By Ted Townsend
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

THE HAGUE, Netherlands – The trial of former Liberian president Charles Taylor continued this week with the cross-examination of prosecution witness TF1-275 Foday Lansana (“Lansana”), a former radio operator for the Revolutionary United Front (“RUF”). As the examination continued,  Taylor was taken to the hospital for undisclosed reasons, where he remained a day for monitoring.  No further reports on his health were released, though it was generally understood that he was kept overnight strictly for monitoring. Though Taylor was out of the courtroom, he gave his consent to his defense counsel to continue with the cross examination of Lansana.

Defense counsel Morris Anyah (“Anyah”) conducted the cross examination of Lansana, first attacking the witness’s credibility claiming Lansana’s entire testimony was based on information he heard while imprisoned, and that “none of it actually happened.” Lansana denied this allegation, and stated that he experienced all of the things he spoke of in his direct examination.

Anyah continued to question Lansana on events, names and places that the former radio operator had testified about, attempting to establish that Lansana fabricated testimony. Most notably, Anyah questioned Lansana about his testimony relating to the “Coca Cola Factory” speech Taylor gave to the special forces, that Lansana purportedly witnessed. Anyah focused mainly on other documents, where Lansana claimed to have heard the speech over the radio. Lansana disputed this, saying he was present for the speech, but not when Taylor spoke on the phone with a correspondent at the BBC relaying the message from the speech. Prosecution documents placed Lansana at both locations, a fact the witness admitted was false.

The defense also focused their cross-examination on times when Lansana either “did not work as a radio operator or did not function well as such.” Other questions revolved around Lansana’s substandard performance and the activities of another Foday Lansana who was also working with the RUF.

After the cross-examination finished, Prosecutor Christopher Santora re-directed the witness clarifying the discrepancy in Lansana’s testimony regarding the Coca-Cola factory speech as well as other smaller details. The witness was then dismissed.

The court this week also determined that the next prosecution witness, witness TF1-362, will be examined in closed session.

Two other notable developments involving the trial occurred this week. First, Prosecutor Stephen Rapp (“Rapp”) announced that he was closing in on a 600 million dollar (400 millions Euros) blood diamond-haul that had been collected by Taylor. The prosecution would like to reclaim these assets, and “make them available to victims both in Sierra Leone and Liberia.” The funds would be used not only to pay the legal bills, but also to aid thousands of victims in the countries, intentionally mutilated by the rebels. Not all of these assets are officially in Taylor’s name, but the prosecution is working with a special team from the British government to bring them back.

Second, Varmuyan Sherif (“Sherif”), a former bodyguard for Taylor who testified earlier in the trial has gone into hiding after receiving multiple threats relating to the evidence he gave.  Rapp said rocks were thrown at Sherif’s home, and a threatening letter was sent to his brother. Sherif and his family have been temporarily relocated, until it is safe for them to return. United Nations officials and local police are investigating the threats.

Sherif testified that Taylor smuggled arms, cash and communications equipment to the militia.

Taylor has pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from actions during Sierra Leone’s ten-year war, which ended in 2002. The charges against him include rape, murder, torture and enlisting child soldiers.

For more information, please see:

allAfrica.com – Taylor Taken to Hospital But Proceedings Continue – 27 February 2008

allAfrica.com – Charles Taylor Taken for Medical Attention – 27 February 2008

The Trial of Charles Taylor – last accessed 1 March 2008

Associated Press – Taylor witnesses being threatened – 28 February 2008

AFP – War crimes prosecutor has Taylor blood diamond haul in sights – 29 February 2008

Impunity Watch – Update on Charles Taylor Trial – 23 February 2008

By:  M. Brandon Maggiore
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Africa

YAOUNDE, Cameroon – At least 17 people have been killed in protests in Cameroon in which youths are fighting with police. The opposition says the unrest is due to the rising costs of fuel and food while the president of Cameroon, Paul Biya, accused his political rivals of creating the unrest in order to depose him. The violence started as a nationwide transport strike because of fuel costs and turned into anti-government demonstrations. Preisdent Biya has been in power for twenty-five years and has suggested amending the constitution of Cameroon so that he can run for president again in 2011, another source of anger amongst the protesters.

Biya says he will use all legal means to end the violence in which boarding schools have been targeted by mobs of young men demanding they join the protesters. The boarding schools may have been targeted by the youths because the children of the Cameroonian elite are students there. Teachers managed to prevent the taking of most of the students except for about two-hundred. There is fear that the students were taken to be used as human shields. Some children are still unaccounted for after most returned to their homes or boarding schools within several hours. However, it is believed that a teenage boy was shot dead in Bamenda.

The main journalist’s union in Cameroon accused the government of trying to silence media coverage of the riots. A privately owned radio station in Yaounde was shut down by armed law enforcement on Thursday after callers to the radio station criticized the President’s handling of the protests. This shutdown followed the shutdown of a radio station in Biya on Tuesday. Reporters Without Borders has also expressed its concern over the media crackdown in Cameroon and has called on the government to return all equipment removed from the radio station in Yaounde and to permit it to resume broadcasting.

Cameroonian writers, both from inside Cameroon and abroad, signed a letter sent to deputies in the government urging them not to modify the country’s constitution. The letter used strong language stating a “single foul play with the constitution could plunge the entire nation into insurmountable chaos.” The letter also criticized members of parliament saying “The President has availed himself of the de facto majority accorded him in the national assembly by you, CPDM parliamentarians, to trample on the constitution of this land. Worse still, he has had recourse to armed elements of the police force to silence those dissenting voices that have dared to openly object to his scheme.”

For more information, please see:

BBC News – Deadly violence rages in Cameroon – 29 February 2008

Reuters – Cameroon govt accused of muzzling media over riots – 29 February 2008

afrol News – Cameroon writers warn MPs – 29 February 2008

Reporters Without Borders – Private radio suspended, independent newspapers prevented from appearing – 29 February 2008