Amnesty International Report 2017/18

120

Amnesty International Report 2017/18

Sangaris soldiers and five soldiers of the 

African-led International Support Mission to 

the Central African Republic (MISCA), AU 

troops, and peacekeepers, were allegedly 

involved. The Prosecutor’s decision was that 

the victims’ testimonies did not sufficiently 

establish the facts.

REFUGEES AND INTERNALLY 

DISPLACED PEOPLE

The number of people seeking refuge in 

neighbouring countries increased due to an 

escalation of violence in April and May. By 

the end of the year, at least 538,000 people 

had fled the country for neighbouring 

countries Chad, Cameroon, DRC and 

Republic of the Congo; while 601,000 were 

internally displaced, living in poor conditions 

in makeshift camps with inadequate access 

to food, water, health care and sanitation.

IMPUNITY

Many suspected perpetrators of human rights 

abuses and violations, including armed 

groups and security forces, were not 

investigated or tried. Impunity was 

exacerbated by the collapse of the national 

justice system and its slow reconstruction.

On 26 February, MINUSCA arrested six 

FPRC and MPC members. Central African 

authorities detained them from 1 March and 

opened investigations. Suspects had not 

been brought to trial by the end of the year.

Between November and December, eight 

Anti-balaka members were sentenced in four 

cases, in a court in the western town of 

Bouar, to up to 20 years’ imprisonment for 

crimes including criminal association, 

unlawful possession of homemade arms, 

murder and theft. Others were sentenced in 

their absence.

The Central African authorities failed to 

implement an asset freeze which was 

extended by the UN Security Council on 27 

January until 31 January 2018 along with an 

arms embargo and travel ban. Several listed 

individuals continued to collect their state 

salaries.

Between April and December, the US 

imposed financial sanctions including against 

Abdoulaye Hissène, a leading FPRC member, 

and Maxime Mokom, an Anti-balaka leader. 

In June, Chad announced that it had frozen 

Abdoulaye Hissène’s assets and banned him 

from crossing the Chadian borders.

INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE

Progress was made in operationalizing the 

Special Criminal Court (SCC) which will try 

individuals suspected of serious human 

rights violations and crimes under 

international law committed since 2003. The 

SCC Special Prosecutor took office in May 

after which five national magistrates and two 

international magistrates were nominated, 

and a committee to select judicial police 

officers was created.

The ICC investigations on the “Central 

African Republic II situation” continued but 

no arrest warrants were issued. In March, the 

ICC increased Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo’s 

18-year prison sentence to 19 years after he 

and his legal team were convicted of 

attempting to bribe witnesses in 2016.

NATURAL RESOURCES

On 20 July, the General Court of the 

European Union upheld the asset freeze 

against the Belgium-based diamond 

companies BADICA and KARDIAM, which 

had procured diamonds from the Central 

African Republic despite a ban.

RIGHT TO AN ADEQUATE STANDARD 

OF LIVING

The UN reported that nearly half the 

population (2.4 million) needed humanitarian 

assistance, and 1.4 million were food 

insecure.

The health system collapsed due to the 

conflict and the population depended almost 

entirely on humanitarian organizations for 

basic services. Escalating violence led 

humanitarian organizations to temporarily 

withdraw staff from cities and villages.

The UN said that about a third of the 

population had access to safe drinking water 

and adequate sanitation facilities.

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Amnesty International Report 2017/18

121

CHAD

Republic of Chad

Head of state: Idriss Déby Itno

Head of government: Albert Pahimi Padacké

The armed group Boko Haram continued to 

commit abuses around Lake Chad. Chadian 

authorities repeatedly banned peaceful 

assemblies and arrested and prosecuted 

human rights defenders, activists and 

journalists, some of whom became 

prisoners of conscience. The right to 

freedom of association was violated with 

unlawful restrictions on the right to organize 

freely, including the criminalization of 

certain citizens’ associations. More than 

408,000 refugees continued to live in dire 

conditions in camps including in Baga Sola.

BACKGROUND

Revisions to the Criminal Code were 

promulgated by President Déby, repealing 

the death penalty except for “terrorism”, and 

increasing the minimum age for marriage to 

18 years.

New powers, including the power to arrest, 

were provided to the National Security 

Agency (ANS).

A severe economic crisis, following a sharp 

drop in the price of petrol in recent years, led 

to austerity measures, public discontent and 

strikes in sectors including health, education 

and justice.

ABUSES BY ARMED GROUPS

The armed group Boko Haram continued to 

kill, abduct and injure civilians, and to 

destroy property.

On 5 May, Boko Haram members killed at 

least four civilians and burned 50 houses in 

Kaiga Kindjiria. On the night of 25 May, a 

Boko Haram attack on Kirnatchoulma village, 

in the west of Kaiga Kinjiria, resulted in at 

least three people being killed and three 

wounded. On 26 and 27 May, Boko Haram 

carried out several attacks on the villages of 

Konguia, Wangui and Kagrerom, in the area 

of Tchoukoutalia.

On 30 May a woman was abducted by Boko 

Haram about 4km from Kaiga Kindjiria. 

Similar attacks were reported in May and 

June in other areas including Bodou-Doloum 

in the Baga Sola sub-prefecture, which 

resulted in the killing of three people and the 

abduction of three others.

FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY

During the year, the authorities banned at 

least six peaceful assemblies, and those 

organizing and participating in protests were 

arrested.

On 6 and 15 April respectively, Nadjo Kaina 

and Bertrand Solloh, leaders of the citizen 

movement IYINA (“We are tired”), were 

arrested by ANS agents for calling on citizens 

to wear red on the anniversary of the 2016 

presidential election as a protest against 

corruption and impunity. They were detained 

by the ANS without access to their families or 

lawyers, before being handed over to the 

judicial police. They were charged with 

attempted conspiracy and organizing an 

unauthorized gathering and given a six-

month suspended sentence. The two men 

reported being tortured while in detention, 

including by being suffocated with plastic 

bags containing chili.

On 12 April, Dingamnayal Nely Versinis, 

president of the organization Collectif 

Tchadien Contre la Vie Chère, was arrested 

by ANS agents at the city hall in the capital, 

N’Djamena. He had called on traders at the 

N’Djamena Millet Market to strike in protest 

at an increase in market fees. He was 

detained without access to his family or 

lawyer and charged with fraud and using a 

false identity, before being released on 27 

April by the Public Prosecutor on the grounds 

that he had committed no offence.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Certain social movements and civil society 

platforms were banned and the right to strike 

was restricted in contravention of 

international law.

The citizens’ movement IYINA remained 

banned and, on 6 January, the Minister of 

Territorial Administration banned the activities 

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