Charles Taylor has denied stashing away huge amounts of money, allegedly earned through illicit diamond trading with Sierra Leonean rebels during the country’s 11-year conflict, in secret bank accounts around the world – and challenged his accusers to prove any such accounts existed.
“I challenge the prosecutor to bring any evidence of a bank account that I have — they know it’s a lie but they keep repeating it,” Mr. Taylor said during his testimony at the Special Court for Sierra Leone on Monday. “I ask anyone on this planet, if you know of any account that I opened or if you know anyone who was acting in my interest, you are obliged to come forward and say it.”
The Special Court for Sierra Leone’s prosecution team has alleged that Taylor benefited from diamonds mined by Sierra Leonean rebels, the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), during the country’s civil war, and that Mr. Taylor hid the proceeds in secret bank accounts. The prosecutor has been working with the UN Sanctions Committee to recover any moneys and assets, if at all they exist. Mr. Taylor has denied these allegations.
“What bank account has the UN found out for me?” Mr. Taylor asked. “Nobody ever brings factual evidence but it is repeated, repeated and repeated, and you can never put things straight.”
“Bockarie did not seek orders from me. I did not seek to give him orders,” Mr. Taylor told the judges in The Hague.
The link between the two men and Bockarie’s RUF rebel group goes to the heart of the case against Charles Taylor in the Special Court: that is, whether Mr. Taylor was in control of the RUF’s actions in Sierra Leone during the war, including the crimes that were committed by the RUF, during the country’s conflict after 1996 – and whether Mr. Taylor had the power to stop those crimes or punish those who committed them.
The Prosecution has alleged that Mr. Taylor did give orders to Mr. Bockarie, and thus had effective control over the RUF forces at critical times during the Sierra Leonean conflict. Between 1997-1999, former RUF leader Foday Sankoh was jailed in Nigeria and during his absence, Sam Bockarie served as interim leader of the RUF. Several prosecution witnesses have testified that during Sankoh’s absence, Sam Bockarie used to take to take orders directly from Mr. Taylor and based on his advice, the RUF launched strategic operations such as the attacks on the diamond-rich town of Koidu in 1998 and Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown in 1999. Witnesses also testified that during this period, Sam Bockarie made several visits to Liberia based on Mr. Taylor’s invitation. During these visits, witnesses said that Mr. Bockarie travelled back to Sierra Leone with loads of arms and ammunition which the RUF used to cause mayhem against the people of Sierra Leone. Mr. Taylor has denied all these allegations.
Mr Taylor has sought to explain the nature of his relationship to Mr. Bockarie during his testimony in his own defense. On Monday July 3, 2009, Mr. Taylor told the Special Court that in September 1998, he invited Sam Bockarie to Liberia for the sole purpose of convincing him to end the war in Sierra Leone. He also admitted giving Bockarie an amount of money as a gift for him and his rebels.
“When you come, presidents will, what they do, we do envelopes, may be one or two thousand dollars, we give it to you for you and your boys to go and have a good time, may be buy some new jeans, some sneakers, that kind of thing,” Mr. Taylor told the court.
In his testimony on Wednesday, Mr. Taylor again admitted that in October and November 1998, Sam Bockarie also went to Liberia. During his visit in October 1998, Mr. Taylor said that Bockarie met with him, together with other security officers of Mr. Taylor’s Liberian government, as well as with ECOWAS leaders. Mr. Taylor said that on this visit also, he assigned a guest house to the RUF where they stayed whenever they were in Liberia for the purpose of discussing the peace process in Sierra Leone. He said all members of the ECOWAS Committee of Five also had access to the RUF leaders at the guest house.
In November 1998, Mr. Taylor said Bockarie also visited Liberia en route to Burkina Faso. Asked about his knowlege of the purpose of the visit, Mr. Taylor said he was informed that Sam Bockarie was travelling with a delegation of RUF commanders to seek advice from Burkina Faso president Blaise Campaore on the peace process in Sierra Leone.
On Thursday, Mr. Taylor responded to prosecution allegations that he sent Liberians to fight alongside the RUF rebels in Sierra Leone and that he helped in planning the rebel attacks on Sierra Leone’s diamond rich town of Koidu in the Kono District in 1998 and the January 1999 attacks on the country’s capital Freetown.
Mr. Taylor told the judges that peacekeepers of the Economic Community of West Africa States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG), who were based in Liberia, trained over 1000 Liberians and sent them to fight in Sierra Leone. Many of these Liberians were disarmed combatants who were paid and made to fight alongside the Kamajors, a Sierra Leonean civil militia that fought against rebels forces on behalf of the Sierra Leonean government.
“Some of these disarmed ex-combatants were trained and made to fight alongside the Kamajors. Even some of these Liberians are officers in the Sierra Leone army today,” Mr. Taylor said.
Mr. Taylor said that he was wrongly accused and made to take responsibility for the Liberian fighters in Sierra Leone. He said that when these allegations came up, he asked the United Nations to conduct an independent investigation to prove whether he had anything to do with the presence of Liberian fighters in Sierra Leone.
“I wanted a formal investigation to know who these Liberian fighters in Sierra Leone were, because I know I did not send them,” Mr. Taylor said. ”I tried to force an international investigation but it did not take place.”
Mr. Taylor said he called for the deployment of United Nations observers as well as Sierra Leonean and Liberian personnel to monitor the Sierra Leone-Liberian border. He asked the government of Sierra Leone to send undercover officers to Liberia to investigate whether he was sending Liberians to Sierra Leone to fight, Mr. Taylor said.
When the allegations of his support for Liberian fighters in Sierra Leone continued during the war, Mr. Taylor said that he threatened to quit the ECOWAS Committee of Five.
“I am doing my best, there are no Liberians that I have sent to Sierra Leone, but the allegations abound,” Mr. Taylor said. “So I am going to step out of the Committee of Five. We were just frustrated, we were tired, we were doing our best but nothing was changing.”
Other West African leaders prevailed on him not to quit the Committee of Five, he said, and he stayed.
Mr. Taylor also told the judges that on December 20 1998, he closed the Liberian border with Sierra Leone in order to prevent the movement of people between both countries for military purposes.
In response to prosecution allegations that he helped RUF rebels to attack Sierra Leone’s capital Freetown only weeks later, in January 1999, Mr. Taylor told judges that he “heard that the attack on Freetown was launched with the assistance of Liberian fighters.” Upon hearing this, Mr. Taylor said he immediately wrote a letter to the United Nations Secretary General to inform him that Liberia was not involved in the attack.
Mr. Taylor’s testimony continues on Monday.
i still do not understand why these people still wandering about this secret bank issue.do they have prove?the man had defied any human being created by God that he should come forth with the account number or some one who will say yes “i acted in his name”prove him a liar.
the U N is a deceiver ,they knew very well that bokarie was in monrovia and acted as though they did not know anything.Taylor might not be free cuz we know the case is cut but as i have always said the truth will surface.
Can u imagine george bush going to war with out the oking of the U N(a toothless bull dog)?he is sitting in texas and enjoying himself with his family.
bravo grifiths we know you will prove your legal prowess to the world cuz you are doing this out of the conviction that your client is not guilty and that court cannot prove that beyond reasonable doubt.
The story about Mr. Taylor benefited from diamonds money in Sirerra Leone is just another make up story by the prosecutor in order to make living from donors monies. They want to use Mr. Taylor as a bit to get money from the British and Americans who think that Mr. Taylor is a threat to their intrest in getting wealth of Africa. I’m sure the socall bank account will never be found cus it dosen just exist on planet earth.
They used that PR just to make him look a GREEDY MAN who will do whatever to be rich. This bank issue has been around since ’98……over a decade and we still have NOT seen a deposit slip from any bank around the world. How can someone hide 5 BILLION United States dollar if we are to believe Mr. Rapp???
For folks who do not live in the Western world, let me tell you that you cannot takeout and put in a penny of your account without some kind of paper trail. One cannot open an account anywhere on this planet without showing some kind of ID. So who deposited the money for him??? He has since ’03 challenged the world to bring said evidence and todate, ZERO…..amazing.
Really, my TEST MARKS in this case…NO BANK ACCOUNT, NO CONCRET EVIDENCES TO SHOW RELATIONSHIP, NO PICTURES OF HIM IN FREETOWN, SLIPPY COLLECTION OF EVIDENCES plus WITNESSES WERE TAINTED. So I ask WHERE IS THE BEEF??
From the start of this trial against Mr. Taylor we were made to belief that he was guilty already due to the fact that the western medias only cut the cake from the portion of the baker and never cared to get the portion of the invited guests. By far, I must say, as the way it has reached, I belief the truth has alredy prevailed that Mr. Taylor has fully proven his innocense. My suggestion is for the SCSL to throw the case out and find another way, if need be to open another case against Mr. Taylor if he must be put into jail for the sake of western inpunity.
No proof of secret bank accounts…ok really? Are we all ignoring the fact that his son Charles Taylor Jr. is now in jail with about $60 million US dollars frozen in Swiss bank accounts? Are we also going to pretend that Taylor cannot possibly be hiding these amounts of money under other family members’ names in these same secret accounts? It may be difficult to find a paper trail, but how do we explain why his son, also allegedly one of the most torturous of people during the war, had such an amount of money while fighting alongside his father?? This all sounds fishy to me…Check all of his family members’ secret bank accounts first, before saying he did not hide this money. Its inconceivable for most to believe that which does not have a paper trail, so can we say that Taylor did not also receive money straight from NYC to support his early war efforts b/c we cannot find the paper trail? When sending money from one person to another is a simple matter of Western Union why is it inconceivable that this could have been done one Joe Brown to the next and it eventually gets handed off to Papay Taylor? Perhaps the prosecution just needs to look closer but it is hard for me to rule out this possibility???
Furthermore, why hand over $2,000 to Sam Bockerie? Trying to end the fight and be peacemaker by throwing some cash for new jeans, new sneakers, and a good time with your boys? This is a rebel leader who was accused of leading many amputations in his country, and you are rewarding him with a good time in Liberia during his visit?!!! What in the world is this?? The common person in Monrovia was living off a generator with no clean water or sewage systems, from bag of rice, to bag of rice AND that $2,000 would have better been given for 4 generators to 4 families than to a rebel leader?! In the same breath Taylor says he was trying to convince him to end the fighting… ridiculous.
Concerned Liberian in the U.S, are you OK? Seriously are you ALRIGHT? I’m worried about you. Are you sure you are living in America? Are you also sure that Western Union does not have a paper trail or other means to track money transaction? What’s up with this “inconceivable” word you seem to be obsessed with? Who gave President Taylor money “straight from NYC? Can you prove it? Are you aware of President Taylor ex-officials, family members, friends and relatives on U.N travel ban? Are you also aware that the U.N has asked the Liberian Government to freeze these people assets.
NICE TRY.
jose Rodriguez or what ever your name is Charles Taylor has asked the whole world to bring to the court proof of any!
so shut up if you do not provide proof.
We are sick of these STUPID questions over and over!
Nii Darku — thanks for your comment.
I do want to use this opportunity to remind readers of our policy to focus on the issues raised in comments and postings, not on each other. If commenters violate this policy, the site reserves the right not to post such comments.
With thanks in advance,
Tracey
Nii, I aint know which country you come from.cuz your name is a kindo fstrange . But that’s not the point. I really want to know which side are you on.I don’t understand your whole problem with jose; because this brother is saying just the right thing. Why don’t you give him his flower. SHOW US THE MONEY!!!!. HELLO!!!.
Jose, Nii, and Noko5,
I am fully aware the trial of Taylor has the potency to touch on raw nerves and engender unquantifiable emotionality, irrationality, curiosity, the search for truth, and resurrect anti- or pro-Taylor sentiments and rhetoric. Understandably, all of us can not agree or disagree with the legality of the proceeding nor can we all agree or disagree with Taylor’s comments. Much as some of us might harbor good or ill feelings towards Taylor, let us not turn this forum into another Liberian civil war this time fought by harsh rhetoric instead of guns. Nobody can refute the fact that our anti- or pro- Taylor stance/sentiment runs deep in postwar Liberia’s psyche and culture, though there are some who might choose to be neutral and impervious to this sentiment.
It might be in the best interest of the reading public, if we, the commentators on this forum, resolve to us use our best intellect and civility to carry out discussion or engage the specifics of Taylor’s testimony at the Hague. Besides, I am of the impression this forum provides Liberians and non-Liberians the opportunity to catch up on the edited or unedited transcript of the trial to analyze, critique, rebut, and or acquiesce with Taylor’s self disclosure. Insinuations, falsehoods, innuendoes, hearsay, emotionality, and irrationality will potentially dissuade some readers from revisiting this forum and effectively leave the forum in the hands of a limited few. There is nothing wrong with dialectic tension but let us keep our dialectic tension candid, intellectual, meaningful, analytical, and free of vulgarity and insensitive rhetoric. Let us also focus on the content/specifics of Taylor’s testimony and use that as a starting point to analyze dialogue, criticize, rebut, or agree with Taylor or a commentator.
Wonderfully said, Duke.
Jose and Nii,
I am fully aware the trial of Taylor has the potency to touch on raw nerves and engender unquantifiable emotionality, irrationality, curiosity, the search for truth, and resurrect anti- or pro-Taylor sentiments and rhetoric. Understandably, all of us can not agree or disagree with the legality of the proceeding nor can we all agree or disagree with Taylor’s comments. Much as some of us might harbor good or ill feelings towards Taylor, let us not turn this forum into another Liberian civil war this time fought by harsh rhetoric instead of guns. Nobody can refute the fact that our anti- or pro- Taylor stance/sentiment runs deep in postwar Liberia’s psyche and culture, though there are some who might choose to be neutral and impervious to this sentiment.
It might be in the best interest of the reading public, if we, the commentators on this forum, resolve to us use our best intellect and civility to carry out discussion or engage the specifics of Taylor’s testimony at the Hague. Besides, I am of the impression this forum provides Liberians and non-Liberians the opportunity to catch up on the edited or unedited transcript of the trial to analyze, critique, rebut, and or acquiesce with Taylor’s self disclosure. Insinuations, falsehoods, innuendoes, hearsay, emotionality, and irrationality will potentially dissuade some readers from revisiting this forum and effectively leave the forum in the hands of a limited few. There is nothing wrong with dialectic tension but let us keep our dialectic tension candid, intellectual, meaningful, analytical, and free of vulgarity and insensitive rhetoric. Let us also focus on the content/specifics of Taylor’s testimony and use that as a starting point to analyze dialogue, criticize, rebut, or agree with Taylor or a commentator.
Duke, sorry my man;but the context of your statements seem like you are objectively trying to let the reading audience know how many vocabs.. you learn yesterday. Ha…ha..ha..did you help write the webster dictionary?No offence…brother.
Accepted,Nii.
However, I hope you are not suggesting that Webster dictionary is the only lexicon because there are many others out there.
Also, your brother has been around quite a while to just start learning rudimentary terminology.
Anyway, let us stick to the issue as I am really interested in the testimony of Taylor and how we are dialoguing on the specifics of his testimony. I have been reading your comments and am pleased with a good number of them. Let us keep the spirit of a good intellectual dialogue alive.
Wish you well, Nii.
Ha ha ha…….Concerned, WHY are you trying to make me choke on my water??? Do you truly believe in said money was in account under the name Charles Taylor, Sr or Jr by now it won’t be disclosed???
The reason his son sits in jail today got ZERO to do with Sierra Leone but rather broke a US LAW from the 18 century. Let’s NOT confuse ourselves.
Concerned Liberian in USA,
Thank you for your contribution to the dialogue through this medium on the ongoing Taylor Trial. I wanted to comment on the two points that you raised above.
First you seem to doubt Taylor’s denial of his alleged foreing bank accounts. On this subject it is the prosecution who claimed that Taylor had moneys saved in foreing accounts. It is the prosecution duty to prove this assertion or claim. You and me should not be debating this point. Because we are debating it speaks to the validity of various issues of cusps or loopholes that exist in the prosecution’s case. Had the prosecution proven this allegation the matter would have been put to rest.
The second point relates to the money given to Sam Bockarie. I believe that you and me are convinced that Taylor did not need Bockarie to serve as a middle man in the acquisition of arms and ammunition for the Government of Liberia. For the time under consideration was the time of Taylor Presidency. For you alluded to Taylor possessing capability of facilitating his own acquisition. Hence money given to Bockarie can not be for the purchase of arms since such a matter is expected to be discrete, clandestine and covert. Lastly, $2000 is so demunitive and dismissive an amount for a President to award as a gift, that it appears in my mind, awkward if not preposterous to discuss it.
Park Hill, Staten Island, NYC, talk to people there that love and support Charles Taylor and then tell me if they couldnt possibly A) be keeping the money for their adored father and B) know family members’ or closely tied allies to the Taylor clan who are not living large in the US right now off of that same money?? Before people come at me and accuse me of hear say, I’m on the streets, I hear what’s going on…and has been going on through Liberian satellite communties like those in Staten Island…you’ll be surprised to find out what I have, but again its hear say b/c Taylor was smart enought NOT to leave a paper trail…the man was guilty of embezzlement and was in jail for it…do we think when he picked up arms and started training for fight in Liberia he just abandoned those money mongrel ways??
Once the Special Court in Liberia is approved and Taylor and others are brought to trial for their crimes in Liberia, then hopefully all the juice will come out from a conflict that did not start in 1989…it started when the first boat of African-American former slaves landed on the shores of Liberia…the TRC report tries to address this…
Wake up people please!
Concern liberian; You are very funny.Are you saying that if somebody should come up tomorrow and accuse you that” you !! concern liberian stole diamond from sierraleone , you should go to jail? Sometimes it’s good to put yourself in somebodys’ shoes before concluding the persons’ situation. I want to advice that you seek professional views bbefore making contibutions on this site the next time.
Concerned Liberian, I don’t want to “wake up.” Please don’t tell me to “wake up” next time. Actually, I want to keep on sleeping. By the way, “wake up” for what? To read what you have written that has no substance? You think you know about everything, don’t you? Talking about “wake up people please.” I’m going back to bed.
Concerned Liberian, tracing bank accounts in the US, Europe or Switzerland is a long, tedious, and legal process as most banks are reluctant to disclose confidential information on their customers. I might be wrong and stand corrected but my bank for instance will not disclose my account information unless perhaps subpoenaed by the government or a court having jurisdiction over where I live and even with that a lot of legal wrangling takes place behind the scene. If my bank did, I could sue… Banks privacy is protected by laws and I am afraid, sir, getting into that is a convoluted matter.
That said, in his testimony Taylor says he has no such bank account as alleged and I think that should settle the matter until something else comes out. I know it is unthinkable and hard to wrap your mind around the fact that a former African leader will claim he has no bank account anywhere in the world as alleged, however let us take his word for it until otherwise proven.
A defence of denials and admission is simply making Mr. Taylar sets himself up, admission to giving $2,000.00 to Sam Bocarie to have parties and buy jeans for him and his RUF killers that are accused of mayhem on the peaceful people of the mano river union is disgusting.lets all remember here that the prosecusion will have their chance to cross examine Mr. Taylor and all those the defence will call to the stand. frankly I have to say this is too early to conclude.can’t wait until all is over.
Concern Liberian,
You surely have issues that you need to resolve. How can you begin to make assertions about things that you know absolutely nothing about. You say that Mr. Taylor’s relatives have money in the US? It is a blattant lie. First of all most of That man’s children are not even in school because of money problems. Do you think there would be money hidden to the extent that his own children would not be able to go to school? Be real. We are not dealing with speculations here but facts.
You have no evidence or anything to substantiate your sclaims. You need to be placed in the same biat with the prosecution. It is people like you that they use to rely on their socalled evidence which is now turning to total lies.
Mr Taylor’s immediate family were put on a UN Asset Freeze. All asset own and operated by them is frozen, In the first place most of them do not evn have any substantial assets that is the first thing. In fact i found out that those on the ban who live in the UK are not even allowed to work unless their employers get permission from the UK Treasury to pay them a salary and even the salary is frozen with special allowance only given for them to receive basic living expenses of food, clothing, and housing and utilities. This is from a very very reliable source.
Go an read the asset freeze regulation of the UNSC and see what it stipulates. It even bars anyone from helping those on the list. So do not speak about things that you know nothing about. Besides this forum here is with intelligent people who are examining the merits and demerits of this case in a legal and socio- political framework.
Thanks Jose and Noko5 and Noko4 and all others for straightening hims out. he needs to be educated to the reality of this case.
Ladies, Gentlemen, People of Liberia,
This whole issue of Sierra Leonean diamonds and Taylor’s interest inter alia, is preposterous. We all know that the Diamond belt in the Lofa Bridge and Waesua area(Cape Mount County, Liberia) is just as inexhaustable as the Sierra Leonean diamond belt. Why would Taylor be so avaricious?
Concerned Liberian, you are more confused than the prosecutor. You are a sleeping head, it is you that need to wake up not smart minds on this site.
I have being following the court proceedings with keen interest from day one and I have these to say, President Charles Taylor is an oustanding leader of his time who spared no efforts in making sure to place the sovereingty of Liberian on the map and challenged the western munipulation, power play and all kind of drama initiated by super power to ruin African continent.
It’s imperative to know that one of the document tendered in evidence stated that Mr Johnson and others were discovered in the USA Embassy in Monrovia, Mr Johnson and others were not charged to court for violeting Diplomatic mission Laws by USA Government nor UN? this is unbelievable and this is drama, power play am talking about for someone who is known as a former Rebel Leader found in a Diplomatic Mission domain without the knowledge of the staff working in the mission? even a street man can make that judgement.
Secondly, with all sense of respect to President Charles Taylor who is very committed and determined at his time of Presidency not to dance to Western rythm of deception and indirect slavery. President Taylor made a very vital statement during one of his testimonies which is, refusal to give Liberian oil to Harlliburton for Free because He want the grand Children of Liberians to benefit from that oil in future that’s the thinking of a great of Leader ( Taylor) we know the corruption saga in millions of dollars involving Harlliburton in Nigeria and one will be right to say these idealogy of corruption initiated by Harlliburton in Nigeria and accepted by some Nigeria oficials is what is keeping Nigeria today if not Harlliburton would have plotted against Nigeria government like what is happening to President Taylor now.
Finally, Sir Griffits and his Legal Team you Guys are intellectuals in you make me proud, keep the great job and President Taylor you are my Heroe!!!.
My people,let me tell you guys the new gossip. I heard that because they are now seeing that, the conspiracy that took CT to the hague is gonna failed, the same bad guys are now pushing for similar court to be establish in liberia with the intent that they might get him on that side.. But you what ,town trap is not for rat alone. We are watching with the EAGLE EYES!!!
Noko5,
The issue of a war crime trial to be held in Liberia is a foregone conclusion; for we will challenge the constitutionality and validity. The Accra Peace Accords granted liberian warring factions amnesty. There is no legal standing whatsoever for such an enterprise, no one should joke, we shall challege this. There are more pertinent issues than this. We should begin to put into place civil institutions that will build our democracy so that we do not repeat mistakes of the past. But that is not the concentration now. Corruption is widespread and those place in position of trust are amassing wealth at the expense of the poor – this is the return of the liberian legacy. And if this trend continues we shall mobilise to civillay challege the status quo.
noko5
I do not see such that happening in the near future but if they push it hard Ellen Johnson will follow suit!
For the benefit of those readers who contend that the Prosecution has adduced no substantial evidence in its case against Mr. Taylor, let me reproduce an except of the Judges’ ruling pertaining to the motion for acquittal filed by the Defense Counsel of Mr. Taylor:
4 May, 2009, Press Release, The Hague: “The Judges of Trial Chamber II in The Hague have dismissed in its entirety a Motion for Judgment of Acquittal brought under Rule 98 by the Defense Counsel on behalf of former Liberian President Charles Taylor. This means that Mr. Taylor has a case to answer on all 11 counts in the indictment. The Trial Chamber ruled that the Prosecution had PRESENTED SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE ON ALL COUNTS WHICH, IF BELIEVED, WOULD BE CAPABLE OF SUPPORTING A CONVICTION.” Italics are mined.
You see, the judgment of Trial Chamber tells you and me that evidences abound as the to guilt of Mr. Taylor unless he comes out to convincingly refute or deny those evidences as a fabrication as many of my fellow readers will want me to believe.
Mr. Taylor is doing just what the Trial Chamber II has ordered him to do. My understanding is that Mr. Taylor will testify and his testimony will be cross examined by Prosecution. Final determination of the case will be done on the weight of evidences and rebuttals, so to say.
Therefore, your argument that the Prosecution based its evidences on hearsay, rumors and third party accounts is just baseless. Those devotees of Mr. Taylor who think I should take Mr. Taylor’s statements as gospel truth have to rethink on their strategy in their counter arguments.
Musa,
Thank you for your analysis as stated above. However, do not forget that in criminal trial, it is the duty of the prosecution to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the accused committed the indicted offense. Can we in our unofficial opinion assert that this standard was met with the volume of evidence that the prosecution presented? Secondly, the prosecution admitted that it did not have first hand evidence to present in support of its claim, so it relied on second hand evidence. Let us grant that they have done due diligence to their cause.
It is up to the defense to creat the condition of doubt needed to debase the prosecution’s case. And I believe they have started rightly. for example, the prosecution claimed that Taylor had moneys in foreign banks, Mr. Taylor has given that accusation a devastating blow.
Example 2, they claimed that Taylor had command and control over Sam Bockarie, yet Bockarie embarked on a journey from Sierra Leone without the knowledge and approval of the one who is purported to have command and control.
I am sure that other legal experts can raise other salient points that will cast doubt over the prosecution’s case.
Finally, in logic, you need one example to counterprove a point. You do not need a host of counterexamples. One is sufficient and I believe that you are aware. The prosecution began Mr. Taylor’s defense by parading an amputee who testified as I am informed that Sierra Leonean Government forces implicted the casualty that he suffered, and not the RUF. This was a witness of the prosecution.
In my mind what is on trial here is the criminal court and its integrity but not Taylor, so let us wait and see.
Musa,
Does that make the evidences presented by the prosecutors CREDITABLE?? What took place is a normal practice in ALL court houses.
Read for yourself once more….” PRESENTED SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE ON ALL COUNTS WHICH, IF BELIEVED, WOULD BE CAPABLE OF SUPPORTING A CONVICTION.”
Do you see the word “IF”???? I rest my case.
Musa, there is nothing new within the court of law for the defense to respectfully request the court to enter or accept a motion of acquital. This always happens in a criminal defence case. It may be a strange thing to you, but it is nothing strange or new to some of all. Besides, it’s not that serious. I hope we all learn a valuable lesson from this trial.
Musa
You will agree with me that he is answering President Charles Taylor is more than answering all the questions.
Are you following the trial at all? come Again
Musa, did the judeges themselve say this “the Prosecution had PRESENTED SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE ON ALL COUNTS WHICH, IF BELIEVED, WOULD BE CAPABLE OF SUPPORTING A CONVICTION” or that some writer was making their own analysis. It would seem unreasonable for the learned judges to make such a statement without hearing the other side of the case. Otherwise, then this is the very problem with this case where a VERDICT has already been made without hearing all of the FACTS.
I would think that the judges decision on the prosection case has to do with the fact that they were able to produce some quack evidence and lying witnesses. The judges needed to hear the otherside of the case and I thought it was a wise decision because we are getting a full picture of what is happening.
PREJUDICE seriously rule this case against Mr. Taylor.
Thanks for the advice and the insults, I stand by what I say, I dont need a professional to tell me that a man in jail for embezzlement and his son also in jail for embezzlement is a crook. Your thoughts and insulting responses are appreciated and highlight quite a bit.
Stay blessed.
Concerned Liberian, President Taylor is not in custody for embezzlement as you have stated. Take a step back, relax, and come back posting later. That may help you reconsolidate and focus better.
Thanks for the advice and the insults, I stand by what I say, I dont need a professional to tell me that a man in jail for embezzlement and his son also in jail for embezzlement is a crook. Your thoughts and insulting responses are appreciated and highlight quite a bit.
Also duly noted, that no one could comment on the most poignant point in my above statement in regards to the $2000 that could have been used for generators for the thousands of desperately poor people livin in Monrovia at that time.
Rather we attacked my personal constitutions and word choice vs. the meat of the argument.
Stay blessed.
Thanks Concerned Liberian in the US,
I do want to use this opportunity to remind readers of our policy to focus on the issues raised in comments and postings, not on each other. Please, dear readers, let’s leave the personal attacks and insults out of this forum. Everyone posting on this site has the right to their opinion, and everyone has demonstrated they can make effective arguments on the substance — we don’t need to resort to insulting each other. If commenters violate this policy, the site reserves the right not to post such comments.
With thanks in advance,
Tracey
Tracey, thank you for putting the object and spirit of this medium into perspective. I would just admonish my dear brothers and sisters to remain civil in our exchanges for as Mr. Taylor’s defense continue to drive wedges into the prosecution’s case heated debates will ensue, but let us stick to the issues.
Hi Andrew,
Thanks! Yes, I think the main thing for this forum is for us to debate the issues. There are certainly plenty emerging in this trial for us to focus on.
Best,
Tracey
Concerned Liberian in the US,
I did address your statement on the $2000, so I implore you to go back and read my entries. Besides, the $2000 as a gift or pocket change is not a major concern for Liberian because the provision of electricity, water and other essential utilities requires more resources, time and effort than a mere $2000. To focus on $2000 from President is a mere distraction from the issues.
Concerned Liberian in the US,
To answer your questions concerning generators. For you information Mr. Taylor donated many generators which cost ten times the $2000.00 you query about. He donated to schools, churches, hospitals, poor individuals etc. The bigger questions you should be asking giving the fact that he was the first truly democratically elected president of Liberia. Why didn’t the United States and other Western countries come in to help him electrify Liberia ?
Is anyone else having interuptions and stalling of the live streaming?
Yes…..froze couple of times…..I hope this court is NOT about to pull a fast one.
Yes, I experienced that. I thought the proceedings were over for the day.
I experienced the same problem with this website during the broadcast of the trial.
Yes I do last week was very bad.
And If I may ask do anyone know of any website I can get video backup to replay and watch?
Nii Darku — I am not sure whether video back-ups are available. I only know of the live feed — perhaps someone else on the site knows whether there is video back-up available anywhere?
Best,
Tracey
… this is really getting interesting! I have not been following the trial of Taylor in a holistic manner but each time I do, I learn new things about MR. TAYLOR. Today, I have also learned that he is a very brilliant student. His professor told him to deny everything and he is doing just that!!! keep it up Taylor, maybe this could save your head but if it backfires, …
Yaya, can you let this forum know your source please. Cuz you sound like you were there when your fabricated proffessor was advicing or if not you can still come up, clear the shame, and say, you were just lieing and we wouldn’t mind to accept.
Yaya,
It will be helpful for you to pinpoint the denials that you are referring to and justify why it is a denial.
Yaya, you are a reminiscence of the prosecution false evidence based on speculation, hearsay, they say, third party, dead people and gossip against President Taylor. How can you just make up stuff? Who is President Taylor’s professor? Can you prove the statement you made. You got to be kidding.
… Hem gentlemen; Noko5, Andrew and Jose, we all know who his professor is, don’t we??? … the one who works with him overnight to put the “I don’t know” or “I have no idea” script together! If still you can guess, tell me still so that I can help you guys out..
Concern Liberian, you are dreaming like the the Prosecution. Keep dreaming, one day the reality will dawn on you.
Hello fellow web users,
I am a sierra leoneian and I live in said country but we as citizens of said country have different views on the whole issue of this SC-SL procedings.
I in particular, is not happy for mr charles taylor to be penalised falsely if for real he has not commited the attrocities he has been accuised of but to put the fact at where it belongs; we should wait for the end of the trial before jumping conclusions about his guilt and how he stole $5billions and so forth.
I am a sierra leoneian and even the street hawkers on the streets of this country will give you his or her view about the proceedings and tell you that some of the key players such as mr tejan kabah and ernerst koroma for instance, are supposed to be atleast answering some questions to the people of sierra leone on their parts in the conflit.
Mr Kabah was overthrowned and went into exile but the British and the Americans and their Nigerians comrades acting in the name of ecomog toke on the coup plotters and returned kabah to power at the expense of 1000s of sierra leoneians lives but all this went unconsidered in the SC-SL programe.
I think the major contributors to the brutalities that went on in this peaceful loving country are the top brads at the helm of Sierra Leone’s politics.
We do not want the people of Liberia to have a malice against us for the unlawful treatment of an ex-president of Liberia at the expense of the Sierra Leone people. But, the fact is when one is accused of a crime in a court it is better to have him appeared and hear his own part of the story as the truth always sets free.
Remember, being accused does not deplicts that you are guilty of your accusation until proven guilty, otherwise.
The total countribution from diamonds and gold exports as to the GDP of both Liberia and Sierra Leone do not amount to $3billions even over a period of 5 years, not to talk of $5billions dollars which is suspected to be in the hands of Charles Taylor. We also take into consideration the fact that diamonds and gold are exported does not mean that all of the exports are handled by a single exporter.
Over the last 5 to 7 years since the end of the Liberia and Sierra Leone civil crisis, non of these countries has been able to realise a billion dollar from gold or diamond exports not to speak of the sum of $5billions dollars.
On the issue of the $5billions dollars, I belief a big question is hangging in the sky that would never be answered.
Hope you consider my view independantly.
Amara,
WELCOME……
And THANKS for your view….I have asked why isn’t Pres. Kabbeh on trial also….but like you said…..BIG HANDS are behind it all.
Amara Sesay
Thank was a brilliant comments you have made and have read from someone coming from sierra leoneian
God Bless
Mr Amara Sasey,
Bravo and first class for your knowledgeable contribution, is important for people to find out the nitty gritty of a matter before establishing any conclusion.
My people your come oh!!!!new GILA. Moses Blah is saying that he made a mistake to have gone as prosecution witness. He really taught the UN was going to send he & his whole family to AMERICA cuz STEPHEN RAPP told him that. But he has got know it was all lies, so can he please be defence witness? Anyway, he was told that the legal system doesn’t work like that. NO DOUBLE GOBA CHOP!!>
noko5,
Please let us know where you read this about Moses Blah or is it just “they Say”
.
AKI, sorry, i cannot expose my source cuz you know what will happen to him if i did; but this person works with him closely. It was actually suppose to be secret but you know I got TEAR MOUTH>>>
Tracey,
I have been searching for the summary of today’s court proceedings, are there any?
noko5,
This is an interesting development, thanks. I am not disputing your information but what is the source, and can we access it independently?
Hi Andrew,
Thanks for your note. I’m so thrilled you are eager for the updates! We are just about to finalize and post today’s summary. Can you check back in just a little while?
Best,
Tracey
Tracey Gurd can you help me on any website i can have the video backups on the trial?
thanks you have my mail address
Nii Darku,
Unfortunately I don’t know of any other back-up sites for the video feed, I’m sorry. I am not sure whether you can access any archive of the live feed – perhaps others on the site might know if any such archives exists and is available?
Best,
Tracey
@noko5, you are right and @Tracey Gurd advice well taken my comments went to the wrong reply.
You wanted to know which country I come from that is an interesting questions but I will still answer. I am a Ga from Ghana in the Greater Accra Region, hope you are fine.
Let me answer you before you ask why my interest in this trial. I watched the BBC Documentary LIBERIA: AN UNCIVIL WAR a day before that S*****! Olusegun Obasanjo former president of Nigeria (because he wanted to seek audience with George Bush to push his third term bid, can you imagine? A whole president of the most powerful country in West Africa Nigeria! Thank God he did not get it. Am happy NPFL soldiers made useless of them in the war because of their bias lol!) he did his trick on President Charles Taylor; I have followed this case from the arrest at the Cameroon boarder till date.
And in this documentary you will see the hands of United States of America in LAUD Rebels. They bankrolled them from A-Z I will not be surprised if the current President of Liberia was involved in it too because you know the facts now! she has almost a hand in all the uprisings (wars) in Liberia tilldate.
I am an African. I have a strong believe in Africa! I think the African must be respected. President Charles Taylor was a sitting president Liberia no matter small it is and he said “if he was the problem of Liberia he was stepping down for peace in Liberia” (this has not happened anywhere in the world and I have a lot of respect for President Charles Taylor.
So why should we as African allow some George W. Bush and Tony Blair (Thee number one War Crimes suspect) sitting somewhere in the west and dictate to us Africans who should be tried
YES! Charles Taylor fought a War in Liberia but NO! Not in Sierra Leonean and in war there are crimes I do not believe he is a saint likewise the current president of Liberia. So why should President Charles Taylor e tried for crimes in Sierra Leonean? Someone help me!
But am very happy President Charles Taylor is doing JUST! Great in the trials and we all have to pray for Mr. Courtenay Griffiths his very able Lawyer for God Blessing, wisdom, strength and good health to take him through to the end of the trial and I say it again I see President Charles Taylor as he promised “God willing I will be back”
God Bless Liberia!
let Us not forget that there is a presumption of innocent on the Great Leader (Mr. Taylor) until he Found guilty beyond any reason doubt, with referecence to all the evidences in court and the defence council’s summissions so far, it has shown to the world, is just a framed and gang up issues against former President Taylor.
Liberia is very rich with DIAMONDS all over the Place. If ordinary Liberians could go to DIAMONDS creeks and dig DIAMONDS at will then what about the president of Liberia. Why would Charles Taylor leave all the DIAMONDS in Liberia to go digging DIAMONDS in SL? This DIAMOND charged is crazy. I guess these prosecutors were not aware that Liberia has abundance of DIAMONDS.
Tracey, I am just a little puzzle whether you know Duke. It appears to me that Duke is one of those paid propogandists who have fed the international community with false news about events in Liberia. I hope I am wrong about this Duke person but the name appears familiar to one of President Ellen Johnson paid communication agents that resides in Washington , D.C.
Tracey,
Is there a problem with the live streaming of the trial? I had problems both yesterday and today with it constantly repeating it self. Could you have this checked up because this is too crucial a time for me to miss even an ioata of the testimony.
People, give the trial a chance. If taylor has bank accounts, i am sure details will surface. These things have funny ways of appearing out of the blue.
Reply to King Gray diamond claims, I will say Liberia has never been a major diamond exporting country but sierra leone is and sierra Leone produces diamond of much better quality than liberia and the industry is much bigger.
Further, diamond is just an add on in the case of Sierra Leone. Taylor did not go to Sierra Leone initially for diamond. His quest was mainly to topple the govt and have a friendly govt there. The diamond have been a double edge sword for Sierra Leone. On one hand it help stop the rapid advance of the NPFL/RUF in 1991 and but it curse eventually came to the hunt sierra leone.
Had it not bee the find of diamond in march/april of 1991, the ruf/npfl would have topple the sierra leone govt in 6 months. I remember this because I was working in eastern part of sierra leone. The diamond find meant rebel soldiers stop their advance and sent conscripts who were less prepare.
This help the sierra leone army which was under resource and unprepare. In a very sad way the diamond did ensure that taylor/ruf alliance did not take sierra leone and it is still hunting him to this day. The curse of the sierra leone diamonds has led to his down fall and probably to him spending the rest of his life in jail. SOME THINGS ARE BETTER LEFT ALONE IN THIS LIFE.
Eagle-eye(returns) you are a very humorous fellow. Are you suggesting that the Sierra Leoneans who were fighting in RUF never knew that there were big and valuable DIAMONDS in SL until “march/april of 1991.” This is one of those outrageous claims against Mr. Taylor that is very insane. What kind of knowledgeble person both in SL and Liberia that was not aware of DIAMONDS in Sierre Leone long before the war?
Your stop these kinds of insults agaisnt our African intelligence that the RUF just happen to stumble across DIAMONDS fields and so got distracted from overthrowing “the sierra leone govt in 6 months.” It is this same kind of disregard for African intelliegence that led the prosection to bring this false case to this court. I thought one of the reasons that Foday Sankoh said he was fighting a war had to do with the fact that the people of SL were not benefiting from the explotation of these DIAMONDS. So how can Foday Sankoh be fighting for the proper use of these same DIAMONDS and at the same time he is not aware about the DIAMONDS area until “the find of diamond in march/april of 1991.” Were SL not mining DIAMONDS before this time?
These are some of the inconsistent and irrational accusation that makes reasonable people like us to dismiss this case as pure international lycnhing of Charles Taylor, simply because he was bold to speak against the explotation of Africa’s natural resources by multi-national companies. And just to let you know , Liberia has always had very valuable DIAMONDS similar to that of SL. I believe you rely to much on people that have no knowledge about Africa’s rich resources to inform you. This was the same false information that led to the overthrow of President William R. Tolbert of Liberia. Liberians were told that they could not grow rice for themselves on a large national production scale because our soil were not good. Tolbert came to power and declared that Liberia’s soil was good to produce its own food and feed itself. He launch a green revolution and increase the price of Uncle Ben’s rice so that Liberians will be force to grow and feed themselves. Those who were profiting from selling their foreign rice to Liberia was outrage and led to one of the reasons that Tolbert was finally overthrown.
For the record, Liberian grown rice is more nutritional and cheaper than the Uncle Ben’s rice yet those socalled Western Liberians lacking understanding of these things listened to outsiders who told them that Liberian rice were not good for their health although this was the traditional rice that our traditional people had been eating for centuries.
King Gray, I am not european. I am a Liberia like you. I did not say liberia do not have diamonds, I said liberia has never been a diamond exporting country. Secondly SL diamonds have had higher value(quality) than Liberia’s, hence the increased industrialisation of the industry in SL and liberia still do not have such and I don’t believe we/anybody has found any deposit anywhere in liberia near what Sierra Leone had/has. The nearesr liberia came to been a diamond exporting country was wesua in lofa but that didn’t last.
Regarding diamond and the conflict, I am not saying ruf/npfl accidentally came across diamonds, they knew diamond were there when they started fighting. I am sure they didn’t start war for diamonds but it became the curse that bogged them down and eventually led to downfall like Taylor. If the ruf/npfl had carry on fightng the way they did in first two weeks daru, kenema and probably Bo would have fallen with very little resistance.
But they didn’t. They pause and sent conscripts from villages who had few days of action.Many were caught and I saw them been interrogated. It took a good part of over two weeks for the guinean to arrive at Daru to give ruf/npfl the jolt that indeed they will have to send me able fighter to continue their advance by then it was too late. Daru had been fortified by the guinean and the only other was to go via Zimmi. I am not going to give a blow by blow account of the war but i do have a very idea about what happen in both Liberia and sierra leone and I spent a good deal of time in buchanan when it was under NPRAG control.
For me Its indeed sad to see a former liberia president in court on these charges but I still maintain that Taylor has questions to answer on sierra leone. Whether he is found guilty or not is for the prosecutions argue their case and for the judges to decide.