Sirleaf, Blair, Kabah meet in Freetown: Hold Bilateral talks

(FREETOWN, Sierra Leone, May 31, 2007): Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf says Africa must take responsibility for maintaining peace on the continent. The President said, long gone are the days of the non-interference, when Africa countries stood by while conflicts engulfed their neighbors. The events of recent years, President Johnson Sirleaf observed, have proven that if provided adequate support, Africa could ably tackle conflict situations on the continent.
According to Presidential Press Secretary, Cyrus Wleh Badio, who traveled with the President to Freetown, the Liberian leader made the remarks when she addressed local and foreign journalists on the outskirts of the Sierra Leonean capital, following bilateral talks with the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair.
President Sirleaf lauded Prime Minister Blair for the stance taken in the Sierra Leonean conflict when that country intervened to stop the carnage five years ago. Sierra Leonean President, Tejan Kabbah was also full of praises for the Outgoing Prime Minister and his country’s assistance in helping Sierra Leone recover from years of destruction.
Mr. Blair concurred with the two Mano River Union leaders, saying his country’s intervention helped stop those he referred to as gangsters, criminals and terrorists, who raped women and created mayhem in the country. “Had we fail to intervene’ the Prime Minister argued ‘the impact would have been grave not only for this country or the region but for the world.” No matter how tough and detrimental the decision is, the British Prime Minister said, it is better to intervene than wait until a conflict spills out of control.
Mr. Blair said, he shared President Johnson Sirleaf’s view that Africa must take responsibility for peace on the continent. Developed countries, the British Prime Minister said, must however, provide funding, training, equipment and logistics to ensure the mission’s success.
He praised the level of progress taking place in Liberia and Sierra-Leone and urged the West to step
Blair, Kabah and Sirleaf at news conference in Freetown
Pres. Sirleaf and Tony Blair in Freetown
Presidents Sirleaf of Liberia and Kabah of Sierra Leone
up and support ongoing initiatives. On Sierra-Leone, the Prime Minister acknowledged the challenges facing the country, but said much progress has been made compared to what obtained five years ago when the country was being taken over by gangsters. “Politics is all about making a difference, and I believe a difference has been made in Sierra-Leone.”
The meeting with the British Prime Minister, by President Johnson Sirleaf, is the latest round of discussions with leading members of the G-8, ahead the Group’s upcoming meeting in Germany in June. Liberia is seeking the waiver of its multi-lateral debt owed the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the African Development Bank.
The President last week held talks in Berlin with the German Chancellor, Angela Markel and the new French President Nicholas Sakozy. President Johnson Sirleaf returned to Monrovia Wednesday evening following the discussions with Mr. Blair.

Source: Cyrus Wleh BadioPress Secretary to Pres. Sirleaf

LIBERIAN GOV'T LIFTS BAN ON INDEPENDENCE NEWSPAPER

Recent ban imposed on the Independence Newspaper by the Liberian Government for publishing what the government called “obscene photographs” of former Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Mr. Willis Knuckles having sex with two unidentified women has been lifted.
Announcing the lifting of the ban yesterday evening, Liberia’s Information Minister, Rev. Dr. Lawrence M. Bropleh said the action to lift the ban on the paper was in keeping with the Ministry’s statuary mandate to serve as the regulator and enforcement body of the Government in all matters affecting communication in Liberia.
He said the Government of Liberia respects the right to freedom of expression, but at the same times acknowledges the responsibility that goes along with it. The Liberian Information also said the revocation of the paper’s operational license was in keeping with Chapter 31.8 of the ministry’s mandate.
Chapter 31.8 gives the Ministry of Information the responsibility of formulating regulations affecting journalists and journalism in Liberia, and to ensure the highest possible standard of professional competence.
Speaking to our Correspondent in the Liberian Capital immediately after the ban imposed on his paper by the Liberian Government was lifted, the Managing Editor of the paper, Sam O. Dean said he had not regret for his paper publishing what the Liberian described as “obscene photographs”, but instead he did perform his professional duty; informing and educating the reading public.
Permalink Edit... Deprecate! Delete!

Charges Against Ex-First Lady of Ghana to be Reduced

Madam Nana

Konadu Agyeman

Rawlings

Accra, GNA - Prosecution in the case of Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, a former First Lady and five others alleged to have willfully caused financial loss to the state in respect of the divestiture of the GIHOC Cannery at Nsawam, said charges against them would be substituted.
Ms. Gertrude Aikins, Chief State Attorney and Acting Director for Public Prosecution, explained that the original charges which were made up of 30 counts would be reduced to nine.
The other five accused persons are Emmanuel Amuzu Agbodo, a former Executive Secretary of the Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC), Thomas Benson Owusu, a former Accountant of the DIC, Kwame Peprah, a former Minister of Finance and former Chairman of the DIC, Sherry Ayittey, Managing Director of Carridem Development Company Limited, property of 31 December Women's Movement and Carridem as an entity.
They are variously charged with 30 counts of conspiracy, causing financial loss to public property, conspiracy to obtain public property by false statement and obtaining public property by false statement. They have all denied the offences and have been admitted to self-recognisance bail.
Earlier, Georgina Okaitey, General Manager, Larry Adjetey, Director Secretary and George Mould, a Director all of Carridem, were discharged at the instance of prosecution.
The accused persons were alleged to have caused loss to public property running into billions of cedis, following the acquisition of state-owned GIHOC Cannery at Nsawam by Caridem Development Company Limited.
This, the prosecution had stated that the accused persons failed to complete interest payment, which accrued on the purchase price of the cannery. The case has been adjourned for tomorrow, June 1.

As British P.M. Visit Freetown, Dozens of witnesses Expressed Interest To Testify Against Charles Taylor war crimes

THE HAGUE, Netherlands: Dozens of witnesses will be called in Charles Taylor's trial to link the former Liberian president to atrocities committed during Sierra Leone's civil war in the 1990s, Chief Prosecutor Stephen Rapp said Wednesday.
Those witnesses include insiders claiming to have seen Taylor instigate and give orders leading to war crimes, Rapp said.
The long-awaited trial begins Monday with the prosecution's four-hour opening statement, then will adjourn until June 25 when it will hear the first of the 150 witnesses the prosecution plans to summon to the stand.
Taylor's defense will give its opening statement after the prosecution rests its case, in about one year, Rapp said. The trial should take about 18 months before the judges retire to consider their verdict.
Taylor, 59, is facing 11 charges of terrorism, murder, rape, sexual slavery, mutilation and recruiting child soldiers. He has pleaded innocent to all counts.

He was arrested last year and flown to the Netherlands amid fears that staging his trial in Sierra Leone, where the court usually sits, could trigger fresh unrest or even attempts by his supporters to break him out of prison.
Of the 150 scheduled prosecution witnesses, 62 will testify "to Taylor's control, to his orders, to his instigation, to his plans, to his provision of assistance of arms, training, safe refuge to the rebels, with full knowledge of the atrocities they were committing to the civilian population," he told the Netherlands-based Foreign Press Association.
Some of those witnesses were from Taylor's inner circle. Some may have shared responsibility for crimes, but were not being prosecuted because the court chose to pursue only those most responsible, he said.
Most of them will testify under pseudonyms to protect their identities from public disclosure, though the defense will know who they are. Some will be eligible for relocation after the trial to avoid retribution.
During a pretrial hearing three weeks ago, defense attorney Karim Khan said potential witnesses feared leaving Sierra Leone to testify on Taylor's behalf for fear of identifying themselves as his associates and exposing themselves to possible U.N. sanctions.
Khan also complained that the two defense lawyers and three legal aides were outgunned by the 10-man prosecution team. Taylor, although he was reported to have stashed away huge wealth from his years in power, has declared himself unable to pay for his own defense team and relies on court-appointed counsel.
Operating from his residence in Monrovia known as White Flower, Taylor never entered Sierra Leone during the conflict, making it a challenge for the prosecution to link him to the actions of rebel forces.
"We don't say he chopped off any hands himself. We don't say he shot anybody himself," Rapp said. "We have a variety of evidence showing that these people (the rebels) viewed Taylor as the boss man, as the person responsible," Rapp said.
The upheaval in West Africa "was a kind of terrorism," he said. "It was, in our view, a systematic attack against civilians with the intent to take control of Sierra Leone."
The Special Court for Sierra Leone has no maximum sentence. Life imprisonment is not in its statute, but Taylor could be sentenced to a term that would leave him jail for his expected lifetime. Under a U.N. sanctioned agreement, Britain has agreed to imprison him if he is convicted.