The News Review:

- Sierra Leone must care for war-crimes victims
- Charles Taylor Boycotts War Crimes Trial
- ECOWAS fact-finding Mission in Sierra Leone
- Verdicts send the most important message of all

Sierra Leone must care for war-crimes victims
Christian Science Monitor – Jun 25, 2007
processColumn(“column-1″) –> Sierra Leone must care for war-crimes victims The special court has meted out justice to perpetrators. Now victims need help. By Angela Lederach and Claire Putzeys from the June 25, 2007 edition.

Charles Taylor Boycotts War Crimes Trial
Washington Post – Jun 25, 2007
-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone is funded by voluntary contributions and does not currently have enough cash to cover its $33 million budget for 2007. The court has offered to give Taylor $50,000 a month for his defense. He has been declared indigent by court officials despite a recent U. report saying he stashed millions of dollars in foreign banks while ruling Liberia and may still have access to funds in Nigeria…
report saying he stashed millions of dollars in foreign banks while ruling Liberia and may still have access to funds in Nigeria. Presiding judge Julia Sebutinde said the integrity of the trial was at stake and enough money had to be provided “if this court is expected to conduct a fair and expeditious trial. “Prosecutor Stephen Rapp, speaking in the Sierra Leone capital Freetown, said Taylor gets more than other international tribunals give defendants. “What’s been offered to Taylor _ presuming he’s indigent, which we doubt _ is very adequate,” Rapp said. Sebutinde said the trial will run from July 3-11 and then break until Aug. When it resumes she said Taylor should have a team comprised of a senior attorney, two co-counsel, an experienced investigator and legal assistants.

ECOWAS fact-finding Mission in Sierra Leone
Panapress – Panapress (subscription) – Jun 25, 2007
An ECOWAS statement said the mission, led byDavid Kangah from Ghana’s Electoral Commission,also included Joseph Colley from the ElectoralCommission of The Gambia, Remi Ajibewa fromthe ECOWAS Commission and Yaw Donkor, Actinghead of the ECOWAS observation and monitoringbureau in Monrovia. During its 10-day assessment mission, the teamwould hold talks with stakeholders, includinggovernment officials, representatives of politicalparties and the civil society, the media andofficials of the National Electoral Commission,the statement added. The ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and Good Governanceprovides for the dispatch of fact-finding missionsto member countries preparing for elections, to gaugethe level of their preparedness and also determineif assistance is required to facilitate the conductof free, fair and credible elections.

Verdicts send the most important message of all
Legalbrief – Legalbrief (subscription) – Jun 25, 2007
This is the opinion of Hugo Relva, Amnesty International Legal Adviser, expressed on the Amnesty International, Web site. These verdicts send a positive signal to the people of Sierra Leone that someone will be held responsible for the brutal crimes perpetrated against them and members of their families, Relva says. But there are many others who carried out horrific acts during the country’s 11 years of conflict. Thousands of others, he says, can, and must, be held criminally responsible…
This is the opinion of Hugo Relva, Amnesty International Legal Adviser, expressed on the Amnesty International, Web site. These verdicts send a positive signal to the people of Sierra Leone that someone will be held responsible for the brutal crimes perpetrated against them and members of their families, Relva says. But there are many others who carried out horrific acts during the country’s 11 years of conflict. Thousands of others, he says, can, and must, be held criminally responsible. He believes reparations must also be provided to the victims in order for justice to begin to prevail throughout Sierra Leone. He notes that, remarkably, this decision is the first time in history that individuals have been convicted of war crimes for conscripting and enlisting children under the age of 15 into armed forces or groups, and using them to participate actively in hostilities.