Ivory Coast: International Court Wants to Try Ex-President’s Wife
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Version 0 of 1. The International Criminal Court on Thursday ordered Ivory Coast to hand over the country’s former first lady, Simone Gbagbo, to face charges of crimes against humanity, including murder, rape and persecution. Her husband, former President Laurent Gbagbo, has already spent three years in the court’s prison in The Hague on similar charges. His trial is scheduled to start in six months. Also on Thursday, the judges ordered a third member of Mr. Gbagbo’s inner circle, Charles Blé Goudé, to stand trial. He is also in prison in The Hague. Ivory Coast has insisted that it wants to try Ms. Gbagbo at home, but the international judges said that the government had not taken sufficient steps to prosecute her. She has been under house arrest. The three are accused of conspiring to organize acts of violence after Mr. Gbagbo lost the 2010 election and refused to step down. About 3,000 people died in a brief civil war after the election. International prosecutors say they are still investigating supporters of the current president, Alassane Ouattara, in connection with the violence but have not yet filed any charges. |