The RFK Memorial Center for Human Rights
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Washington, DC 20036
T
CONTACT: Abdelilah Kadili, Senior
Program Officer, (202) 463-7575 x 270
akadili@rfkmemorial.org
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Crisis
in Liberia Assessed at Washington
Forum; Threats
of New Unrest
WASHINGTON, DC – May 2004 / www.MaximsNews.com
/ -- The Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human
Rights, the Liberia Support Group and
UDC David A. Clarke School of Law jointly organized a program, Liberia
Day, to assess the critical situation in that country and to develop ways to
assist its peace process and re-construction.
The
forum was held recently at the UDC David A. Clarke School of Law.
“We
are very concerned about the peace process in Liberia,” said Todd Howland,
Director of the RFK Memorial Center for Human Rights.
“Disarmament
and demobilization are being delayed. We must create an environment for a
free, fair and democratic election
-- the chains between the militia and their leaders must be broken,” he said.
Todd Howland, Director, The Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights (See his Bio.)
“Rehabilitation
and reintegration are crucial. The odds of success are diminishing and
partnerships with local NGOs must be developed if the ongoing
process is to succeed,” Howland continued.
All
members of the panel, expressed concern about the fragility and precarious state
of Disarmament, Demobilization, Rehabilitation and Reinsertion (DDRR) and
concerns about the implementation of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Liberia.
DDRR
is considered a major component of the peace process formalized by the peace
agreement signed by the warring parties in Accra, Ghana in August 2003.
Liberia Day Forum: The
moderator Dean and Law Professor
Katherine S. Broderick (l.) Dean of the UDC David A.
Clarke School of Law; Ms. Vernice Guthrie, ABA Africa Program,
Director; Mr. Dave Peterson NED Africa Program Director; Mr. Lester
Hyman, Washington attorney and author; Mr. Kabineh Ja’Neh, Minister of Justice
and Attorney General of the Republic of Liberia; and Mr. Todd Howland, Director of the Robert
F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights (r).
Archbishop Michael Kpakala Francis, the Robert F. Kennedy 1999 Human Rights Award Laureate, expressed his concern and repeatedly stressed that peace and security are a pre-requisite to free, fair and democratic elections.
Furthermore,
he stressed that if obstacles to successful implementation
of DDRR are not soon overcome with full
participation of Liberian citizens and
civil society organizations, the
country might plunge back into unrest and civil war.
Earlier, he had declared, “there is no place for former warlords in a ‘morally upright’ government” and he repeatedly called for the establishment of a war crimes tribunal.
Archbishop Michael Kpakala Francis, the head of the Archdiocese of Monrovia and the Robert F. Kennedy 1999 Human Rights Award Laureate; February 2003.
“Our
nation has suffered greatly in the last 23 years, but most especially in
the last 14 years of internecine warfare,” he said.
“A
war crimes tribunal may be a useful vehicle to end the culture of
impunity so pervasive in our national life."
“The transitional government should also make it a criminal offense for any individual or private group to own weapons in Liberia,” he continued.
“There
will be a tremendous need for lawyers and judges in Liberia to secure justice in
the country,” said Dean and Professor Katherine S. Broderick, of the UDC
David A. Clarke School of Law and moderator of the Forum.
“The
partnership between UDC David Clarke School of Law and the Robert F.
Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights is enormously important in this
post civil war time, and because of the historic relationship between the U.S.
and Liberia.
“The
current government, which is composed largely of the former combatants, and a
minority from civil society and the political parties, is dominated by warlords
and members of the former government, many of whom are guilty of severe human
rights abuses, ” said David Peterson, NED
Africa Program Director.
“The
hundreds of millions of dollars in international aid that is
expected for Liberia cannot fall into the hands of these people, who will
either steal it for their personal use or direct it to further their own
political ambitions,” he continued.
Most
human rights advocates are calling for a war crimes tribunal or some other
judicial mechanism to end the cycle of impunity.
The
upcoming elections could well reinstate a government composed of most of the
elements of the Taylor regime, only without Taylor,” he
concluded
“U.S.
policy toward Liberia failed to adequately support a democratically elected
government in 1997 and then focused more on its dislike for the leader of that
government than on the basic needs of Liberia's 3.5 million citizens who, by the
way, revere the United States,” said Lester Hyman, a Washington attorney and
author.
“The
unintended consequence of this policy has been four more years of horrific civil
war in which hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians have been killed,
wounded, starved or displaced,” he said.
“We
now are being much more pro-active in our approach to Liberia and are working
closely with the United Nations, international financial institutions and NGO's in
supporting the interim government and setting the stage for a free and fair
election in 2005. This is a welcome development," said Hyman.
“Peace for the people must begin with the people--therefore community based dispute resolution and conflict mitigation must be supported and embraced," said Vernice Guthrie, ABA Africa Program.
"I fear that the real national tragedy shall be the failure by post-conflict
Liberians to draw appropriate lessons from the terribly bitter conflict and to
build a sound foundation for the growth of a democratic culture, based on
justice, equality and freedom for all -- anchored in the supremacy of the rule
of law,” said the Liberian Minister of Justice and Attorney General Mr.
Kabineh JA’Neh.
“After experiencing the bitterness of war, the dehumanization of our people and the destruction of our country, I realized that it was time to address these problems ourselves,” said Archbishop Michael Kpakala Francis.
“When you study moral
theology, you study ethics and learn about war, too--the results, motivation,
and culpability. Your mind is attuned to respect all the dimensions of the human
person."
“All that I had learned and
studied as a psychologist, a moral theologian, a priest and a bishop,
strengthened me to recognize that human rights were being violated,” he said.
The mission of the RFK Center
for Human Rights is to support the human rights work of the Robert F.
Kennedy Human Rights Award Laureates and Social Justice Fellows.
The Center implements
Robert F. Kennedy’s vision of social justice by promoting respect for full
spectrum of human rights, both in the United States and throughout the world.
The Center has consultative status with the United Nations.
The Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award was established in 1984 to honor creative individuals who are, often at great personal risk, engaged in strategic and nonviolent efforts to overcome serious human rights violations.
Today, there are 34 RFK Laureates working in 20 countries.
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