Slowness And Alleged Political Interference Mark Swiss Record On International Crimes

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) In Switzerland, justice on universal jurisdiction cases continues to go at a snail's pace, despite the current attorney general's promises to make them a priority. This content was published on September 16, 2025 - 09:00 12 minutes Julia Crawford, Justice Info

• Français fr Crimes internationaux en Suisse: lenteur et accusation d'ingérence politique Read more: Crimes internationaux en Suisse: lenteur et accusation d'ingérence politiqu

Switzerland has long been criticised for slowness on international crimes casesExternal link , which were clearly not a priority under former attorney general Michael Lauber. When Stefan Blättler took over that post in 2022, he promised to make international crimes a priority.“As the nation where the Red Cross idea started, we have a special moral obligation to do something,” he told the media in May 2022 after his first 100 days in office.

So, are there any signs of change so far?

“We observed some positive signs,” says Benoit Meystre, legal advisor at Swiss anti-impunity NGO TRIAL International.“In the Algerian and Syrian cases, where for a long time we didn't know how the investigations were going, the attorney general's office issued indictmentsExternal link . The fact that the Sonko caseExternal link went ahead is also positive. These are signs that now the authorities are paying more attention to international crimes than before. But TRIAL International initiated some other cases where developments are long-awaited, so it's difficult to draw conclusions.”

These include a complaint filed in 2019 for alleged pillaging of rosewood from conflict-affected CasamanceExternal link , Senegal, and one filed in 2020 against a Swiss company for allegedly being involved in oil pillaging during the Second Libyan civil warExternal link .“Apart from the Ousman Sonko case which went to trial and led to a conviction, we don't know where the other cases are at, which notably limits our possibilities to inform on these matters of public interest,” Meystre told Justice Info.

Gambian former interior minister Sonko was convicted in May 2024 for crimes against humanity, and sentenced to 20 years in jail. This is currently on appeal. The only other person convicted of international crimes in Switzerland since 2011, when international crimes cases were transferred from military to civil justice authorities, is former Liberian warlord Alieu Kosiah. A Swiss appeals court confirmed his 20-year jail sentenceExternal link for war crimes on June 1, 2023.

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