Press Release – Committee for Justice (CFJ)
25 October 2026
The Committee for Justice (CFJ) expresses its deep concern over the continued impunity in Chad, four years after the violent crackdown on demonstrations that took place on 20 October 2022. The events resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people, the arrest of more than 1,300 individuals, and the disappearance of at least 40 others, alongside numerous documented cases of torture, injuries, and other serious human rights violations.
On 20 October 2022, security forces violently suppressed demonstrations in N’Djamena and several other cities, including Moundou, Doba, Koumra, and Sar. Protesters had taken to the streets to oppose the extension of the military transitional period and demand a return to constitutional order. Security forces reportedly used excessive force, including live ammunition, arbitrary arrests, and torture. Hundreds of detainees, including minors, were subsequently transferred to the high-security Koro Toro prison.
Despite the gravity of these violations, meaningful judicial accountability remains absent four years later. In December 2024, ten victims, supported by the Chadian Human Rights League (LTDH), the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), and the Judicial Action Group of SOS-Torture in Africa, filed a criminal complaint against approximately twenty political, security, and military officials who held positions of responsibility at the time of the events.
However, the complaint has made no substantial judicial progress. An investigating judge in N’Djamena issued an order dismissing the investigation, relying on Article 528 of the Chadian Code of Criminal Procedure. The victims’ lawyers challenged this decision. Judicial proceedings remain stalled, depriving victims and their families of their rights to justice, truth, and accountability.
The general amnesty law adopted on 23 November 2023 has further complicated efforts to secure accountability, raising serious concerns about its impact on investigations and prosecutions relating to the grave human rights violations committed during the events of 20 October 2022.
CFJ stresses that these events raise serious concerns regarding Chad’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention against Torture, and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, particularly Articles 2, 3, 6, 7, 9, and 14 of the ICCPR; Articles 2, 12, 13, and 14 of the Convention against Torture; and Articles 4, 5, 6, and 7 of the African Charter.
The reported violations also engage relevant provisions of the Chadian Criminal Code, including Articles 78, 175, 302–304, 307–315, 323 et seq., and 325 et seq.
The Committee for Justice calls on the Chadian authorities to:
- Ensure the resumption of judicial proceedings concerning the complaint filed in December 2024 and remove all legal and procedural obstacles preventing an independent and impartial investigation.
- Review and repeal the general amnesty law of 23 November 2023 to ensure that it is not used to obstruct investigations and prosecutions concerning serious human rights violations.
- Launch independent and effective investigations into the killings, torture, arbitrary arrests, and enforced disappearances committed during the events of 20 October 2022, and establish individual and command responsibility.
- Disclose the fate and whereabouts of all individuals who remain missing and guarantee their families’ right to truth.
- Protect victims, their families, lawyers, and witnesses from threats, intimidation, and reprisals for seeking justice.
- Guarantee victims and survivors access to comprehensive reparations, including medical and psychological rehabilitation.
- Implement the recommendations issued by African and international human rights bodies concerning the events of 20 October 2022 and adopt effective measures to prevent similar violations from recurring.
CFJ emphasises that four years without justice cannot extinguish the State’s responsibility for the violations committed, nor deprive victims and their families of their rights to truth, justice, and effective remedies.
