Washington, DC — Testifying before a crowded Congressional hearing, Senator Russ Feingold (D - WI) placed the Liberian regime of Charles Taylor "at the heart" of a "deeply disturbing trend" emerging in West Africa, by which "violent regimes hold entire civilian populations hostage in order to win concessions, and even the guise of legitimacy, from the international community."
Taylor is "manipulating the situation in West Africa for personal gain, at the expense of his own Liberian people, the people of Sierra Leone, and now the people of Guinea," the senator said.Feingold made his remarks before the sucommittee on Africa in the US House of Representatives, an usual forum for a member of the Senate. "I believe that Liberian President Charles Taylor is a war criminal," he stated flatly
Liberian-backed rebels in Sierra Leone, said Representative Donald M. Payne, the ranking member of the subcommittee who opened the hearing, "have already exacerbated problems in countries such as Guinea and Côte d'Ivoire which already have illegitimate regimes (and) weak institutions coupled with mounting refugee problems."
Also denouncing Taylor in unprecedented public testimony about the head of a neighboring state, was Guinea's ambassador to the United States, Mohamed Aly Thiam. "If this man is not stopped now, he will put on hold, not only the future of the sub-region, by creating a whole generation of handicapped children, but also [prevent] the countries around him [from] continuing their journey toward a democratic society."
Last week the United Nations Security Council imposed sanctions on Liberia, including a ban on the export of diamonds, and restricted the travel of senior Liberian officials. A December United Nations report found "unequivocal and overwhelming evidence that Liberia has been actively supporting the RUF at all levels, in providing training, weapons and related material, logistical support, a staging ground for attacks and a safe haven for retreat and recuperation...."
According to Timothy Bishop of the International Rescue Committee, UN figures put the number of refugees fleeing from Sierra Leone into Guinea at a quarter of a million. Another 90,000 Liberians have fled into Guinea, reports Bishop. Additionally, border conflicts have created tens of thousands of displaced Guineans.
The UN has given the Taylor government two months to comply with demands to stop aiding the RUF before the sanctions are implemented. "That was a "mistake" says Africa subcommittee chair, Edward R.Royce, who wants sanctions imposed immediately. "This man has a record. For him, peace agreements are tactical delays, designed to lull opponents before he strikes again."
In a lengthy written reply to Royce, Wednesday, Liberia's ambassador to the United States, William V.S. Bull complained that officials from Liberia and Sierra Leone were not invited to testify. He also called the title of the hearing - Confronting Liberia - "unfortunate."
Ambassador Bull wrote that his government "shares the pains as well as the unspeakable brutality and destruction..." that conflict in the region is causing. He asked the Committee "to ponder" several points on Liberia's behalf, including the charge that his government was trafficking weapons. He noted that Taylor was offering the US or UN use of Liberian territory to monitor weapons sales. His government also denies "blood diamond" sales. According to the ambassador, Charles Taylor has written to the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, promising to resign if anyone proves such sales are going on.
Liberia is being hit by "successive waves of dissident attacks from Guinea," Ambassador Bull wrote, and "the frightening indifference shown by Western powers, as well as the United Nations, are a source of deep concern." Sanctions will strangle the economy and hurt the Liberian people, the ambassador argued.
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Few think sanctions will be clamped on Liberia immediately, however; and though Senator Feingold finds that "regrettable," he also cautioned the panel: "It is crucial that the US include a serious look at what has made countries Like Liberia and Sierra Leone so vulnerable to these criminal forces.
"Corruption, a breakdown in the rule of law, impunity for terrible abuses and the disenfranchisement of whole swathes of society have created a breeding ground for the likes of Taylor and the RUF. The US has been guilty of turning a blind eye to bankrupt regimes in the past, and the current state of affairs in Liberia is, in part, a consequence of those misguided policies."
