Liberian former President Charles Taylor faces an international war crimes court
January 7th, 2008 by CD
I was just listening to a report of a man that had been victim of former President Charles Taylor’s policies. His right hand was chopped off and his story was just heartbreaking. More below…
From BBC
Mr Taylor - who is accused of trading weapons for diamonds - showed no emotion as the first witness, an expert on “blood diamonds”, testified.
He is the first African former head of state to face an international war crimes court and faces 11 charges.
He denies responsibility for atrocities committed by rebels during the civil war in neighbouring Sierra Leone.
The trial opened in June last year but proceedings were postponed after Mr Taylor fired his defence lawyer and boycotted the opening of the trial.
He now has a new defence team - a senior British lawyer, who is being paid for by the court, as Mr Taylor says he cannot afford it himself.
Mr Taylor is accused of responsibility for the actions of Revolutionary United Front rebels during the 1991-2001 civil war in Sierra Leone, which included unlawful killings, sexual slavery, use of child soldiers and looting.
RUF fighters were also notorious for hacking off the arms and legs of the civilian population with machetes.
As the first international criminal prosecution against a former African ruler accused of misdeeds, the case is of crucial importance, our correspondent says.
Mr Taylor has pleaded not guilty to all 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The prosecution will also be calling a Sierra Leonean victim and a Liberian witness who is said to have belonged to Mr Taylor’s inner circle.
Both witnesses are protected, which means their names have not been revealed.
In all, the prosecution intends to call 144 witnesses, though only half are likely to appear in person.
Chief prosecutor at the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone, Stephen Rapp, said: “We owe it to the victims to present some testimony in a live sense [so as] not to drain the case of the human element completely.”
The trial is expected to last about 18 months.
It is being held in The Hague for fear that staging it in Sierra Leone might lead to fresh unrest there.
If convicted, the UK has offered to jail him - again in case his presence in West Africa led to instability.
- Posted in African Affairs, Social Issues