Ian Lundin, dressed in a suit like the rest of the men in room 34 of the Stockholm District Court, began by explaining that he will give his testimony in English in order to best formulate his account of the events in Sudan.
This trial is about something that happened a very long time ago. From my personal perspective, it's difficult to remember exactly and distinguish between what happened then and what I know now, says Ian Lundin.
Appears to remember
He explains his language choice by saying that, despite being born in Sweden, he has only lived here for a few years in his childhood.
Ian Lundin then tells a bit about himself and his career before the prosecutor begins asking questions about how Lundin Oil was governed and by whom during 1999-2003.
During the first hours of the prosecutor's questioning, it doesn't seem like the former CEO of Lundin Oil has trouble remembering. The questions are far from the suspicions of war crimes and concern, at a fairly detailed level, the corporate and management structure of Lundin Oil around the turn of the millennium and what Ian Lundin remembers about his colleagues and their tasks.
Several times, he begins his answer with the words "it was a long time ago" but still recounts, for example, what type of meetings the company's management had and how often and how they were informed about the operation in Sudan.
Has denied
In the trial, Ian Lundin and Alex Schneiter, former representatives of Lundin Oil, are charged with aiding and abetting gross war crimes in southern Sudan 1999-2003, when the Swedish company was operating in the war-torn country.
According to the charges, they had knowledge of and contributed to the military and regime-loyal militia killing and displacing people to create conditions for Lundin Oil's oil prospecting in an area that had long been controlled by rebels.
Lundin and Schneiter have denied the allegations and claim that the charges are based on a long series of factual errors. In addition to denying complicity, they also deny that the type of war crimes alleged in the charges took place.
The trial in the Stockholm District Court began in September 2023 and is planned to continue until February 2026. It is thus the longest main hearing that has been held in Sweden.
Beatrice Nordensson/TT
Facts: War-torn country
TT
The Lundin group signed an agreement in 1997 with the Sudanese government for oil prospecting in Block 5A in the state of Unity in what was then southern Sudan. The country had been plagued by civil war since 1983 between the regime in the north and rebels in the south. Block 5A was controlled by rebels.
In 1999, Sudan's military launched offensives with regime-allied militias in the area. The purpose, according to Swedish prosecutors, was to take over control and create conditions for the company's operations. The military offensives are said to have continued until March 2003. The warfare involved widespread abuses against civilians.
Thousands of people died and hundreds of thousands of people were displaced from their homes in the area in connection with the offensives.
