NETHERLANDS:The chief prosecutor in a trial linking former Liberian president Charles Taylor to atrocities committed during Sierra Leone's civil war is hopeful the landmark tribunal will stay on schedule despite a number of delays since it opened last month, writes Foreign Affairs Correspondent Mary Fitzgerald.
"I think we're all set now with the idea that deadlines will have to be observed with only a little leeway," Stephen Rapp, a former US attorney in Iowa, told The Irish Times.
Taylor, the first African leader to be tried on charges of crimes against humanity, initially boycotted the trial when it opened in The Hague. Established in 2002 to try those held most responsible for Sierra Leone's civil war, the UN-backed court usually sits in the country's capital, Freetown. Taylor is being tried in the Netherlands because of fears his trial would spark fresh unrest in Sierra Leone.
After dismissing the trial as a charade, Taylor sacked his lawyer and demanded a stronger defence team before making a surprise appearance at the trial earlier this month.
The court has now agreed a monthly sum of $100,000 to cover Taylor's legal costs, hoping the new team is in place before the next session which is due to start on August 20th. Taylor is entitled to legal aid because the court has ruled he is unable to pay for his own defence, despite prosecutors suggesting he has millions stashed in bank accounts around the world.
"It's a better package than any international accused has at any court," Rapp said. "It would be very hard for him to complain about. It's disturbing to me that we're spending this money on his legal representation and there are victims that can't even get 100 dollars but it's important that justice be done."
The indictment alleges that Taylor (59) sponsored and armed the Revolutionary United Front, Sierra Leone's main rebel group, in exchange for diamonds smuggled out of the country. He is accused of directing child soldiers, fuelled with drugs and alcohol, in a civil war that lasted for more than a decade and resulted in tens of thousands being killed, raped and mutilated. "Who's responsible for what happened - is it the young children who chopped off limbs? No - it's the people who enlisted them, the people whose greedy motives were driving the whole thing. That's why holding the person at the top responsible is so important," said Rapp. The case is expected to last around 18 months and will include evidence from 150 witnesses.
Rapp, in Ireland to take part in a seminar at Trinity College, Dublin, says the evidence against Taylor is "abundant".
"We have 62 people listed as linkage witnesses, some of whom are former insiders close to Taylor in Liberia. Others are individuals in Sierra Leone who were able to see people under his direct command serving as facilitators and commanders in a number of operations. The evidence is very strong and compelling." Dependent on voluntary international donations, the court needs to raise around $60 million to complete its work on deadline. Ireland has contributed a total of €2.25 million so far. "When we look at the funding possibilities and the time frame, it's a tight situation," Rapp admitted. "But we understand that the project of international justice is also on trial here so we have to do this efficiently, we have to make sure the case is presented as succinctly as possible so that justice will be done and seen to be done."