allAfrica.com: Sierra Leone: Charles Taylor Trial Revisited (Page 1 of 1)

The Special Court for Sierra Leone observed a judicial recess from March 17 until Friday, March 28th.

Proceedings in the ongoing trial of Liberia's former President Charles Taylor will resume today March 31st.

Going down memory lane, it would be recalled that when the UN Security Council passed a resolution that paved the way for the trial of Taylor to be moved to The Hague in The Netherlands, many Sierra Leoneans heaved a sigh of relief.

It was as if a foreseen crisis was averted from their capital, Freetown.

Their fear was that Taylor's presence in Freetown could attract a guerrilla army -because it is on record that he retains the ability to mobilise a fighting force of armed young men which could pose a threat to the newly-restored peace in Sierra Leone and Liberia.

In another quarters, it was also believed that a trial in The Hague might also allay the fears of some Liberians who think Taylor would not get a fair trial in Freetown, even if the judges were international.

But all these apprehension have little or no chances of reaching The Hague now that the trial is ongoing.

On one of the websites developed to provide news and expert throughout the trial, www.charlestaylortrial.org, many revelations came to fore as reported in various analysis which are updated regularly when the Court is in session.

14th March, 2008, prosecution witness Joseph D.

"Zigzag" Marzah concluded his testimony in a dramatic fashion ahead of the two-week break in the trial.

Angered by defense counsel suggestions that he was never close to Charles Taylor, Marzah alleged that he, Taylor and Benjamin Yeaten were all in the same Poro society and that Taylor himself had eaten human hearts with him on multiple occasions.

Another hard to believe revelation that popped up recently centres on whether ECOMOG prevented or assisted arms deliveries to Sierra Leone. Marzah alleged that some Nigerian officers in ECOMOG were corrupt and had been bribed by Taylor. Specifically, he testified that a Nigerian captain named Victor (not General Victor Malu, he said) had been assigned to Taylor's residence, and had arranged for Taylor and his men to transport weapons through the airport, and past checkpoints in ECOMOG vehicles.

Taylor's trial which began in The Hague in June 2007 made history as he became the African head of state to face war-crimes charges. Though still under the jurisdiction of the UN-backed Sierra Leone Special Court, the trial in faraway The Hague has seemingly helped to seal the end of the war and as a succor for war victims in Sierra Leone and Liberia. The Special Court for Sierra Leone is an ad-hoc international-national court, referred to as a "hybrid" or "mixed" international tribunal. The court was established in 2002 through an agreement between the United Nations and the Sierra Leonean government with a mandate to "prosecute persons who bear the greatest responsibility for serious violations of international humanitarian law" committed in Sierra Leone and also violations of Sierra Leonean law committed in the country. The court can only hear cases of crimes committed since 1996 though Sierra Leone's conflict lasted from 1991 to 2002. The crimes under the court's mandate include crimes against humanity, war crimes, and other serious violations of international humanitarian law, such as recruitment of child soldiers.

Taylor's trial in The Hague has also sent a shivering signal to many of the dictatorial leaders everywhere especially on the African continent. "The world has turned a page in the wake of Taylor's arrest," argues Special Court prosecutor Stephen Rapp. "[Crimes against humanity] cannot be ignored, and there will have to be prosecutions. The days are gone when leaders accused of atrocities could escape into exile." Born on 28 February 1948 in Arthington, Liberia, Charles Taylor studied in the United States. In 1979, he was arrested for threatening to occupy the Liberian diplomatic mission in New York. Later he became the president of Liberia between 1997 and 2003 but his terms of office were marked by rebellions and conflicts in the region.

It was reported that the civil conflicts Taylor fomented in Sierra Leone and Liberia cost about 400,000 lives between 1989 and 2003. These killings were said to be characterized by incredible brutality and widespread use of child soldiers. Taylor was initially charged with 17 counts, but the indictment was amended in March 2006 to 11 counts so the specific counts against him are: - Five counts of war crimes: terrorizing civilians, murder, outrages on personal dignity, cruel treatment, and looting; - Five counts of crimes against humanity: murder, rape, sexual slavery, mutilating and beating, and enslavement; and - One count of other serious violations of international humanitarian law: recruiting and using child soldiers.

Human Rights Watch, an independent, non-governmental organization, supported by contributions from private individuals and foundations worldwide, reported that Taylor's presidency, which lasted from 1997 to 2003, was characterized by intolerance of dissent and harassment of the press, civil society and political opposition. The group added that these and other human rights abuses were accompanied by near-total impunity and the repression ultimately fueled the formation of two rebel groups and, in 1999, a return to armed conflict in Liberia before he was forced from office in August 2003 following rebel incursions into the Liberian capital Monrovia.

In 2003, Taylor traded the Liberian presidency for exile to Nigeria, where he lived until he was arrested in March 2006.

Taylor's trial began on June 4, 2007 and Special Court's prosecutor, Stephen Rapp, has estimated that the trial will last between 12 and 18 months so the verdict is likely to be given before December 2008.

But there are still some pressing concerns for the war victims. As the trial is ongoing in The Hague, about five years after the war ended, Sierra Leone still remains one of the poorest countries in the world.

Many of these victims care little or less about the possible outcome of the trial as their immediate pressing needs are yet to be met. Their argument is that the government giving them nothing and the court is not really for them.

"You can free Charles Taylor today and we will not feel it much. You can kill Charles Taylor today and we will not feel it much," says Farma Jalloh, a former government soldier blinded while fighting the RUF rebels. "The international community wants to try Charles Taylor but what will it achieve for the victims?"

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