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After 13 failed applications for bail, Laurent Gbagbo's lawyers once again demand the acquittal of their client in The Hague since the post-election crisis in Côte d'Ivoire. The defense motion was filed on July 23, 2018 with the ICC judges. But the motives evoked by the lawyers will they finally, influence the decision of the latter? The analysis of Ivorian jurists
"The prosecutor's case lasted two years; 82 witnesses were called; the totality of the testimonies corresponds to 15000 pages of transcripts; the prosecutor has filed thousands of documents and hundreds of hours of video on file. His evidence is set out in a 542-page "Mid-Trial Brief" (including all the annexes) " can we read in Article II, Annex 7, point 6 of the application of the lawyers of the defense before proceeding to point 7, stating that "in the Defense submissions annexed to this motion. It is shown that the evidence presented by the prosecutor against Laurent Gbagbo in the context of his case, do not allow to prove the charges, beyond a reasonable doubt. "
The lawyers therefore ask in view of the following "the pronunciation of a non-place, an acquittal in his favor for all charges and for all modes of responsibility and therefore the immediate release of Laurent Gbagbo" can we read at the bottom of document. For the legal writer Geoffroy Kouao Julien, the trial must go to completion, in order to locate the responsibilities.
"The lawyers of Laurent Gbagbo are in their right. It is part of the procedural penalty to ask each time the release of his client. It is now up to the judges to analyze this request in light of the evidence and the charges, in order to respond to this request. So it's hard to say that there's more luck this time. " did he react before wishing the trial to end so that light could be shed on the events of 2011 in Côte d'Ivoire
"President Laurent Gbagbo said it himself. He wants the trial to follow suit so that the truth comes out. For it would be easy to pronounce the release of the accused without the real culprits being brought to justice. Look what is happening right now in the Ivorian political sphere. Sometimes we even reach verbal escalation. But nobody says anything. The culprits will be picked up later when it is now necessary to do so. For me, the truth must be broken so that it serves as a lesson for anyone who would want to undermine the security of the state and especially the integrity of the people " commented the jurist.
The eventual release of ICC residents continues to fuel political debate in Côte d'Ivoire. Although the Ivorian Popular Front (FPI), party of Laurent Gbagbo, has been facing an internal division for several years, the fact remains that the supporters of the former president, want only one thing, his acquittement.
Some party executives even made their campaign engine. And hope has never been so brisk, especially after the release of Congolese opposition leader Jean Pierre Bemba of the ICC on June 12. He will have spent 10 years in The Hague. According to Mr. Aké Mel Christiano, Legal Officer in charge of the projects monitoring the trials of the International Criminal Court, Laurent Gbagbo should be released for lack of material evidence.
"In any case, the existence or existence of doubt in the presentation of evidence , benefits the accused. Laurent Gbagbo's lawyers want to avoid a lawsuit that may be even longer than it has been. The prosecution has based its strategy on the demonstration of the extermination of northerners by Laurent Gbagbo. A thesis that until then could not be confirmed irrefutably. So as long as the evidence presented by the prosecution is not unassailable, irrefutable, the defense has the right to demand the acquittal of the charges against its client " analyzed the jurist observer of the Ivorian post-crisis trials, before review some of the evidence presented by the prosecution
"All the witnesses who have come to the bar. Either 82 out of 138 presented by the prosecution, including the Ivorian army, could not directly prove the involvement of President Laurent Gbagbo in the charges against him. Worse, some experts have even cast doubt on the quality of the blood of the women killed in Abobo and the nature of the weapon used for the bombing of the Chaka Koné market of the same municipality. All these inconsistencies give force to the request of the Defense, the prosecution having failed to prove the criminal responsibility of the sieur Laurent Gbagbo in these events. And so normally, given the course of the trial and the lack of tangible evidence, the accused should be acquitted " concluded Master Aké Mel Christiano.
Meanwhile Ivorian political life is experiencing unparalleled twists. Some are predicting a resurgence of opposition as the crisis in the PDCI is in full swing. The release of the former Ivorian president, will certainly add an additional note to the sound of the political landscape, already very rhythmic in Ivory Coast.
Eric Coulibaly
Source: Poleafrique.info
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