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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs |
SIERRA LEONE: Special Court to examine Bockarie's body
FREETOWN, 2 June 2003 (IRIN) - The body reported to be that of former Sierra Leone rebel commander Sam Bockarie was returned from Liberia on Sunday and will undergo an independent forensic examination to confirm its identity and determine the cause of death, the Special Court in Sierra Leone said.
"The release of the body comes after weeks of diplomatic pressure on the government of Liberia prior to upcoming peace talks to be held in Ghana," the court said in a statement. "The court will commence an independent forensic examination starting Monday." Talks between Liberian rebels and government start in the Ghanaian town of Akosombo on Wednesday.
The body was accompanied by Sierra Leone's ambassador to Liberia, Patrick Foyah and Liberian government pathologist, Anthony Quayee. Foyah told reporters in Sierra Leone's capital, Freetown, that the body had bullet wounds. "I saw five bullet wounds from the chest, three exited on the back and two on the sides. I also saw a stab wound on the right side of the neck," he said.
Bockarie was being sought for war crimes by the UN-backed court. The Liberian government said he was killed while trying to cross into Liberia from neighbouring Cote d'Ivoire where he had been fighting alongside Ivorian rebel groups. Liberia had refused to handover the body as demanded by the court, saying it was conducting its own investigations.
"Liberian authorities claim Bockarie was killed on 6 May during an alleged arrest attempt by government forces," the court said. "Last week, they revised their story and announced that Bockarie was plotting a coup attempt. For the past three weeks, they have refused to transfer the remains to the court for an independent forensic examination in order to provide positive identification."
Diplomatic sources in the Liberian capital, Monrovia, told IRIN shortly afterwards that Bockarie, who fought on behalf of Taylor in Liberia's civil war since 1999, was actually killed by security forces in Monrovia after an argument with Taylor. The court expressed doubts about the Liberian government claims.
"The people of Sierra Leone deserve to know whether Bockarie is dead, and if so, in what manner he died, the Chief Prosecutor David Crane said. "Given their tactics of delay and obstruction, I seriously doubt the veracity of the account being offered by Liberian authorities."
Crane on Sunday called for Liberia to arrest and transfer another indicted war criminal Johnny Paul Koroma. "If there is to be any lasting peace and security in the region, Koroma must have his day in court. We want him delivered alive so he can answer for the serious charges against him. We know he is in Liberia under the protection of Taylor," he said.
Bockarie and Koroma are among nine people indicted by the court on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other serious violations of international humanitarian law. The crimes were allegedly committed during Sierra Leone's decade of civil war which ended in January 2002.
Koroma came to power in a 1997 military coup, but was deposed by a West African military intervention force sent to restore democracy in Sierra Leone a year later. Bockarie rose from a fighter with Taylor to a commander in the notorious Revolutionary United Front, which was responsible for amputations, rape and murder of civilians.
The court, which accused Taylor of harbouring the two, also said it had credible information that Bockarie's family was also killed in Liberia. Officials told IRIN that Bockarie's mother, wife and two children were killed in Monrovia by Taylor's forces to eliminate possible DNA profiling.
Created through an international agreement between the United Nations and Sierra Leone, the court is mandated to try those who bear "the greatest responsibility" for atrocities committed during that period.
Theme(s): (IRIN) Conflict, (IRIN) Governance
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