By Enyichukwu Enemanna
President of Liberia, Joseph Boakai has assented to an executive order to establish the country’s first war crimes court to help bring about justice and healing.
This comes over 20 years after the end of two civil wars which killed 250,000 people in the West African country.
The 1989-2003 conflicts saw atrocities including mass killings, rape and the forced recruitment of child soldiers.
Liberia had “endured downpours of agony”, President Boakai stated.
Critics have expressed concern with the establishment of the court, saying it could reopening old wounds.
President Boakai however insists said the court would “help ferret the causes and effects of the violence” and bring about “justice and healing”.
Although some people criticised Mr Boakai for making an “emotional” decision, it will bring closure for many others, Adama K Dempster, one of the lead campaigners for the establishment of a war crimes court told the BBC in an interview.
“It’s an open show of support for war victims and survivors of the civil wars,” he said.
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US Chargé d’Affaires in Liberia Catherine Rodriguez commended Mr Boakai for taking a “historic and courageous step to bring justice and accountability for the atrocities committed”. She said the US would support the court.
“We are optimistic that this initiative will bring an end to impunity for war and economic crimes, while promoting national reconciliation and sustainable peace,” Ms Rodriguez said.
Since end of the war, no one has been tried in Liberia but some perpetrators have been convicted in other countries.
Liberia’s former President Charles Taylor is currently serving a 50-year sentence for war crimes in the United Kingdom but that was for his role in the conflict in neighbouring Sierra Leone.
Heritage Times reports that in neighbouring Nigeria, also witnessed a three-year Civil War that lasted from 1967-1970 with at least two million persons killed.
No visible effort has been made to bring the perpetrators to justice. The most affected region, the South East still suffers the ruins of the war.
The clamour for the establishment of South East Development Commission, a replica of North East Development Commission (NEDC) has not seen any ray of light.
NEDC was set up to rebuild the Nigeria’s North East region that has been greatly affected by the impact of terror attacks with assets worth billions of Naira destroyed.
