Ousman Sonko appeared in a Swiss court on Monday to appeal his conviction for crimes against humanity committed under ex-dictator Yahya Jammeh.
Sonko was convicted in May 2024 of homicide, torture, and false imprisonment, becoming the highest-ranking Gambian official ever tried in Europe under the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows prosecution of the most serious crimes regardless of where they were committed.
The Higher Appeals Chamber of the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona heard the appeal, with five of the 10 Gambian plaintiffs present alongside Sonko. The alleged crimes took place between 2000 and 2016, during Sonko’s tenure as interior minister until he was dismissed in 2016.
Sonko’s lawyer, Philippe Currat, argued that many of the alleged acts occurred before Swiss legislation on universal jurisdiction took effect in 2011. “The conditions for criminal prosecution are not met,” he said. Sonko has been in custody for over nine years, according to Currat.
Meanwhile, the plaintiffs and prosecution are also appealing, seeking to extend Sonko’s 20-year sentence to life imprisonment and to include sexual violence, from which he was previously acquitted. TRIAL International legal adviser Benoit Meystre emphasized, “Sexual violence was a tool of repression in the Gambia and that should be taken into account and recognized by the Court as such.”
Reed Brody, a member of the International Commission of Jurists working with Jammeh-era victims, said the case could support efforts in Gambia to hold perpetrators accountable for past crimes.
The hearings are scheduled to continue until at least April 17, with a final appeal possible after the verdict, typically conducted without public hearings.
