Since the violently suppressed opposition rallies on October 20 that resulted in almost 50 deaths, 621 people, including 83 minors, have been detained in Chad, according to an announcement made on Friday by the public prosecutor in N’Djamena.
“They discovered minors among the 628 people they interviewed, 83 in total, with one being a youngster under the age of 12. According to our country’s legal precedent, a child under the age of 12 is not legally responsible for anything “According to Justice Minister Mahamat Ahmat Alhabo.
According to N’Djamena prosecutor Moussa Wade Djibrine, about 401 individuals have appeared in court and the remaining 220 before an instructing magistrate.
The number of more over 600 arrests reported by numerous local and international NGOs during these protests against the extension of General Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno’s two-year term in office has never before been publicly acknowledged by the authorities.
Since three weeks ago, local and international NGOs have claimed that “extrajudicial executions” took place in many cities on October 20—the day of the demonstration—and resulted in the deaths of dozens, even hundreds of individuals.
The government has only officially reported “fifty” shooting deaths and more than 300 injuries, including “ten slain” among the law enforcement personnel.
President Déby has consistently maintained that the 20 October protesters were plotting a “insurrection” to overthrow the government. At the beginning of October, a national reconciliation forum, which was boycotted by a significant portion of the opposition and major rebel groups, extended his term in office for two years.
Following the murder of his father, Idriss Déby Itno, who was assassinated by rebels on his way to the front line after 30 years of absolute power in Chad, Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, 38, was named head of state by the military 18 months ago.
The opposition parties’ planned demonstrations to commemorate the day when the occupying military made its inaugural pledge to cede control had been outlawed. Nevertheless, tens of thousands of protesters marched through Chad’s major cities to call for the restoration of civilian rule and denounce what some saw as “France’s interference” in the nation’s internal affairs.
Since the “events” on October 20, “621 persons have been arrested by the security forces and sent” to the “Koro Toro” high-security prison, which is located in the desert about 600 kilometers (360 miles) from the capital.
The magistrate said, “401 people have been referred to a court under the flagrante delicto procedure, and 220 others to an investigative judge.”
He said that 83 of the cases were sent “to juvenile magistrates.” Mr. Wade Djibrine finished by saying that the flagrant offenses “would be judged as quickly as feasible” and offered no further information or comments.
