This is the tip of the ice berg! Watch out for the pieces to come....
  heaps of bitter adjectives! Who the cap fits let him or her wear it!
  Chei! the end is near! The next piece will be cooked with palm oil.This author is indeed not a joker.Nothing will come out of what congressmen say??? Hmmm....
  Chei the end is near!



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               News Detail
---------------------------------
  News Analysis: Ellen Entangled in Taylor's Web - 12/6/2005 4:35:01 AM
  By: John S. Morlu,
MBA, CMA, CFM, CIA, CGAP, CMBA
Special to FrontPageAfrica

  Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, former waitress-turned Ivy Leaguer, is destined to become Africa’s first elected female president. She will become, on January 16, a card carrying member of the world’s prestigious club—The Presidential Roundtable. She is, however, being welcomed to sit around a table that comprises mainly tough men. She is also coming to the round table from one of Africa’s poorest and war-wrecked countries.

  Immeasurably, she has several daunting tasks ahead of her. Liberia is facing many problems. Reconstructions such as building schools, roads, highways, health centers, communication infrastructure, and public facilities are a given. Reconciliation and unification efforts also must be undertaken. George Weah and all the “Class of 22” presidential candidates promised to do just those things. There is no doubt each of them would have mustered the political strength to get them done.

  But there are three major things that will make or unmake the presidency of Sirleaf. These triple challenges are: Forming a credible government, dealing with the Charles Taylor question, reforming government. How she deals with the GEMAP is part and parcel the reforming government initiative. In no small way, without an orchestrated plan to deal with these three challenges, she will not succeed.

  Liberians from all walks of life have used Sirleaf’s Transition Team as a lynchpin to begin the discussion of her desire to form a governing team that is not only reflective of the country but that it is also credible. The hard work of governance and reform of the economic, judiciary, and political systems will come soon after she takes office. Immeasurably, the task ahead of her is daunting and exacting.

  In this article, the Charles Taylor’s question will be examined because Taylor’s ghost has entangled—or is seemingly haunting—Sirleaf. It will be the test case of her presidency.  It is a global mess, fully impregnated with excruciating international consequences, that has fallen in her lap. Some say she asked for it. Others say it was inevitable since the Chairman of the Liberian National Transitional Government, Gyude Bryant, refused to deal with it during the interim period. But whatever the case, she has no choice but to deal with it now, or else she is forever doomed and threatened with needed aid being withheld by powerful economic forces that are critical to steer Liberia from war to peace as well as from destruction to development.

  The Taylor question has created enormous division among prominent international and domestic stakeholders with a cascading effect. No doubt, Taylor is an international pyromaniac. Unfortunately, Sirleaf is now caught in the middle on the Taylor question. His exiled host, Nigeria, says Taylor can only be turned over to an elected Liberian government. Will Sirleaf request Taylor’s extradition to Sierra Leone to answer charges of crimes against humanity? Or, will she just ignore the issue with the hope that some how, somewhere and some day the international community reaches a global consensus on one of the notorious international criminal in the name of Charles Taylor. But many would agree that she is now effectively in a “catch 22” situation.

  Campaign Promise
  A person runs for an elected position to win. And winning requires a proper combination of logistical planning, message/political strategy formulation and execution. All of these things have to take into account domestic factors, assessing the mood of the country. In the second round of elections, Sirleaf and her team got it correct. She put together a winning coalition that baffled many independent observers. It was like matchmaking reminiscent of an unholy alliance. Part of her winning alliance consisted of key Charles Taylor’s fanatics, including his wife Jewel Howard-Taylor; a Senate-Elect who is on the United Nations travel ban and asset freeze list.

  Sirleaf also realized that she had two fundamental weaknesses. It was her close association with Taylor’s war efforts and her unfriendly departure from Taylor in the early days of the war. In the eyes of some Liberians, Sirleaf was “public enemy” number one for Taylor and his marauding gangsters-turned-government officials. Defeated Presidential candidate Varney Sherman realized that the Liberian people were afraid of a return to war, so decide to pitch that as Sirleaf’s main weakness.

  Defeated candidate Sherman seized every opportunity to inform the Liberian people that electing Sirleaf would mean a return to war, because “she still has enemies.” Winston Tubman, Joe Mohamedu Woa-tee, Margaret Thompson and other presidential contenders urged the Liberian people to forgive the warmongers, but not reward them with their votes. The 1997 campaign scenario was being re-echoed and drummed in the people’s ears, again. But, were voters listening?

  Another significant factor was that Sirleaf was being viewed—or paraded around the country—as the lone candidate that could bring those who committed heinous crimes, including Taylor, to book. She was accused of the same intent during the Accra Conference to form a transitional administration to replace Taylor after he was exiled to Nigeria. She lost to Chairman Bryant because Taylor and other warlords voted against her.

  Taylor and these warlords feared Sirleaf would bring them to book by sending them to the Liberian version of the Russian Gulag—the notorious Belle Yalla, torture chamber Monrovia Central Prison or Taylor’s death camp Wantaga. During the runoff elections, Sirleaf’s team was afraid the large number of ex-combatants including large number of Taylor’s ex-fighters in Nimba and Bong counties would vote against her. And so was determined never again to repeat the Accra misfortune.

  Sirleaf and her team went back to the drawing board to map out a campaign message that would eventually gain her votes that would later come to entangle her in Taylor’s web. On August 15 2005, Sirleaf spoke at a press conference on the issue of war, peace and the future of the Liberian nation. She declared her disfavor for war crimes tribunal in Liberia and her intention not to witch hunt people who committed economic crimes.

  That declaration did the magic. All Taylor’s former rebel NPFLers, including its political wing, the National Patriotic Party (NPP) consolidated and quietly declared support for Sirleaf, who was, once upon the time, a key ally, a partial founder and financier of the rebel National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL). In the minds of some Taylorites, this was a classic case of a prodigy child—a lost lamb finding its way back home. Sirleaf was just doing what any sound and serious politician would do to gain votes in a growing close election. Taylor folks like his wife Jewel Howard-Taylor joining Sirleaf discounted the notion she has enemies. Undoubtedly, Sirleaf was home free with an Ivy League education and zillions of experience under her belt. She became the consensus candidate.

  But some people—nationally and internationally—interpreted her declarations as a blanket clemency for Taylor and economic criminals. Her lone opponent George Weah made a light of that in an exclusive interview with www.frontpageafrica.com. Not too many Liberians seemed to listen to Weah. For so many, the fear of the return to war if Sirleaf was elected had been laid to rest with all those main Taylor’s supporters backing her. Sirleaf had the education and the experience, and so nothing Weah or any body else said will not convince them otherwise. But the sober reality became to set in as soon as she was projected to become the next president of war-ravaged Liberia.

  From news coverage to news coverage and from interviews to interviews, the Taylor question seems to have taken on center stage in Sirleaf’s post election life. In a series of interview questions flashed across the international lines to Sirleaf in Monrovia this November by National Public Radio host Ed Gordon, the Taylor question featured prominently. The renowned British Broadcasting (BBC) also cornered Sirleaf about the Taylor’s questions. The Cable News Network (CNN) and other newspaper outlets did same. So let’s use the remaining space to dissect Sirleaf’s dilemma as reflected in each of the major international actors.


  Divided Line: ECOWAS versus MRU
  ECOWAS is a member of the International Contact Group on Liberia, an organization overseeing the peaceful transition of war-infested Liberia to a functioning democracy. Since 1990, ECOWAS has also been one of the main international actors in peacemaking in Liberia. During the first round of war that ended with the election of Charles Taylor in 1997, ECOWAS peacekeeping force, ECOMOG, maintained the peace. Also from the Banjul Conference to Yamoussoukro to the recent peace agreement in Accra, ECOWAS has led the initiatives. For many of its members, Liberia has become a problem child.


  ECOWAS' Position

  There are 16 countries in the West African subregion that are members of the organization. But the main actors are Ghana and Nigeria. Burkina Faso is also important because it has a long-standing history of fermenting troubles in West Africa.

  Nigeria is the godfather of ECOWAS because of its size as well as its economic and military strengths. It has the largest military in West Africa and the most number of peacekeepers in Liberia. The Chief ECOWAS Mediator in Liberia, former Nigerian Head of State and Retired General Abdulsalami Abubakar, is also from Nigeria. The next superpower in West Africa is Ghana. It is a respected democracy and has shouldered a large burden of peacekeeping initiatives in the subregion. It also is relatively economically stable and has a professional standing army.

  Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, mediator Abubakar and Ghanaian President John Agyekum Kufuor have shown no interest in sending Taylor to Sierra Leone. Neither has Burkina Faso’s President Blaise Campaore. President Obasanjo has refused repeated calls from the international community to turn Taylor over to the UN-backed Special War Crimes Tribunal in Sierra Leone, where he was indicted for the mayhem that engulfed that country during his Presidency in Liberia.

  President Obasanjo main contention has been Taylor was sent to exile under an international agreement to end Liberia’s civil. He, therefore, is under obligation to uphold that agreement. But under international pressure, President Obasanjo qualified his position. He now maintains that Taylor can stand trial in Sierra Leone if an elected government requests his extradition or when he violates his asylum terms resident.

  But Obasanjo did not move an inch when it was documented and reported by the Mano River Union that Taylor was still involved in fermenting wars in Guinea and has shown continued involvement in Liberian affairs. Even Sirleaf acknowledge that report during the debate of presidential candidates. But truth be told, Obasanjo seems to have purchased a breathing room by throwing the problem in the lap of the next President of Liberia. He has clearly used an elected president in a fragile country as his trump card.

  Ghanaian President Kufuor is also believed to be against transferring Taylor to face charges in Sierra Leone. Taylor and President Kufuor share a strong political bond. What a strange bedfellow. Taylor is alleged to have financed Kufuor’s first election that wrenched power out of the hands of the National Democratic Congress, the incumbent party of former Ghanaian President Jerry John Rawlings. The ruling party in Ghana is the National Patriotic Party (NPP), similar to Taylor’s NPP.

  The wife of Sierra Leone’s notorious rebel leader, Foday Sankoh, was guest of Kufuor on many occasions. During one of the visits in 1999, she openly goofed during an early morning TV talk show when she commended Kufuor for his hospitality during her stay in Accra, Ghana. It was a Taylor’s machination. Taylor was the middleman in the blood diamond business involving the rebel Revolutionary United Front of Sierra Leone. So he cut deal with an old ally, whom he had helped to power knowing that Rawlings was about to turn his back on him and Sankoh for perpetuating and supporting violence in Sierra Leone. It was Taylor’s desire to create a political influence throughout West Africa by leveraging Liberia’s as well as Sierra Leone’s resources to rupture old political institutions and build a Libya-styled, autocratic institution across the subregion.

  His military ventures into Sierra Leone, Guinea and the Ivory Coast were all part of the influence-seeking grand plan he and his friends had concocted during the heydays of the battle for Liberia. He needed the diamond money to buy influence. He did that with Kufuor of Ghana. So there is no way President Kufuor will ever back an administration in Liberia that will turn Taylor over to the Special Court in Sierra Leone.

  It is simple to see why President Blaise Camporaore of Burkina Faso also vehemently opposes Taylor’s extradition to Sierra Leone to face criminal charges.

  Camporaore, unlike Kufuor and Obasanjo, physically and openly aided Taylor to execute the Liberian civil war. He defended Taylor at various regional and continental meetings through lobbying and public utterances. He received arms and ammunition from Libya for the NPFL and arranged meetings with shadowy arms and diamond dealers for the NPFL and later for the rebel Revolutionary United Front of Sierra Leone. Who knows whether the diamond dealers were not part of the bin Laden terrorist network?

  Also, he received and oversaw the selling of all looted machineries, such as gigantic electric generators, trucks and other heavy-duty mining equipment from the Bong Mining Company and Lamco Mining Company. The Burkinabe capital, Ouagadougou, boomed with the spoils of war from Liberia.

  During the war years, Camporaore also recruited fighting men for Taylor’s ragtag rebels, most of them commanders of various battalions. His recruited fighters and generals executed many Liberians. Camporaore is equally culpable for war crimes and crimes against humanity just as Taylor is.

  So if Taylor is put on trial, the chances are Camporaore may be dragged into the case or probably face prosecution, too. The arms of the law know no bounds these days. Camporaore did not hide his support for Taylor’s sadism. Acting at the behest of the then Ivorian President Felix Houphouet Boigny, who was also his father-in-law, and Muammar Gaddafi, who supplied the ‘big’ guns, Camporaore supported Taylor’s sadism and atrocities in Liberia and Sierra Leone.

  He helped Taylor because the late Liberian President, Samuel Kanyon Doe, was blamed for the death of A. B. Tolbert, who was initially married to Camporaore’s present wife. A. B. Tolbert was the son of William Tolbert, who died in the April 12, 1980 putsch led by Sgt. Doe, was the first husband of Camporaore’s current wife. Out of vengeance, Camporaore aided and abetted Taylor’s criminal activities.

  As international pressure mounts on Nigeria to return Taylor for trial, Camporaore heart pulse is getting fainter—if not faintest—by the day. It is the case of ‘when you pull rope, rope pulls bush’. Camporaore is an indicted war criminal in waiting. And he knows that his roles were not honorable and moral, whatsoever.

  Undoubtedly, Presidents Obasanjo, Kufuor and Camporaore have set the tone on the Taylor question. ECOWAS Mediator Abubakar is also against turning Taylor over. He was furious at European Union (EU) suggestions that the next President cooperates in bringing Taylor to justice. He believes that Liberia is at a critical crossroads in building lasting peace. For him, the last thing to mess around with is the issue of Charles Taylor.

  On November 17, Mediator Abubakar said it is too early for the EU to demand Taylor’s extradition. He said ECOWAS does not support such request. In a tone reminiscent of the politics of non-interference in one’s internal affairs, the ECOWAS peacemaker reminded the EU to mind its own business for the Taylor issue is beyond its scope and reach.

  General Abubakar may very well be correct that the Taylor’s question is none of Europe’s business. But he will not make such a sweeping statement against Liberia’s next door neighbors—Ivory Coast and the Mano River Union countries of Sierra Leone and Guinea.

  In fact, prior to exiting Liberia, Abubakar dismissed the notion there was division within ECOWAS about the outcomes of the elections. Abubakar is being a little political on this front. From all indications, there are growing tensions within the subregion.

  Several ECOWAS countries have paraded the Liberian elections as a success story, declaring it, in no uncertain terms, as free, fair and transparent even before the votes were tallied and official results announced. These declarations have also come amidst opponent Weah’s contention that the elections were rigged through ballot stuffing and irregular vote tallying. But others in the region have remained silent.

  MRU and Ivory Coast's Position

  The aging Guinean President Lansana Conte, Sierra Leone President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, and Ivory Coast embattled President Laurent Gbagbo have yet to speak on the elections. For many, their silence means they are unhappy with the position of ECOWAS with respect to Charles Taylor. Unlike Nigeria, Ghana and Burkina Faso, these three countries were direct victims of Taylor war efforts and mayhem. Sierra Leone suffered most; Guinea beat off several incursions at great human and material costs.

  Guinea, Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast are worried and concerned about a President who will give Taylor a blanket clemency. The peoples of the three countries suffered a lot from Taylor’s mischief. How then can Sirleaf say she is not for a war crimes tribunal? How can she live with herself—her conscience? What is her level of morality as an African woman and a mother, who saw those ghastly pictures of infants’ limbs being hacked off, pregnant women bellies gruesomely opened to determine the sex of an unborn child or a woman being gang-raped by a group of teenagers, who were sometimes the victim’s own offspring?


  Sirleaf is playing her trump card nearest to her heart. But, she has not ruled out sending Taylor to a war crimes tribunal. She has only insisted that it is an international community problem, not just Liberia. She’s cleverly shifting the political debate so that in the future she can claim expediency when Taylor’s luck runs dry. Eventually, Taylor will bite the dust. And Sirleaf will just sit on the sidelines and watch her political Judas lie down on the thorny bed he made for himself during nearly 14 years of unprecedented atrocities and sadism.

  Yet, many political observers are unconvinced about Nigeria’s President Obasanjo’s seriousness to turning Charles Taylor over to an elected Liberian government. For many, Sirleaf must show that she is on the side of peace and human rights in the Mano River Union. There can not be genuine peace in the Mano River Union as long as Taylor is out there and remains unpunished.  Nor will Guinea, Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone endorse Sirleaf unequivocally until she commits to extraditing Taylor to Sierra Leone to face war crimes charges. This was demonstrated when Sirleaf toured Mano River Union countries and the Ivory Coast. In those countries, the issue of Taylor characterized the discussion of neighborly peace and stability.

  Divided Line: US, EU and UN versus African Union
  The greater international community has shouldered a significant portion of the cost of maintaining peace and stability in Liberia. Prominent members of the international community has stated clearly that moving forward on a good footing in Liberia depend on the next government taking the leadership to bring Taylor to justice in Sierra Leone. And the division on the Taylor question is now between all the major international actors and the African Union. So let us now take a look at where each major international actor stands on Taylor going to Sierra Leone.

  United States’ Position

  In the United States, Congress and the White House are unwavering in their bid to bring Taylor to justice. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and President Bush have made that abundantly clear to President Obasanjo. President Bush also made that clear to Sirleaf when he congratulated her for becoming the first president in post war Liberia. White House press secretary Scott McClellan said Bush emphasized to Sirleaf the U.S. “commitment and support to help build a democratic, secure and prosperous Liberia.”

  But McClellan also noted that President Bush informed Sirleaf of the importance to bring former Liberian leader Taylor to justice so “he can no longer threaten the people of Liberia and the region of West Africa.”

  The United States Congress is even more determined. This year, it raised the bounty on Charles Taylor to $2 million. Leading the charge against Taylor in the Senate is Wisconsin Senator Russell D. Feingold. He has been a constant advocate to bring Taylor to Justice. Senator Feingold is a long time member of Senate Foreign Relations Committee, an important committee that any incoming president would want to be on its good side.

  In the House, Congressman Edward R. 'Ed' Royce (R-CA-40) has taken the lead. Congressman Royce is also a prominent member of the House International Relations Committee. He also Vice Chairman on the subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Right and International Relations. On April 12, 2005, in a resolution to bring war criminal Charles Taylor to justice, Congressman Royce argued, “The international community cannot allow Taylor to evade responsibility for his unconscionable actions. The Court was established to bring those who bear the greatest responsibility to justice; Charles Taylor undoubtedly bears the greatest responsibility," said Royce.

  In 2003, Taylor was granted an internal asylum by Nigeria if he agreed to end his involvement in Liberian politics.

  "The U.S. has invested too much in Liberia to allow Taylor a soft exile. Taylor is a serious and continuing threat to West African peace and security. We know he remains in contact with his cronies. This is counter to U.S. interests as well."

  Congressman Royce put Taylor’s problem squarely in Sirleaf’s court. In a congratulatory message to Sirleaf, Royce stated: “I congratulate Mrs. Sirleaf and the Liberian people on this electoral achievement.  The election was historic. This exercise in democracy represents an opportunity for a new start for Liberia, and for Charles Taylor to be brought to the bar of justice.

  “Without doubt, your election promises a new beginning for Liberia. Your fellow citizens have enthusiastically demonstrated their faith in the democratic process, turning out in large numbers to vote, marking the freest and fairest election in Liberia's history.  The United States strongly supports this democratic achievement and has an abiding interest in Liberia's well-being.  Many in Congress look forward to working with you as you confront Liberia's many challenges.

  “I would be considerably more optimistic about Liberia's future, however, if Mr. Taylor faced the 17-counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity for which he has been indicted by the Special Court for Sierra Leone. The United States and many other governments strongly support the Court and its mandate, and I urge you to do likewise.”

  Driving the United States’ firm decision to bring Taylor to justice is twofold. First, Taylor is alleged to have been involved with selling “blood diamond,” harvested from the spoils of war in Sierra Leone and Liberia, to global terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden network.

  There are serious allegations that the ring leader of the terrorist attack on the United States on 9/11, Mohammed Atta, visited Liberia and was given a Liberian passport. He was also flown in Government helicopter to purchase diamond in Sierra Leone. The Washington Post and the New York Times have reported terrorist involvement in the purchase of blood diamond from Sierra Leone and Liberia under the tutelage of Charles Taylor.

  Second, Taylor was also ranked as part of the three worst dictators and human rights abusers during the 1990s. He joined the rank of Saddam Hussein of Iraq and Slobodan Milosevic of Serbia. All three, together made it on the cover of the prestigious Time Magazine. The Bush administration constant drumbeat of ending carnage around globe is being tested by Taylor’s comfortable exile in secluded Calaba, Nigeria.

  European Union’s Position

  The European Union’s Monitoring Team in Liberia wasted no time to declare the runoff elections free, fair and transparent. But the EU immediately followed its declaration by insisting the incoming government will be expected to work with the international community to bring Taylor to book in Sierra Leone. The EU observers went as far as stating that as a condition of getting reconstruction money from the EU, the incoming government will have to turn over Taylor to the Special War Crimes Court in Sierra Leone to face charges on his 17-count indictment for war crimes and crimes against humanity during Sierra Leone brutal civil war.

  But, Sirleaf does not have Taylor in her possession. Nigeria does. As a matter of fact, she has said time and time again that Taylor is an international community problem. And that Taylor’s role in Liberia is diminishing and she would do all she can to ensure that he does not return to Liberia. So what is the EU asking her to turn Taylor over? Let them go to Nigeria and ask Obasanjo. Well, President Obasanjo has made it clear that he would only turn Taylor over on request from an elected government in Liberia.

  The EU has always been strong on human rights issues. But the Special Court in Sierra Leone has another dimension. Among the big powers in the EU are England and France. Sierra Leone is a former colony of England. The English are bearing a large portion of the military and reconstruction costs in that country. So, London wants to see some justice come to the people of its former colony.

  The other two countries—Guinea and Ivory Coast—affected by Taylor’s madness are Francophone countries. Paris also wants to see justice come to the people of its former colony. The Germans, the Dutch and the Belgians are strong human rights advocates, prompting the Dutch government to arrest another Taylor’s Dutch confidante and notorious Mafioso businessman Gus Van Kouwenhoven. He now sits behind bars awaiting trial for war crimes as well.

  United Nations’ Position

  The United Nations is a conglomeration of nation-states. The 15,000 strong peace keepers in Liberia are under the auspices of the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL). As was the case with the EU, the 15-member UN Security Council moved swiftly to commend Liberians for the peaceful and orderly elections. But it, also, moved quickly to pass a resolution mandating its mission in Liberia to arrest Taylor if and when he ventures into Liberia. Resolution 1638 was unanimously adopted.

  In that Resolution, the Council acknowledges that Nigeria acted with broad international support to grant Taylor a “temporary” stay in Nigeria. The operative language to watch is “temporary,” because it suggests that there was no agreement that Taylor could not be turned over at some later date. But many Liberians were taking aback that the Council would demand the arrest of Taylor when he returned to Liberia.

  A student from Arthur Grimes School of Law in Liberia asked: “What does the UN know about Taylor we do not know? The only logical conclusion for this abrupt action is that they believe Sirleaf would welcome Taylor back into Liberia, or else why was that not done during the last two years of the Bryant administration?” Whatever the case, UNMIL Alan Doss has agreed with the Council and he stands ready to handcuff Taylor as soon as he lands in Liberia. After all, it was the UN that established the Special Court in Sierra Leone in which Taylor received a 17-count indictment. Taylor cannot thumb his finger at the UN. The longer he stays at large, the more likely the UN will look like a laughing stock. So the UN credibility hangs in the balance on the Taylor’s question.

  Africa Union’s Position

  African Union is a membership organization for all countries in Africa. U.S. and EU are also honorary members. The vocal and powerful members of this august body are dead set against Taylor going to Sierra Leone. Amongst the strong members are Nigeria, South Africa, Algeria, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Senegal, Mali and Libya. The presidents of Nigeria, South Africa and Mozambique were among a long list of dignitaries that came to Liberia just to escort Taylor out of the country. Taylor called them his big brothers. For all intents and purposes, South Africa is the largest superpower. And its President Thabo Mbeki is against Taylor going to Sierra Leone. Period.

  Information gathered from talking to prominent African scholars suggests clearly why some African leaders are against Taylor’s extradition to Sierra Leone. First, African leaders are afraid to set a bad precedent. They believe that Taylor was a legitimate, elected President of Liberia and so he should be immune from such harsh sanction. “For them sending Taylor over is a town trap,” observed a Morgan State University Political Science professor. “Many of them are dictators and would likely face similar fate.”

  Second, African leaders do not want to set another bad precedent of breaking agreements. Taylor left Liberia to avoid carnage in exchange for asylum. He would have remained in power and fought to the end like his predecessor Samuel Doe. But that would have cost more loss to properties and lives. Hence, the exile agreement. Turning Taylor over would mean breaking that contract. This would prevent future presidents in similar situations to broker and accept any deal of such nature for a promise made is not a promise kept.

  Finally, African presidents like Obasanjo and Mbeki are still caught in the mindset of colonialism. They view the Sierra Leone War Crimes Tribunal as a European and American way of dictating events on the continent under the pretext of fighting human rights abuses and other politico-social ills. So they become reluctant—or less inclined to turn over an African brother to an imperialist, colonial power to decide his fate in a justice setup that vindicates their views of Africa as a backward, savage continent. This is the same approach the African leaders took at the Conference in Accra, where some people were arguing for a “trusteeship” for Liberia.

  In a National Public Radio interview, former UNMIL Boss Jacques Paul Klein asserted that the conference thought about trusteeship, but did not push the issue because some African leaders would view it as a new form of colonial domination.

  Domestic Strangulation

  The Liberian people are divided on the Taylor question. Some want him to face a war crimes tribunal in Liberia. Others want him to face a war crimes tribunal in Sierra Leone or anywhere else as long as he is brought to justice. Others do not, however, want a tribunal in Liberia or anywhere else. These people favor only a Truth and Reconciliation Commission akin to South Africa’s. Debates rage on.

  On the political front, legal scholars are wondering if whether President-elect Sirleaf has the legal power to make such a unilateral decision as to the fate of Charles Taylor. Some lawyers have answered in the affirmative while others disagreed. Those disagreeing believe that it is only the Legislature that has the sole power to request Taylor’s extradition to Sierra Leone.

  This is the line of thinking that Taylor’s former wife Jewel Howard-Taylor has assumed. She won the Senate seat from Taylor’s stronghold—Bong County. In the next Congress she will become that county’s senior senator. She has, therefore, vowed to block any legislation that asked Nigeria to turn him over. Her entire NPP is backing her on this front, including a large number of Taylor’s ex-fighters in Nimba and Bong counties. In Sirleaf second round coalition, Howard-Taylor and the rank and file of Taylor’s NPP featured prominently in it. NPP won only 3 seats in the Senate and 4 House seats, which is not sufficient to block legislation unless she can galvanize other parties in her corner. But NPP large poll of ex-fighters would be a cause for concern for any president.


  Another route Taylor’s fanatics are taking to block legislation is to take hold of the leadership of the Senate and the House. Jewel Howard-Taylor is alleged to be vying for the top post in the Senate—Senate Pro Tempore—while notoriously corrupt LPRC Managing Director and House-Elect Edwin Snowe has his eye squarely on becoming the next speaker, putting him third in line to the presidency. Although Snowe ran and won as independent, he is a diehard Taylor loyalist. Snowe recently mended fences with his former buddies in Taylor’s NPP.

  Some people, including warlord turned defeated Presidential Candidate Alhaji Kromah has suggested that Jewel Howard-Taylor, Edwin Snowe and others are bribing their way to the leadership of the Congress. Undoubtedly the Taylor people have lot of cash, albeit obtained illegally. The greater danger that some Liberians see is that if Howard-Taylor, Snowe and other Taylor loyalist were to get hold of the Congress there is no telling what would come next; a Snowe presidency?

  On the flip side, Sirleaf’s lone opponent in the second of balloting, George Weah’s CDC continues to brace for a long fight. CDC leadership is convinced that Sirleaf “sought political expediency when she offered a carte blanche clemency to Taylor,” argued James Kollie of CDC. Weah won 40 percent of the votes. He also boasts of the largest contingency in the House of Representatives and second place position behind his second round coalition partner Sherman’s COTOL.

  The big question is can Weah and his CDC hold down their second round coalition to do battle with Sirleaf on the Taylor’s question? James Kollie believes that Weah and Sherman can force the Taylor issue on vote and succeed. But as the political positioning continues, there is now growing accusation that Weah and his CDC would back Snowe’s bid for Speaker.

  Wrapping Up Sirleaf’s Dilemma
  Some are now arguing that Sirleaf, during the course of the elections, formed a cordial relationship with Nigeria and Ghana. “Sirleaf must have realized the positions of key members of ECOWAS on the Taylor question. She also realized the political potency of that issue in Liberia. She was smart enough to handle the Taylor’s problem in a much settled way. She did not rule out the Court in Sierra Leone. She said she was not for a war crimes tribunal in Liberia. But it appears all side of the international divide got the message,” argued a Liberian professor at a major U.S. University.

  Undoubtedly, Sirleaf is in a dilemma. If she were to request for Taylor to be turned over, she will gain the sympathy of the EU, UN, MRU and US. But she risks being alienated by some AU and ECOWAS big powers, especially Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa. If it were not for the MRU states, the Taylor’s problem would become a simple divide between the Atlantic. But that is not the case, making the situation dicey.

  Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa have enough military power combined to come in and rescue Sirleaf. The EU, UN and US have the money that Sirleaf needs to rebuild a ruined country. But Liberia’s immediate security lies within the reach of the MRU countries of Guinea and Sierra Leone, and neighbor Ivory Coast. Nearly all the military incursions in Liberia have been launched from one of these countries.

  Sirleaf clearly understands the Taylor’s dilemma, dependent on aid money, security and friendship. How does she deal with them in a balance manner without undermining her own presidency?

  She has given Liberians a clue. In her first post elections statement on Sunday, November 20, 2005, Sirleaf argued that when inaugurated, her government will find a solution to the issue of Taylor. “Liberia, as a founding member of the United Nations, will work to reflect the position of the UN. The African Union and the international community will have to be a part of such decision because they were part of the arrangement that saw Taylor leave for Nigeria. She said any solution must, therefore, satisfy the European Union, African Union, the international community and West African leaders, who, she noted, have played a major role in bringing peace to war battered Liberia.

  Great! Liberians are waiting to see when the stakeholders can reach a unanimous solution on Taylor given their diverse interests in that notorious war crimes-indicted madman of Africa.

  A prominent Liberian who is a regular Internet chatter is not convinced that Taylor will ever face trial for war crimes. He puts it satirically, “If the European Union, the International Community and West African leaders all have to agree before Charles Taylor can be extradited to face war crimes in Sierra Leone, then I sincerely doubt if Charles Taylor will ever face justice.” Already, Nigeria’s Obasanjo is not hiding his position on the issue of Charles Taylor. To get a consensus from West African leaders will be difficult. I think if the Liberian people decide, then Taylor should go for trial. But as things are shaping up in the next Congress, consensus is unlikely.

  Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo has passed the buck. In America, we say the buck stops with the President. In Obsasanjo’s world, it stops with Liberian President-Elect, the mother of all the Liberian people. Poor Sirleaf! She, now caught in her own campaign promise, has entangled herself in Taylor’s web—a very uncomfortable one at that. Who could have imagined that her long time nemesis, Taylor, would come back full circle to entangle her again after parting in 1990? But in the end, Sirleaf, the internationalist could wiggle out of the Taylor’s mess. For now her exit strategy is not obvious. But in due time, it will become more obvious even to the blind man. Now go and figure that one out.

  Author: He holds an MBA in Finance from Johns Hopkins University, MA in International Commerce and Policy from George Mason University, and BA’s in Economics and Foreign Affairs from The University of Virginia. He is a Certified Management Accountant (CMA), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), Certified Financial Manager (CFM), Certified Masters in Business Administration (CMBA), and Certified Government Auditing Professional (CGAP).  He can be reached at [log in to unmask]






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