonko-convicted-of-crimes-against-humanity-in-historic-swiss-trial/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/gambian-former-minister-of-interior-ousman-sonko-convicted-of-crimes-against-humanity-in-historic-swiss-trial/"><img src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/sonko_guilty-1024x535.png" alt="Featured Image" class="img-fluid" /></a> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/news/">News</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/universal-jurisdiction-annual-review-highlights-in-2023/">Universal Jurisdiction Annual Review: Highlights in 2023</a> </h3> <small>16.04.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/countries-post/argentina/">Argentina</a> </div> <div class="summary"> TRIAL International, in collaboration with Civitas Maxima, the Center for Justice and Accountability (CJA), the European... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/universal-jurisdiction-annual-review-highlights-in-2023/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/universal-jurisdiction-annual-review-highlights-in-2023/"><img src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/UJAR-2024_banner_FB-1024x450.png" alt="Featured Image" class="img-fluid" /></a> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="carousel-item "> <div class="container container-1200"> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/">Reports and publications</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/27939/">Recommendations for the investigation and prosecution of international crimes resulting...</a> </h3> <small>21.03.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/countries-post/ukraine/">Ukraine</a> </div> <div class="summary"> TRIAL International contributed to the ‘An Environmental Compact for Ukraine’ report titled ‘A Green Future: Recommendat... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/27939/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/news/">News</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/questions-and-answers-on-on-first-german-trial-for-serious-crimes-committed-in-the-gambia/">Questions and Answers on first German trial for serious crimes committed in The Gambia</a> </h3> <small>28.02.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/countries-post/gambia/">The Gambia</a> </div> <div class="summary"> Who is Bai L. and what are the charges against him? Bai L. is a 48-year-old Gambian citizen who is alleged to... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/questions-and-answers-on-on-first-german-trial-for-serious-crimes-committed-in-the-gambia/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/news/">News</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/rifaat-al-assad-case/">Rifaat Al-Assad case</a> </h3> <small>23.02.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/countries-post/syria/">Syria</a> </div> <div class="summary"> Rifaat Al-Assad is a career military man and a Syrian politician. He is the younger brother of the former president of S... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/rifaat-al-assad-case/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/rifaat-al-assad-case/"><img src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/249335_105229582899626_2079101_n.jpg" alt="Featured Image" class="img-fluid" /></a> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/">Reports and publications</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/punishing-wartime-sexual-violence/">Video: punishing wartime sexual violence</a> </h3> <small>22.02.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/countries-post/bosnia-herzegovina/">Bosnia & Herzegovina</a> </div> <div class="summary"> Olivera Simić is an Associate Professor at the Griffith Law School in Brisbane, Australia and co-author of "Punishing Wa... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/punishing-wartime-sexual-violence/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/punishing-wartime-sexual-violence/"><img src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/BiH_oliveira--1024x576.png" alt="Featured Image" class="img-fluid" /></a> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="container arrows-container"> <a class="arrow-left" href="#latest-carousel" role="button" data-slide="prev"> <i class="slide-prev fa fa-chevron-left"></i> </a> <a class="arrow-right" href="#latest-carousel" role="button" data-slide="next"> <i class="slide-next fa fa-chevron-right"></i> </a> </div> </div> <div class="clearfix"></div> <div 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Sonko case: How a Swiss court failed survivors of sexual violence in The Gambia, and worldwide - TRIAL International