• Parliament adopts laws to modernize the judiciary and regulate police custody.
• Reforms include new land and criminal chambers and limits on detention duration.
• Rights groups say enforcement and judicial independence remain major challenges.

Chad’s National Assembly passed two laws on October 13. The goal is to improve the justice system and strength citizens’ rights within judicial procedures.

The first law amends several articles of the Judicial Organization Code. It provides for the creation of land and criminal chambers within competent courts and allows single-judge rulings in certain cases to speed up proceedings.

The second law amends the Criminal Procedure Code to tighten rules on police custody. It seeks to limit its duration, improve its conditions, and prevent abuses that could infringe on detainees’ rights.

Human rights organizations note that the situation in Chad remains fragile, citing repression of protests, arbitrary arrests, restrictions on free expression, and limits on NGOs and media.

Despite the establishment of the National Human Rights Commission in 2018 and the adoption of various legal texts, enforcement remains weak. Impunity and lack of judicial independence continue to hinder progress.

These new reforms mark a step toward change, but significant challenges persist in ensuring full protection of fundamental rights.