Liberia's TRC ready for action

2007-11-22 09:32

Monrovia - Liberia's truth commission plans to open in January public hearings on war atrocities committed over two decades of civil unrest in the West African country, its head Jerome Verdier said on Wednesday.

Verdier said the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) hearings to begin on January 08 were intended to promote reconciliation and restore dignity to victims.

"That will be done by providing an opportunity for victims ...to give an account of the violations and abuses suffered and for perpetrators to relate their experiences in an environment conducive to constructive interchange," Verdier said.

Styled on South Africa's TRC, the commission was probing rights violations including murders, extra-judicial killings, economic crimes and sexual abuse committed by all parties to the country's conflicts.

Unrest in Liberia was sparked by food riots in 1979 followed by a coup in 1980 that toppled former president William Tolbert.

A decade later, the conflict intensified with a rebellion led by warlord Charles Taylor and the subsequent ouster and assassination of then president Samuel Doe during the first of two civil wars.

Taylor, later elected president and now on trial for war crimes, stepped down in 2003 in the face of an insurgency and international pressure to quit.

The latest war claimed at least 270 000 lives over 14 years.

The commission was formed under a 2003 peace deal, but effectively started work late last year. It was given two years to conduct its business, but could seek an extension if necessary.

- AFP