Will Liberia be the next country for a war crimes tribunal?

By Prince Kamara

In recent months, there have been increasing calls for a special war crimes court for Liberia. 18 years have passed since the country endured a horrific civil war that left over 250,000 dead,and not a single individual has been tried for war crimes within Liberia.

Internationally, courts have worked to make perpetrators of Liberia’s civil war accountable, although it has been a complex and arduous process to establish jurisdiction, locate witnesses, among other difficulties.

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Nevertheless, in June a Swiss court sentenced AlieuKosiah, an ex-warlord fighting for theUnited Liberation Movement of Liberia for Democracy to 20 years’ imprisonment. Gibril Massaquoi, a commander for the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) is currently facing trial in Finland. Mohammed “Jungle Jabbah” Jabbatehwas sentenced to 30 years in prison for lying to US immigration authorities about their role in the war in 2018.

Of course, the most infamous Liberian to be triedfor war crimes is Charles Taylor,who was convicted by the United Nations-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL). Taylor’s son Chuckie Taylor was also convicted by a US court in 2009, the first ever under the US torture statute.

However, while international trials are important, many in Liberia believe that a war crimes court in Liberia is needed to bring accountability and closure to a dark moment in Liberia’s past. But complex political motivations can be found behind those calling for a war crimes court – and in some cases, these motivations appear on the surface to be self-defeating, being likely targets of the court themselves.

Under President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia formed a Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC) which published its findings in 2007. The TRC’s report called for a special war crimes court to be formed and advocated for a 30-year ban on those found guilty – a problematic finding for some, given that many on TRC’s long list of those recommended for prosecution are still in government.

Notably, the TRC’s report – which would surely serve as a blueprint for any future war crimes court – recommended that in addition to warlords with command authority,individuals who took on a political or financing role, as well as those who perpetrated “economic crimes against the state and its people” should be targets.

This would almost certainly include individuals such Benoni Urey, who having served as Maritime Commissioner for Charles Taylor siphoned cash to support the purchase of military hardware in violation of international law. Urey also gained through dubious means a large stake in Lone Star Communications, a telecommunications monopoly initially controlled by Charles Taylor. Lone Star was identified in the TRC report as having “committed an array of economic crimes including tax evasion, bribery and telecommunications fraud.”

Given that many of those calling loudly for a war crimes court in Liberia are directly cited in the 2007 TRC report as recommended targets for prosecution, it begs the question: Are these individuals sincere in calling for a war crimes court of which that they themselves would become targets?

*Prince Kamara is writer and commentator based in New York, NY. He is currently pursuing a postgraduate degree in comparative politics.