Analysis of the Indictment of President Charles Taylor of Liberia by the Special Court For Sierra Leone

The warrant of Arrest appealed to all national authorities, international, and INTERPOL to take all necessary actions to have President Charles Taylor arrested and turned over to the Special Court For Sierra Leone. The warrant also appealed to all nations to:

The publication of the indictment and warrant of arrest triggered panic and sent shock waves throughout Liberia, while Taylor was in Ghana to attend peace talks between rebel groups and his Government. In the wake of this political earthquake, President Taylor abandon the peace talks and immediately departed for Liberia without being arrested by the Ghanaian Government.

Initially, the Ghanaian government reacted to the warrant of arrest by stating that the legal documents had not been officially presented to them. When the UN tribunal indicated that they had documents to show that Ghana had confirm receipt of the documents prior to President Taylor's visit, the Ghanaian Foreign Minister Mr. Nano Akufo-Addo is reported to have said that the indictment and the warrant of arrest were "embarrassing" to the Ghanaian government and that the peace talks were more important than the judicial proceedings brought against Charles Taylor. The Minister of Economic Planning of Liberia, Mr. Sam Jackson, is reported to have said that the act of the UN tribunal was "tantamount to a declaration of war". A representative of the rebel group LURD down played the indictment by saying that the peace talks were their priority. In response to the indictment and the warrant of arrest, President Charles Taylor indicted that it was all "politics". Later he asserted that for the peace process to succeed, the charges against him had to be dropped.

Although the timing of the publication of the indictment and the warrant of arrest may have stall the peace process, the aforementioned negative reactions to the UN tribunal's action should be viewed within a broader context---most modern African nations have little regard for the rule of law and the judicial process.For many, the judicial process is seen not as part of a societal procedure that attempts to adjudicate disputes and criminal activities, but a nuisance.When President Obasanjo of Nigeria recently visited Liberia to discuss amanesty for President Charles Taylor,his rection toward the charges brought against Charles Taylor was, "..I will not be pressured.." an apparent reference to the fact that he was not going to be pressured by the Special Court for Sierra Leone. He showed no respect for the UN/Sierra Leonean tribunal.

Let us now explore the legitimacy and the statutory powers of the SPECIAL COURT FOR SIERRA Leone. Most of the powers of the SCSL are derived from SECURITY COUNCIL Resolution 1315, which authorized the SECRETARY GENERAL of the United Nations under paragraph 2 to "...negotiate an agreement with the Government of Sierra Leone to create an independent Special Court.." The mandate of the Security Council stipulates that "...jurisdiction of the Special Court should include notably crimes against humanity, war crimes and other serious violations of international humanitarian law, as well as crimes under relevant Sierra Leonean law committed within the territory of Sierra Leone." Under paragraph 2 of the SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION, the SPECIAL COURT FOR SIERRA LEONE is authorized to prosecute, "...those leaders who, in committing such crimes have threatened the establishment of and implementation of the peace process in Sierra Leone."

Under whose aegis did the SECURITY COUNCIL of the United Nations obtain the power to intervene in the affairs of sovereign states, in this case, establishing a war crimes tribunal in Sierra Leone? Under Chapter VII, Article 39 of the United Nations Charter, it is stipulated that: "The Security Council shall determine the existence of any threat to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression and shall make recommendation, or decide what measures shall be taken in accordance with Article 41 and 42, to maintain or restore international peace and security." Under these specials powers, the UN intervened in the Korean war in the 1950s; it also used the same powers to intervene in the Congo in the 1960s; and most recently, in the Balkens. Similar powers were used to form the tribunal in the Tutsi/Hutu genocide in Southern Africa.

Under the Statue of the SPECIAL COURT FOR SIERRA LEONE, President Charles Taylor faces a series of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including: murder; extermination; enslavement ;deportation; imprisonment;torture;rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution,forced pregnancy, and other forms of sexual violence; persecution on political,racial,ethnic,or religious grounds; and other inhumane acts. These war crimes are broadly covered under Article Article 3 of the Geneva Convention, which stipulates that: "Persons taking no active part in hostilities...shall in all circumstances be treated humanely, without any adverse distinction on race, colour, religion or faith,birth or wealth or any other similar criteria."

War crimes and crimes against humanity are grave indictments. President Charles Taylor has to realize that it is the international community that he is facing this time. One could make a case, that questions the mandate and authority of the Special Court For Sierra Leone, in bringing charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity against the sitting president of a sovereign nation. However, those legal arguments can only be made before the SCSL. Simply stated, President Charles Taylor must now get a reputable lawyer and begin preparing his defence, even if it is in abstantia. He cannot use the peace process or his status as a cover to ignore the charges. To ignore the SCSL will only make matters acute. In the warrant of arrest, the SCSL already appealed to the international community to:

"...identify and locate assets by the accused [Charles Taylor] located within the territory of any state and adopt provisional measures to freeze such assets without prejudice to the rights of third parties."

There might be defensible charges in the indictment of Charles Taylor in the court of law, but not if they are ignored. In my humble opinion, the SCSL itself does not appear to be an independent body, since it is jointly sponsored by the United Nations and Sierra Leone. While in my heart, I feel that Charles Taylor got what he deserve for putting the Liberian and Sierra Leonean people through hell, in my head, I feel that he cannot get a fair trial in Sierra Leone. While the citizens of Sierra Leone, who are war criminals, should be prosecuted by the SCSL, an independent judicial body, in an independent country, should persecute Charles Taylor for whatever war crimes he has committed. The current case is analogous to having the United Nations create a special court in Croatia, with the cooperation of the Croatian government, and having that court issue indictments and warrant of arrest for former President Slobodan Miloservic while he was President of Yugoslavia. The point is you cannot have the victim as part of the prosecution. The assistant prosecutor of the SCSL is a Sierra Leonean and Sierra Leonean laws are allowed to be used. This makes it almost impossible for SCSL to ignore internal pressures and nationalistic feelings in prosecuting Charles Taylor.

Charles Taylor has several legal options opened to him: he can legally fight the charges; he can negotiate with the prosecutor to have some of the charges dropped; or he can challenge the legitimacy and independence of the SCSL. However, these options have to be exercised within the framework of the SCSL. He cannot ignore the court. He needs to move decisively and show to the international community that he is not above international law. He needs to get a team of lawyers now, and save the Liberian people from collective punishment from the international community.

The current plan to have Charles Taylor exiled to Nigeria is ephemeral. Although it will ease the pressure off him and pave the way to end the current conflict, it does not exonerate him from the war crime charges. I believe that in time, he will be extradited to Sierra Leone to face the charges.

Ironically, one of the institutions (judicial system) that Charles Taylor stifled during his presidency, will eventually be used by him to defend himself against the war crime charges.

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