Laïty Kama (born 1939 in

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The Departments of Senegal, department of Dakar has a population of 1,278,469, and the population of the Dakar metropolitan area was at 4.0 mill ...

- 6 May 2001), was a

Senegalese Demographic features of the population of Senegal include population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population. About 42% of Senegal's population i ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

of Serer heritage and the first

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of the

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR; ; ) was an international court, international ''ad-hoc'' court established in November 1994 by the United Nations Security Council in United Nations Security Council Resolution 955, Resolutio ...

(ICTR). He was one of the longest serving

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

s of the ICTR.

Legal career

Kama's major career started in 1969 when he became a

Magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judi ...

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

, and an Examining Judge in

Diourbel Diourbel (; Serer language, Serer: ''Jurbel'', Wolof language, Wolof: ''Njaaréem'') is a town and urban commune in Senegal lying east of Thiès. It is known for its mosque and local peanut, groundnut industry and is the capital of the Diourbe ...

(Senegal) from 1969 to 1973. He was then appointed Deputy Public Prosecutor from 1973 to 1974 and Public

Prosecutor A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in Civil law (legal system), civil law. The prosecution is the ...

Thiès Thiès (; ; Noon language, Noon: ''Chess'') is the third largest city in Senegal with a population of 391,253 in 2023. It lies east of Dakar on the N2 road (Senegal), N2 road and at the junction of railway lines to Dakar, Bamako and Saint-Louis, ...

from 1974 to 1978. He served as Assistant Public Prosecutor at

Court of Appeal An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to Hearing (law), hear a Legal case, case upon appeal from a trial court or other ...

and the

Assize Court The assizes (), or courts of assize, were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes ...

for 15 years. In 1992, Kama was appointed First Assistant Public Prosecutor at the Supreme Court of Appeal. In May 1995, he was appointed judge of the United Nations' International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. He was also the First President of the ICTR. Kama remained a judge of the Court until May 2001

Lecturer and organization established

Kama taught at École nationale de la Magistrature du Sénégal in Dakar for 20 years, an organization he co-founded.

Legacy

As an expert on

International Criminal Law International criminal law (ICL) is a body of public international law designed to prohibit certain categories of conduct commonly viewed as serious atrocities and to make perpetrators of such conduct criminally accountable for their perpetrat ...

, Kama represented

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

in the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention which was established by the

United Nations Commission on Human Rights The United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) was a functional commission within the United Nations System, overall framework of the United Nations from 1946 until it was replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2006. It was a ...

. In this post, he presided over the drafting sessions of

Benin Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...

's new code of Criminal Prosedure. Since his membership of the

delegation to the United Nations Commission of Human Rights in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

from 1983 to 1990, he actively participated in the negotiations of the Convention against torture, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment. In 1991, he conducted seminars on human right violations and the administration of justice at

Kigali Kigali () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Rwanda. It is near the nation's geographic centre in a region of rolling hills, with a series of valleys and ridges joined by steep slopes. As a primate city, Kigali is a relativ ...

(in

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

). Similar seminars were conducted at

Bujumbura Bujumbura (; ), formerly Usumbura, is the economic capital, largest city and main port of Burundi. It ships most of the country's chief export, coffee, as well as cotton and tin ore. Bujumbura was formerly the country's political capital. In la ...

(in

Burundi Burundi, officially the Republic of Burundi, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is located in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa, with a population of over 14 million peop ...

) in 1993.

Death

In mid-April 2001, Kama fell ill and was hospitalized in

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

(

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

) where he was reported to have "received treatment for

respiratory The respiratory system (also respiratory apparatus, ventilatory system) is a biological system consisting of specific organs and structures used for gas exchange in animals and plants. The anatomy and physiology that make this happen varies gr ...

and

heart problems Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is any disease involving the heart or blood vessels. CVDs constitute a class of diseases that includes: coronary artery diseases (e.g. angina pectoris, angina, myocardial infarction, heart attack), heart failure, ...

". He died on 6 May 2001. On his death, The United Nations' flag was flown at

half-mast Half-mast or half-staff (American English) refers to a flag flying below the summit of a ship mast, a pole on land, or a pole on a building. In many countries this is seen as a symbol of respect, mourning, distress, or, in some cases, a sal ...

outside the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR). The ICTR Chief of Press and Information Tom Kennedy described his death as a "sad loss."Hirondelle News Agency International justice reporting

Notes

External links

Hirondelle News Agency International justice reporting

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kama, Laity 20th-century Senegalese lawyers Senegalese judges 1939 births 2001 deaths Presidents of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda Senegalese judges of United Nations courts and tribunals Serer people