Land mark trial of Chad dictator adjourned

DAKAR  Former Chadian dictator Hissene
Habre was forcibly brought to court Tuesday
on the second day of his landmark trial  in
Senegal but judges adjourned the case until
September to enable appointed lawyers to
prepare his defence.

Habre ,once dubbed "Afirca's Pinchet"is
accused of war crimes,crimes against
humanity and torture during his blood
soaked brands an illegitimate tribunal
The trial,the first time a despot from one
African country has been called to account
in another opened on Monday a quarter
of a century after his  1982--1990 rule
came to an end,

Prison guards brought Habre ,dressed in
a white robe and turban into the special
court in the Senegalese capital Dakar
for the second day .But the 72 year old
refused to speak,

The court appointed three attorneys to
defend him after he refused legal rep-
resentation,One of the three court-appointed
defense lawyers,Mbaye Sene told AFP
that he would "carry out (his) mission
according to the rule book

African Chambers then adjourned the
trial until September 7 to give the lawyers
time to prepare their defence,

Habre backed during his presidency by
France and the United States as a bulwark
against Libya's Moamer Kadhafi,is on trial
over actions under his regime of brutal
repression of opponents and rival ethnic
groups Habre perceived as a threat to
his grip on the Sahel nation,
He risks a sentence of at least 30 years
in prison,AFP