Liberia: Bill to Create WECC Imminent

The Independent National Human Rights Commission (INHCR), one of several human rights advocates in the country, has disclosed a plan to push a draft bill to ensure that the Legislature establishes the War and Economic Crimes Court purposely to hold accountable those responsible for acts of genocide or other serious violations of international humanitarian law during the 14-year civil war between 1989 and 2003.

Cllr. Dempster Brown, INHRC's Chairman, disclosed this at a press conference in Monrovia on Monday, April 15.  

But, according to Brown, the resolution does not give a guarantee about the establishment of any courts. "It is just an expression by the lawmakers that the country is ready for the establishment of the war and economic crimes courts," Cllr. Brown noted during a press conference recently. " INHCR will in the coming days Draft a bill for the establishment of the court.:

Brown, however, used the occasion to call on President Boakai to take hold of the opportunity to inform the United Nations Secretary-General during the pending General assembly to make the country’s case for support to the establishment of the war crime court.

Cllr. Brown disclosed that his commission will shortly become a series of dialogues with civil society organizations, including the Liberian National Bar Association (LNBA) to develop a clear road map about the composition of the court. “The dialogue will center on developing ideas to advise the lawmakers on the establishment of the courts.”

But a group of lawyers who asked to remain anonymous said the bill should broaden the scope of individuals that would be subjected to prosecution for war crimes allegedly committed in Liberia.

They also suggested that the current extradition treaty statute enables Liberian prosecutors to have the opportunity to ensure that alleged war criminals, regardless of the location or targets of their atrocities, be brought back home.

“The bill should also extend the statute of limitations for war crimes discovered years after they occur,” another lawyer proposed.

Another lawyer noted, “The United States must not be a haven for war criminals looking to escape justice. While the bill should include a provision to hold alleged war criminals accountable for acts against Liberians, alleged war criminals who enter the United States shouldn’t get a free pass just because they are Americans.

“Perpetrators committed unspeakable war crimes, such as those before our very eyes must be held to account. Our bill will address an egregious gap in our laws to ensure that war criminals who come to the United States can be repatriated to the country for prosecution for their crimes,” the lawyer said.

It can be recalled that widespread and systematic violations of international human rights and humanitarian law characterized Liberia’s two brutal armed conflicts, which took place between 1989 and 2003. Liberian men, women, and children were gunned down in their homes, marketplaces, and places of worship. 

In some cases, hundreds of civilians were massacred in a matter of hours. Girls and women were subjected to horrific sexual violence, including gang rape, sexual slavery, and torture. Children were abducted from their homes and schools and conscripted as child soldiers, often after witnessing the murder of their parents. The violence blighted the lives of tens of thousands of civilians and displaced almost half the population.