W-OLF
04-04-2006, 07:31 PM
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) - The Sierra Leone court that made Charles Taylor the first African president to answer war crimes charges is an experiment in international justice, a hybrid tribunal being tested by the debate over where the former Liberian president should be tried.
The Sierra Leone Special Court is the first U.N.-sponsored tribunal to prosecute war crimes in the country where they occurred, and it is being heavily backed by the United States as a model. It was established in January 2002 under an agreement between the United Nations and the Sierra Leone government.
Mohamed Suma, head of an independent group that monitors the court, said the aim is for his countrymen to see justice firsthand after their brutal civil war.
"The lack of justice, the lack of access to justice was one of the primary causes of the war, so people want to see justice," Suma said. He noted that the court's audience has included villagers bused in by outreach groups and college students, along with amputees from the war and relatives of the accused.
"If you look at the Rwanda court, it's not associated with the people," Suma said. "It's far away from them. If you look at Yugoslavia, it's so distant." The tribunal trying those involved in the Rwandan genocide is in neighboring Tanzania, while the Yugoslavia war crimes tribunal is at The Hague, Netherlands.
Yet Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has asked that the trial of Taylor, who is accused of playing a leading role in Sierra Leone's 1991-2002 civil war, be moved to The Hague, arguing the sight of a former president on trial so close to home could undermine Liberia's tenuous peace.
A group of Sierra Leonean civil rights groups met with Desmond de Silva, chief prosecutor of the Sierra Leone court, on Friday and unanimously voiced their disapproval of the idea, Suma said.
"It is secure to have Taylor here and try him here; it's just paranoia" to say otherwise, Suma said.
The court borrows judges and procedures from Sierra Leone's judicial system as well as from foreign courts. To streamline justice, it only went after those with "greatest responsibility" for the atrocities of the West African country's civil war, and so indicted just 13 men, including Taylor.
Those involved in the Special Court say it is an experiment that has worked, and has advantages over courts at The Hague and elsewhere. It handles cases stemming from a struggle for control of Sierra Leone and its diamond wealth, a conflict that saw rebels hacking off the limbs, lips and ears of civilians.
The Yugoslavia and Rwanda tribunals have been going on since 1993 and 1996, respectively, and have indicted more than 100 people between them.
"The perception is that they take too long and are too expensive," said Peter Andersen, spokesman for Sierra Leone's court in Freetown.
Both the Yugoslavia and Rwanda courts were forced on their governments by the United Nations, while Sierra Leone requested the Special Court. If the case moves to The Hague, Taylor's trial would still be overseen by judges from the Sierra Leone tribunal, a group of 11 that includes four nominated by the Sierra Leonean government.
"The international community got this right. It's located at the place where it should be, and that's at the scene of the crime," said David Crane, the former lead prosecutor who indicted Taylor. "It is more efficient to have it in the location because that's where all the witnesses are."
Crane and his successor were appointed by the U.N. secretary-general.
As important as it as been to hold hearings in Sierra Leone, the trial of Taylor, the most prominent suspect to be brought before the court, may be different, said another Sierra Leonean monitor, Thomas George.
George said he has spoken to Liberians who have told him a Taylor trial in Sierra Leone would not be good for regional relations.
"Liberians will regard Sierra Leone as hostile, because they will see Sierra Leone putting their president on trial," he said.
The Sierra Leone experiment has not worked seamlessly. Crane said the delay in getting Nigeria to turn over Taylor means the court will continue past a planned five-year term. Nigeria had given Taylor refuge for more than two years before reluctantly agreeing last week to surrender him for trial.
Andersen said court staff have had to spend much of their time raising funds, because the court is supported by donations.
And despite the efforts of outreach groups, spectators at the court generally have been journalists, not members of the public.
"There are some of the victims, yes. But mostly, it's the press. Although we invite the public, very few people come," said Andersen.
"Sometimes people are a little nervous about having to go by a lot of people with machine guns," he said, referring to security at the court. But he said the public follows the trials through radio announcements and videos the court sends out.
credit BellSouth
The Sierra Leone Special Court is the first U.N.-sponsored tribunal to prosecute war crimes in the country where they occurred, and it is being heavily backed by the United States as a model. It was established in January 2002 under an agreement between the United Nations and the Sierra Leone government.
Mohamed Suma, head of an independent group that monitors the court, said the aim is for his countrymen to see justice firsthand after their brutal civil war.
"The lack of justice, the lack of access to justice was one of the primary causes of the war, so people want to see justice," Suma said. He noted that the court's audience has included villagers bused in by outreach groups and college students, along with amputees from the war and relatives of the accused.
"If you look at the Rwanda court, it's not associated with the people," Suma said. "It's far away from them. If you look at Yugoslavia, it's so distant." The tribunal trying those involved in the Rwandan genocide is in neighboring Tanzania, while the Yugoslavia war crimes tribunal is at The Hague, Netherlands.
Yet Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has asked that the trial of Taylor, who is accused of playing a leading role in Sierra Leone's 1991-2002 civil war, be moved to The Hague, arguing the sight of a former president on trial so close to home could undermine Liberia's tenuous peace.
A group of Sierra Leonean civil rights groups met with Desmond de Silva, chief prosecutor of the Sierra Leone court, on Friday and unanimously voiced their disapproval of the idea, Suma said.
"It is secure to have Taylor here and try him here; it's just paranoia" to say otherwise, Suma said.
The court borrows judges and procedures from Sierra Leone's judicial system as well as from foreign courts. To streamline justice, it only went after those with "greatest responsibility" for the atrocities of the West African country's civil war, and so indicted just 13 men, including Taylor.
Those involved in the Special Court say it is an experiment that has worked, and has advantages over courts at The Hague and elsewhere. It handles cases stemming from a struggle for control of Sierra Leone and its diamond wealth, a conflict that saw rebels hacking off the limbs, lips and ears of civilians.
The Yugoslavia and Rwanda tribunals have been going on since 1993 and 1996, respectively, and have indicted more than 100 people between them.
"The perception is that they take too long and are too expensive," said Peter Andersen, spokesman for Sierra Leone's court in Freetown.
Both the Yugoslavia and Rwanda courts were forced on their governments by the United Nations, while Sierra Leone requested the Special Court. If the case moves to The Hague, Taylor's trial would still be overseen by judges from the Sierra Leone tribunal, a group of 11 that includes four nominated by the Sierra Leonean government.
"The international community got this right. It's located at the place where it should be, and that's at the scene of the crime," said David Crane, the former lead prosecutor who indicted Taylor. "It is more efficient to have it in the location because that's where all the witnesses are."
Crane and his successor were appointed by the U.N. secretary-general.
As important as it as been to hold hearings in Sierra Leone, the trial of Taylor, the most prominent suspect to be brought before the court, may be different, said another Sierra Leonean monitor, Thomas George.
George said he has spoken to Liberians who have told him a Taylor trial in Sierra Leone would not be good for regional relations.
"Liberians will regard Sierra Leone as hostile, because they will see Sierra Leone putting their president on trial," he said.
The Sierra Leone experiment has not worked seamlessly. Crane said the delay in getting Nigeria to turn over Taylor means the court will continue past a planned five-year term. Nigeria had given Taylor refuge for more than two years before reluctantly agreeing last week to surrender him for trial.
Andersen said court staff have had to spend much of their time raising funds, because the court is supported by donations.
And despite the efforts of outreach groups, spectators at the court generally have been journalists, not members of the public.
"There are some of the victims, yes. But mostly, it's the press. Although we invite the public, very few people come," said Andersen.
"Sometimes people are a little nervous about having to go by a lot of people with machine guns," he said, referring to security at the court. But he said the public follows the trials through radio announcements and videos the court sends out.
credit BellSouth