Sidiki Kaba, Esq. A professional career And closely related campaigner

Sidiki Kaba is a Senegalese lawyer; he is the first African to be elected, on 2001, as Chairman of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH). Prior to this, he worked as FIDH’s permanent representative to the African Commission to Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) in Banjul on 1992,then vice-president elected, on 1997.

He graduated from Abidjan and Dakar universities with three law degrees, Philosophy, and French Language and Literature as well as a Master in business law. He did his primary education in Tambacounda, where he is born on August 21st, 1950. He did his high school education at the Dakar- based Van Vollenoven High School, and he got his High School Certificate on 1972.

He was accepted, on 1980, to be member of the Dakar Bar, following a teaching experience that was made together with higher studies, as French teacher at the Abidjan-based Aké Loba College for the period 1975-1978. Then, he was elected member of Executive body for the period 1985-2000. He combined his professional activities with his struggle for human rights in and in the world at large.

As an active Campaigner, he joined, on 1981, the Senegalese section of , before joining the National Organization of Defense of Human Rights (NODHR) which he headed for the period 1995-2000, after having worked as vice-president of the latter, for the period 1987-1995. He is founder member and leader of several African NGO’s, especially the lawyers’ union on 1982, the Inter of human rights (IAUHR) on 1992, the African Center for Human Rights and Democracy-related Studies (ACHRDS) on 1995, the African Center for Conflicts Prevention (ACCP) on 1995…etc. He made himself known as defender of press freedom, women’s rights, political rights, as well as anti-impunity and anti-death penalty campaigner. He provided legal and judicial assistance to journalists, political opposition leaders, trade unionists and human rights defenders, before national human rights protection tribunals and courts, as well as before regional and international ones.

He has been the lawyer of several African personalities: the former Ivorian Prime Minister and the current president, Alassane Drame Ouattara, and the Senegalese former Prime Minister, Idrissa Seck (2005), Chadian victims of torture filing trials against the former dictator, Hisséne Habré

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(2000), defenders and political opposition leaders from in connection with the Norbert Zongo’s case (a journalist assassinated on 1998), the former leader of the Guinean opposition and current president of , Mr. Alpha Condé (1998), former political opposition leader and former president of for the period 2000-2010,Mr. Laurent Koundou Gbagbo (1992)…

Intense activities that allowed him to win honorary decorations:

 Chevalier of the National Order of Mali (2011)  Medal of the 25 April 1974 Association, Portugal (2007)  Honorary citizen of the city of Quito (Equator, on 2004)  Laureate of Sédar Action Civile 2004 of Nouvel Horizon Magazine (Senegal)  Officer of Legion of Honor (France, on 2002)  Chevalier of the National Order of Lion (Senegal, on 2001)  Laureate of the Prize for the Promotion of Culture of Democracy in Africa, awarded by the Pan African Observatory of Democracy (POD,ON 2003 in Togo

Books written:

 « La justice universelle en question, Justice des blancs contre les autres? » (Harmattan Publishing House)  « Défendre la Déclaration Universelle des droits de l’Homme » (1998)  « Les droits de l’Homme au Sénégal » (1997)  « Les droits de l’Homme en Afrique à l’aube du XXIe siècle »(1966)

Participation to two collective books:

« Mitterand et l’Afrique » (1999)

« L’Observatoire Nationale des Elections (ONEL)», on 1997

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