Liberia: Taylor Trial Delayed Again

25 June 2007
allAfrica.com

The trial of former Liberian president Charles Taylor on war crimes charges was again delayed today by wrangles over his legal representation.

Taylor refused for the second time to appear in court. According to the website launched to provide expert coverage of the trial, http://charlestaylortrial.org, this prompted a ruling by the Special Court for Sierra Leone that Taylor could not be allowed to represent himself.

The court ruled that its principal defender should immediately appoint a lawyer to take control of Taylor's defence, and postponed the case until next Tuesday, July 3. It also directed that a full defence team be assembled by July 31.

It had been expected that prosecutors would begin laying out the case against Taylor today. When the trial began on June 4, he boycotted proceedings and fired his lawyer.

Taylor is charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes from his involvement in the conflict in Sierra Leone. The crimes he is charged with include killings, mutilations, rape, other forms of sexual violence, sexual slavery, recruiting and using child soldiers, abduction and using forced labour. The trial is the first of a former head of state in an international criminal court for crimes committed in Africa against Africans.

For full coverage and expert analysis of proceedings, see The Trial of Charles Taylor, the website jointly established by the Open Society Institute, the Open society Justice Initiative and the International Senior Lawyers Project.

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