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Truth, Reconciliation and National Unity Commission |13 November 2019

Complaints of ‘inhumane’ treatment in the army dominate yesterday’s hearing

 

The whole morning and part of the afternoon of yesterday’s 27th hearing session of the Truth, Reconciliation and National Unity Commission (TRNUC) was dominated by case 0062 of complainant Josianne Camille in relation to the death of her brother Wilset Camille who died on September 1, 1985 and claimed the army to be responsible.

It was her other brother Michel Camille who set the stage for the complaint regarding the death of their brother, an army recruit who died at the Seychelles Hospital (then Victoria Hospital). He said that Wilset was a maritime student and was sent on three months training on Coetivy Island in 1983 and upon his return he was urged to join the Coast Guard which he refused.

He said his brother had said that upon seeing the treatment that recruits who were also on training on the island had to endure, he would never join the army.

Mr Camille said that upon Wilset’s refusal to join the army, he tried to find work in his field of study, among other jobs, which were all unsuccessful. He presumed he was being victimised for refusing to join the navy. He noted that his brother managed to get a job as an animateur at the National Youth Service (NYS) but left shortly.

Mr Camille, who was an NYS student at that time, said the family received a call from somebody from the army to report to the Seychelles Hospital as Wilset was sick and was being transported there. He said that they searched the whole hospital ward but in vain until they learned later that Wilset was in the mortuary.

He said they learned on September 1, 1985 that Wilset, who was an army recruit at the Barbarons army camp for only 27 days, was brought in a taxi to the Béolière clinic the day before where he vomited blood and was pronounced dead soon after. He said the army had said that he was sick but strange marks found around his neck suggested that he had been strangled.

Mr Camille said that from research done especially through those who talked to his mother, revealed that the army tried to cover up the true cause of death of his brother by saying that he was sick. He noted though that the medical report had shown that Wilset died from internal bleeding. He presumed he was beaten up because of the marks under his neck and also from information gathered from some army recruits that were with him, that the beating incident happened during a morning run where he collapsed and the people in charge thought he didn’t want to do the training and so they beat him up.

Upon being given a copy of a medical letter on the autopsy report by the commission which showed no evidence of violence or foul play, Mr Camille who noted that the family had never had a copy of that letter or the autopsy report, refutes that there was no foul play in the death of his brother.

With regard to the claim that his brother died from respiratory problem among other illnesses as stated in the report, Mr Camille said his brother was physically fit before he joined the army and if he was unfit the army would not have recruited him. He further said that the family, through the mother, sought for clarification on his death from high officials of the State including Ogilvy Berlouis, who was in charge of the army, but the answers were not satisfactory.

Mr Camille said that the family is not seeking for revenge but they want to know how he really died and also want to know the person or persons involved in his death whom they have to see to be able to forgive them.

The first witness in the case, Benjamin Barreau, explained that Wilset was on the training session with him at the Barbarons army camp along with 30 other recruits and was forced like all the rest to continue with the physical training even though they were tired. He said that during a push-up exercise, Wilset who was really flat out and forced to carry on by the instructors, fainted and stayed down motionless on the ground. He noted that the first time he fainted he was grabbed by the neck by one of the instructors to come into position of the push-up exercise.

Mr Barreau said that Wilset was picked up and later learned that he was put in a transport and brought to the clinic. He said it was only the following day that they learned that he had died. He noted that the army training at that time was really inhumane, to the point that if you refused to continue on account of tiredness, you could be heavily beaten up or dragged along the ground on the compound.

He noted that he cannot comment on the marks under Wilset’s neck as it will not be possible for him to recall at what particular moment in time he sustained them as physical harsh treatment occurred at any one time on every part of the body.

The second witness in the case was army Major Joachim Cadeau, who was the person who alerted the family that Wilset was sick and was being transported to hospital.

Major Cadeau, who was based at the Bel Eau army camp, said he was informed by the duty officer to relate the information personally to the family at Bel Air that Mr Camille had fallen sick and was being transported to the hospital. He noted that he later learned he was certified dead upon arrival at the hospital and it was then that he directed the family to the mortuary as they had not seen him at the hospital.

Mr Cadeau said that he had no knowledge of the circumstance of his death and he presumed that Wilset must have been perfectly physically fit or else he would not have been recruited into the army. He said he only acted as the messenger and related the information.

Flessy Lebon, an ex-army officer, was the next witness named in the case as the officer who was in charge of the training.

He said that Wilset joined the army along with him in August 1985. He said that he was not in the camp on the eve of his death and arrived in the afternoon that day where he learned of his death from a corporal.

Mr Lebon explained that he was not in charge of the training as he was a recruit just like Wilset. He denied that hard physical training was being held on a day to day basis apart from the compulsory early morning run which according to him lasted only for half an hour and not for two hours as told by previous witnesses.

 

Case 0155

Joe Rath, an ex-militia and ex-army infantry soldier, was a complainant in case 0155 in relation to ill treatment received from the army following his participation in the army rebellion where he was sent to prison which saw him also being denied his pension.

He said that he sacrificed his life for Seychelles and his reward was ill treatment by the army. He further said that the harsh treatment by the senior army officers led to his participation in the rebellion. For that he was imprisoned for five years and six months, in addition to losing his compensation.

Mr Rath said that upon surrendering, he was tortured at the Bel Eau army headquarters until he passed out and there after placed for three days in the dark cell. He noted that while there, he also saw Andre Pouponeau lying helplessly on the ground trying to breathe and was soaked in blood.

He further said that former President Albert Rene was also at the headquarters at that time because he saw him among other top army personnel, namely Raymond Bonte and Philip Lucas, through a window. He noted that President Rene had witnessed everything. He blamed President Rene as the one responsible for his torture at the hands of Bonte and Lucas.

He further noted that if President Rene and President Michel who took the country illegally and yet got their pensions, then he also is entitled to his pension regardless of having participated in the rebellion which was also illegal. His case is ongoing.

                                                                  

Case 0148

Edwin Henriette, an ex-police explosive expert officer, was the complainant in his case 0158 in relation to his grievance against the Island Development Company (IDC) which upon his resignation did not provide him with a compensation for his length of service as an island manager.

He presumed he was framed to leave the company through materials that went missing in a shop he was in charge of on Desroches. He blamed the coup d’Etat which according to him had disrupted the island way of life of the people of Seychelles by inculcating the attitude one for oneself based on greed and corruption. He said the coup affected people like him who were working within the law while others who broke the law were protected because of their affiliation with officials in government.

Judith Dupres, was the last person before the commission yesterday in relation with the death of his brother Andrew Pouponeau.

Judith explained that Andrew came to her place in an army jeep on the day of the rebellion at around 5.30pm and stayed there. She noted that at around 8pm the same day an army contingent came and encircled her house looking for him.

Judith said that Andrew managed to escape but only heard on the radio the following day that he was captured but had escaped and she had never seen or heard from him again. She noted that her brother never mentioned to her that he was involved in the rebellion.

She said the family is seeking the truth about his disappearance. She also wanted to retrieve his body for a proper burial. She called on the people involved to come forward and to shed light on the case.

 

Case 002

Via Skype, Olivia Vincent was the complainant in case 002 in relation to the death of her brother Simon Desnousse who was killed on October 19, 1982 at the age of 20 years old.

She said that her brother started as an opposition activist in 1979 during the schools’ demonstrations against the National Youth Service (NYS) where he was one of the leaders. She noted that following that, Simon was prevented to pursue further studies at A-Level because of his involvement in the students’ protest and he also had difficulties finding a job on account of security clearance.

Mrs Vincent said that Simon received a call on the evening of October 19, 1982 at around 7.30pm by a man who wanted to speak to him and he answered that he will be there and hung up.

She said his last words before he left was: “I have a beer in the fridge don’t drink it. I am coming back and also leave some cashew nuts for me”, words which were more or less directed towards his brother.

Mrs Vincent, who was still a student at that time, said that Simon took his father’s car and never came back. She said she learned of his death the following day while at school by a nun who informed her that it was announced on the radio that he was blown up in a car with another guy at Anse Forbans while making a bomb. She said that his funeral was held on October 2, 1982, an event she did not attend on the advice of her father.

She explained that it doesn’t make sense for somebody, accompanied by an expert in bomb making (South African Mike Asher), to make a bomb in the middle of the night on a remote beach as revealed by the State in its statement. She noted that she was aware that her brother along with other members of her family were being followed by the State.

Mrs Vincent said that apart from two police officers who came for fingerprints identification following the incident, no search was made at their residence or even of his bedroom to conduct an investigation and that seemed strange.

Mrs Vincent said that from the many stories heard, her brother was abducted at St Louis. Apart from a list of could-be perpetrators she submitted to the commission, she called on people who have seen or heard something in relation to the death of her brother to come forward and talk about it.

She said that now is the time for the perpetrators who were directly or indirectly involved to come and confess the torture and killing of her brother.

The chairperson of the commission, Gabrielle Louise McIntyre, also made a plea to people who know anything relating to cases before the commission to come forward and say what they know and for the perpetrators to take the given opportunity to seek for forgiveness from their victims.

 

Patrick Joubert

 

 

 

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