The President of Liberia, Joseph Boakai has signed an executive order on Thursday, to create a war crimes court aimed at delivering justice to the victims of Liberia’s two civil wars. The wars were characterized by widespread mass killings, torture and sexual violence.
The law was passed by both the parliament and the senate, and signed off by a majority of lawmakers.
Boakai stated, “The conviction that brings us here today is that, for peace and harmony to have a chance to prevail, justice and healing must perfect the groundwork”.
There has been a call for justice for decades and for a court to try people suspected of carrying out war crimes. Although a post-war truth and reconciliation commission in 2009 identified a list of people to be prosecuted for war crimes, the government took no action against them.
Human right groups have said the girls were subjected to gang rapes, children were recruited to fight after their parents were killed and 250,000 people were killed between 1989 and 2003.
International donors are however needed to fund the court. The U.S. envoy for global criminal justice, Beth Van Schaack, said if the court was set up appropriately, the U.S would fund it. Other donors have also expressed willingness to support it once the details surrounding it are clear and there is a proper framework. She said, “For many citizens of Liberia, they see this as essential to a larger project establishing the rule of law in Liberia, so that there’s faith in institutions”.
A year ago, activists and rights groups called on the Biden administration to encourage Liberian officials to set up the court and fund it.
A human rights lawyer with the San Francisco-based Center for Justice and Accountability, Lindsay Bailey said, “Liberian activists have been calling for accountability for these crimes for nearly two decades. “It is necessary to give victims justice and a full account of what happened to their loved ones.
Accountability also helps to build respect for the rule of law and a durable peace.”
Eight people were listed by Liberia’s post-war truth and reconciliation committee as leaders of warring factions, including two who currently serve in the senate. While no one has been tried in Liberia, a handful of others have also been convicted of war crimes overseas.
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