Judgment day for Charles Taylor in Court

  Former Liberian President Charles Taylor will meet his fate today as the International Court of Justice in the Hogue give judgment in the war crime trial for the Republic of Sierra Leone. Mr. Taylor was indicted for supporting rebels in Sierra Leone dating back to 1991, and selling diamonds to back the Revolutionary United Front of Sierra Leone. The civil crisis in Sierra Leone killed thousands of people. The rebels used kids as soldiers, and chopped off the body parts of rival forces with axes and knives. The UN High Court Taylor levied 11 counts against Charles Taylor for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Mr. Taylor however, rejected the charges that were levied against him by the International Court of Justice. The Sierra Leone crisis lasted from 1991-2002. Mr. Taylor, a former warlord of Liberia, on December 24, 1989 launched a civil war that lasted for about 14yrs.  After a peace conference in 1995, Taylor was elected President of Liberia in 1997. In 2003, arrest warrant was issued for Taylor to face trial by the Special Court for Sierra Leone.

Photo: AFP

According to the BBC News, if Taylor is found guilty, he will become the first former head of state to be found guilty of war crimes by an international court since the Nuremburg trials of Nazis after World War II. The report said the court has heard from more than 100 witnesses including the actress Mia Farrow and supermodel Naomi Campbell. The prosecution wanted to establish a link between Mr. Taylor and uncut diamonds which Naomi Campbell said he gave her in South Africa in 1997. Correspondents say this is an important point, as the accused is said to have used so called blood-diamonds to pay for weapons for the rebels. If Mr. Taylor is found guilty he is expected to go to a prison in the UK.

Liberia: Liberia was founded by the American Colonization Society in 1822 for the settlement of freed slaves from America and the Caribbean. Liberia gained its independence in 1847 becoming the first republic in Africa. On December 24, 1989 civil war broke out in Liberia and lasted for about 14 years. The United Nations currently have about 15,000 peacekeepers in Liberia. In 2006 Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was elected president of Liberia. The Iron Lady as she is commonly known became the first female president of an Africa nation.

Independence: July 26, 1847

Capital City: Monrovia- named after James Monroe, the fifth president of the United States.

Population: 4.1 million (UN, 2010)
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Area: 38,250 square miles

Official Language: English

Life Expectancy: 59 years men, 61 years for women (UN)

Currency: Liberian Dollar = 100 cents

GNI Per Capita: US$160 (World Bank, 2009)

Major Exports: Diamond, Gold, Iron ore, Rubber, Timber, Cocoa, Coffee. Crude Oil.

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