In the Comoros, Vice-President Ahmed Saïd Djaffar returned to the country this Thursday, December 2 after three years in exile. Accused of an attempted coup in August 2018, he had managed to flee the country just before a wave of arrests took place in the case. Sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment in December of that same year, the former running mate of Azali Assoumani had finally benefited from a presidential pardon last May.
with our correspondent in Moroni, Anziza M’Changama
It is an unexpected return to the country that that of Ahmed Saïd Djaffar. Since the presidential pardon last May, some relatives dared not advise him to return for fear of reprisals. It took six months therefore to be convinced of the effectiveness of a grace negotiated at length with the Presidency of the Republic.
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Asked about the subject at the time, the government spokesperson brushed aside “a lawsuit of intent” explaining that there was no point in developing a pardon and then persecuting it. ‘interested.
The former number 2 of the country had started to question the motivations of President Azali at the time of the 2018 constitutional referendum which ratified, among other things, the disappearance of the post of vice-president as well as the possibility of renewal of the presidential mandate.
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Absent from his trial, Ahmed Saïd Djaffar was sentenced to life imprisonment with three other co-defendants including his brother, also pardoned after almost a year of imprisonment. His relatives have expressed their joy and say they are confident even if they say they have not negotiated anything with the authorities about his return.