TRC Will Not Grant Amnesty To Everyone

TRC Will Not Grant Amnesty To Everyone
Monday, 5th June 2006
By Sam Togba Slewion
- Says Chairman

http://www.theinquirer.com.lr/editorial_details.php?recordID=1376

Everyone appearing before the investigation panel of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission(TRC) of Liberia will not be granted amnesty contrary to popular beliefs that there will be a blanket amnesty for those who appear before the Commission and confess their roles in the 14-year civil war in Liberia.

This revelation was made by Cllr. Jerome Verdier, Chairman of the TRC, when he met with Liberians in Philadelphia at town hall meeting during his recent visit to the United States in late May. He was here as guest of the Center for Transitional Justice in New York.

Chairman Verdier explained further that while the work of the TRC is to promote healing and reconciliation among Liberians after such a bitter experience in the country, “everyone who appears before us will not be granted amnesty based on the gravity of the atrocities committed by some people during the war.”

The disclosure by Chairman Verdier comes in the wake of apprehensions in some quarters of the Liberian community that a general amnesty awaits perpetrators of all crimes committed during the war by the TRC. This perception appears to be fueling the disdain some Liberians have against the role of the TRC, thus driving their call for the establishment of a war crime tribunal.

Some Liberians strongly feel that any reconciliation process in the country without justice will not contribute to completely healing the wounds and emotional scars of the civil war, but other Liberians hold contrary views, believing that reconciliation without justice promotes forgiveness and provides an opportunity to give a second chance to everyone, including even the most notorious perpetrators in the war.

It appears that the TRC is taking a middle ground between the opposing views, considering its mandate not to grant blanket amnesty to all victimizers of the war. However, it is not exactly clear what will be the fate of those who fail to win the clemency of the TRC, but Chairman Verdier hinted to the gathering in Philadelphia that their fate will be contained as part of the recommendations to be submited to the Government by the Commission for further implementation beyond the scope of the TRC, which is expected to last for two years.

While the TRC is expected to officially commence its work this month, the members of the Commission have been engaging officials of other Truth and Reconciliation Commissions to study the work and experiences of these bodies to enable the TRC effectively conduct its mission. The Chairman of the Truth & Reconciliation Commission of Sierra Leone recently visited Liberia and shared some of the challenges of his Commission.

He told the TRC to avoid the mistake of simultanously conducting a hearing alongside a war crime tribunal. “The work of these two bodies cannot go together as the war crime tribunal undermined the work of the TRC in Sierra Leone because perpetrators were afraid to come forward for fear of being transfered to the war crime tribunal after their confessions before our Commission, “ he said.

Few weeks after the visit of the Chairman of the Sierra Leonean TRC, the nine commissioner of the TRC of Liberia left for South Africa to review the work of the South Africa TRC headed by Bishop Desmond Tutu. The Commissioner have also recieved short-term training in transitional justice and watched video tapes of hearings of the other TRCs, including those of South Africa.

When the TRC is fully prepared and ready to hear testimonies of victims and victimizers of the Liberian civil war, Chairman Verdier indicated that part of its work will focus on atrocities committed against women, children and the elderly, who are the most vulnerable groups in any crisis. “Our work will also include the investigation of economic crimes between 1979 to 2003,” Chairman Verdier disclosed in Philadelphia.