December 27, 2014

Ivory Coast Former First lady goes on trial for Election Crimes

Mrs Gbagbo
 Former First Lady of Ivory Coast to start trial December 26, in Abidjan, Simone Gbagbo commenced on Friday.
 
Mrs Gbagbo is being tried for her alleged role in stealing an election which her husband, former President, Laurent Gbagbo lost in 2010 and the post-election violence which followed. The former first lady, who has been under house arrest since 2011, is being charged along with 82 supporters of her husband for “attempting to undermine the security of the state.”
 

 
The trial is being conducted before nine jurors and is expected to last about a month.
“If she is found guilty, she will get 20 years to life because we are talking about a crime against state security,” prosecutor Soungalo Coulibaly stated.
 
The former President lost the elections held in October 2010 to rival, Alassane Ouattara but refused to concede defeat resulting in a civil war which reportedly claimed about 3,000 lives. Gbagbo was eventually chased out of the presidency in April 2011 by rebels and an international military force led by France and was taken into custody along with his wife.
 
Laurent Gbagbo and an associate, Charles Ble Goude are currently imprisoned in the Netherlands and are set to be tried before the International Criminal Court in The Hague for crimes against humanity.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Photo Credit: CNN

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