Conakry: A court in Guinea has sentenced former military president Moussa Dadis Camara to 20 years in prison for crimes against humanity committed during his regime against the opposition.
According to Al Jazeera, the court in Guinea heard the case related to a bloody crackdown on an opposition rally at a stadium in the suburbs of the capital, Conakry, which took place in 2009. After a two-year trial, the court rendered its verdict.
The United Nations investigation commission reported that Camara’s forces killed 156 people and raped 109 women during the crackdown.
The court’s decision included charges of murder, rape, violence, and abduction.
The court also ordered compensation for the victims, ranging from 200 million to 1.5 billion Guinean francs (about $23,000 to $174,000).
Some relatives of the victims praised the court’s decision as justice, while others felt that the sentence was insufficient for the former military officer and president.
One relative, Safiatou Balde, said, “The sentence does not match the crime. Our sisters were raped, our brothers were massacred, and the bodies are still missing.”
Captain Moussa Dadis Camara, who ruled Guinea from December 23, 2008, to January 15, 2010, seized power by declaring martial law immediately following the death of long-time president Lansana Conté.