| Prepared by: | Esther Pan |
|---|
Taylor's fate raises fears of renewed violence in Liberia (Photo: AP)
A delicate diplomatic dance has occurred in West Africa between Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and newly elected Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. Obasanjo bowed to a request from Johnson-Sirleaf to allow former Liberian president and strongman Charles Taylor to leave Nigeria and possibly face war crimes charges before the UN special court in Sierra Leone. But Obasanjo—who has hosted the former Liberian dictator in gilded exile since convincing him to step down in 2003 and end the Liberian civil war—initially did not initially send Taylor back to Liberia or make arrangements for him to be delivered to Sierra Leone. Instead, his government stated that Liberia is "free to take" Taylor into custody (This Day, Lagos), causing consternation after he disappeared, briefly.
Now it appears that, with UN intercession, Taylor will stand trial in a special Sierra Leone court. A short time after his disappearance, the former president was caught trying to cross the Cameroon-Nigeria border. After being arrested by Nigerian authorities, Taylor was brought to Liberia, where UN officials took him into custody and flew him to the UN-backed court at a guarded compound in Freetown (Reuters).
Prior to Taylor's disappearance, Obasanjo faced resistance from other African leaders over breaking his promise to Taylor of immunity from prosecution in return for giving up power. Cameron Duodu, a Ghanaian journalist, wrote for the Guardian blog site that Obasanjo's move could damage future efforts to convince troublesome warlords to leave their countries. However, when Taylor does faces the UN court, it could set a new precedent for African leaders unaccustomed to accounting for their crimes. Nigeria's decision, and eventual apprehension of Taylor, came just as Obasanjo met with President George Bush at the White House March 29. Bush applauded the move (VOA), telling Obasanjo it signaled the Nigerian leader's "desire for there to be peace in your neighborhood."
Taylor faces seventeen counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity for his support of rebel forces in Sierra Leone, whose tactics included killings, mutilations, rape, sexual slavery, the conscription of child soldiers, and the use of forced labor. The Sierra Leone court is earning favorable reviews for its work: A Human Rights Watch report praises it for "making major progress on trials" of the nine people indicted, despite "scarce and insecure resources."
In the meantime, Liberia is trying to emerge from two decades of war and instability that left the country barely functioning. An International Crisis Group report says the country's major challenges include reforming the judicial system, rebuilding infrastructure, training a new army, and gaining debt forgiveness. Johnson-Sirleaf told the United Nations during her recent U.S. visit that Liberia would need an international security presence for four to five more years in order to get back on its feet (AllAfrica.com). Johnson-Sirleaf discussed the challenges her country faces at a CFR meeting March 21.
Weigh in on this issue by emailing CFR.org.
CFR offers a variety of email newsletters about up-to-date CFR.org material on what’s happening around the world.
Enter your email address and click 'Go' to subscribe.
CFR Experts are based in CFR’s New York and Washington offices. Each expert's bio page contains his or her contact information, professional and educational history, links to publications and current research, a downloadable one-page biographical narrative, and a high-definition photo.
Identifying international threats and acting on them may be the most difficult job for U.S. policymakers. This report
provides an actionable road map for managing international threats before they erupt into crises and makes a strong case that preventive action is not a luxury but a necessity.
For more than a decade, the United States has mostly watched from the sidelines as Asian countries organize themselves into an alphabet soup of new multilateral groups. In this report, the authors review the relationship between pan-Asian and trans-Pacific institutions and suggest policy guidelines for a new U.S. approach to this new Asian landscape.
Complete list of Council Special Reports
Start-Up Nation addresses the trillion-dollar question: How is it that Israel—a country of 7.1 million, only sixty years old, surrounded by enemies— produces more start-up companies than large, peaceful, and stable nations like Japan, China, India, Korea, Canada, and the UK? With the insights of geopolitical experts and investors, the authors examine this nation’s adversity-driven culture to answer this question and offer prescriptions for a global economy on the rebound.
In Forces of Fortune, Vali Nasr presents a paradigm-changing revelation that will transform the understanding of the Muslim world at large. He reveals that there is a vital but unseen rising force in the Islamic world—a new business-minded middle class—that is building a vibrant new Muslim world economy and that holds the key to winning the cold war against Iran and extremists.
In Cuba: What Everyone Needs to Know, Julia E. Sweig presents a remarkably accessible portrait of Cuba's unique place on the world stage over the past fifty years, including its internal politics, its often fraught relationship with the United States, and its shifting relationship with the global community.
Complete list of CFR Books
Copyright 2009 by the Council on Foreign Relations. All Rights Reserved.
Global Economy 