Call to Surrender and Justice

Charles Taylor is the former president of Liberia who 2 years ago yesterday fled Liberia to exile in Nigeria in order that peace could come to Liberia. Liberia had been in a 14 year civil war and the year 2003 is when many in the US heard about this war for the first time. I remember being home on leave and reading about the war in Liberia on the front page of the paper. There was a call from international leaders for Taylor to step down so peace could finally come to Liberia. He finally agreed and has been living in Nigeria ever since.

Besides being a large part of the instability in Liberia, Charles Taylor has been accused of crimes against humanity and war crimes committed during Sierra Leone's civil war. He also claims that he is misunderstood and says, "Jesus Christ was also accused of being a murderer in his time."

Yesterday there was yet another call for Nigeria to surrender Taylor to the Special Court for Sierra Leone:

The Campaign Against Impunity, a coalition made up of some 300 African and international civil society groups was formed to ensure Nigeria's surrender of Charles Taylor to the Special Court for Sierra Leone. Taylor has been accused of 17 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity against the people of Sierra Leone by the Special Court. The crimes include killings, mutilations, rape and other forms of sexual violence, sexual slavery, the recruitment and use of child soldiers, abduction, and the use of forced labor by Sierra Leonean armed opposition groups.

But Nigeria has refused to turn over Taylor.

Despite mounting international pressure from African countries, the United Nations, the European Union and the United States, Nigeria continues to resist surrendering indicted war criminal Charles Taylor to the Special Court for Sierra Leone.

Surrendering Taylor to the Special Court is crucial not only to ensure justice is done for crimes committed during the Sierra Leone conflict, but also to ensure stability in West Africa, the Campaign Against Impunity said. There are consistent reports of Taylor's interference in Liberian politics, despite the terms of the agreement granting him asylum, which prohibits any such meddling.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan stated that Taylor is reportedly in regular contact with former business, military and political associates in Liberia and is suspected of supporting candidates in Liberia's October presidential election.

The official presedential election campaign in Liberia begins Monday. If Taylor is involved in the elections (which according to his exile agreement he is forbidden to have anything to do with the election or have contact with any potential canidates) it could cause great instability in an already fragile nation.

"The moment for Taylor's surrender to the Special Court is now," said James Paul Allen, a Sierra Leonean human rights activist involved in the campaign. "The indictment for Charles Taylor on war crimes and crimes against humanity must be honored. The victims in Sierra Leone who suffered grave crimes under international law should not be forced to wait any longer."

My $.02: Taylor needs to stand trial. I worked in Sierra Leone over a period of 3 years and just recently in Liberia, I have heard a few of the thousands of horrific stories from innocent people. We serve a God of justice. May justice be realized.

More Background: CNN-Turmoil in Liberia 2003, Timeline: Liberia, Douglas Farah Blog