François Bozizé will stand trial, even if he is not present

By Michal MAMADOU | LNC Translated into English by Susan CARTER JONES l LNC

(Bangui, 22 April 2026 | LAMINE MEDIA) Yesterday, the Special Court issued the above statement regarding the forthcoming trial of François Bozizé and three other accomplices for serious crimes, ranging from torture to murder and acts of torture. This is part of the so-called ‘BOSSEMBELÉ’ case, and is scheduled for 16 June. He faces life imprisonment for the charges against him, except that Bozizé will not be present; he will be tried in his absence, or, in legal terms, “in absentia”. He lives in exile in Guinea-Bissau, which refuses to extradite him. As for the victims, they will have nothing but their tears in this sham trial. One victim recounts. Francisco Ouilibona was a street trader outside the Rayan supermarket in 2010. He was suspected of being an opponent of the regime and was imprisoned at the Bossembélé centre. “In my statement, they tried to falsify the facts, attributing certain remarks to me, even though those remarks were not mine. I refused, saying that I did not want to bear someone else’s burden. But the deputy prosecutor, Djoubaye Abazène, convicted me. I served time in prison for nothing. I lost my savings and my family.” Gervais Bodagaye, head of the CPS communications division, explains that regarding the trial in absentia: ‘François Bozizé will be tried in a joint case. The Special Criminal Court will appoint a court-appointed lawyer, and this lawyer will be responsible for presenting evidence to exonerate the accused, Mr François Bozizé Yangouvonda,’ he explains. As for his three co-defendants, they are in custody and their cases are ready to go to trial. The victims, such as Maximilien Proson, have high hopes for this upcoming hearing. ‘He himself must be tried and sentenced. We, who are nobody, were arrested without due process, transferred and imprisoned in Bossembélé prison for a year and a half,’ he recalls. Maximilien claims that during this arrest he lost his wife, his child and also his job. “Since then, my life is no longer what it used to be,” he asserts.

For: LAMINE MEDIA (in FR and GB)

Date: 22 April 2026

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