— Delay could threaten court’s establishment efforts
The deadline for vetting the Executive Director of the Office of the War and Economic Crimes Court has passed without progress, insiders say, potentially complicating the court’s establishment efforts.
President Joseph Boakai had given a 21-day timeline to Justice Minister Oswald Tweh’s vetting committee to select three qualified candidates — one of whom would be appointed Executive Director for the Office of the War and Economic Crimes Court. However, delays and lack of follow-up meetings have hindered the process, a source, who is a member of the vetting committee told the Daily Observer on Monday.
“Since we had the first meeting last month, we have not been able to meet again,” the source, who pleaded to remain undisclosed, said. “This is because the head [Minister Tweh] has yet to announce a date for the next meeting. The 21-day deadline given to us by the President has expired, and we are still waiting.”
Candidates are frustrated by the lack of communication about their status. When contacted to confirm the information about the uneasiness among committee members and other stakeholders over the reported delay, the candidates complain that up to present, none of them know their status.
“It is so frustrating, but we are looking up to the President,” one of the candidates said. “We are hearing that the vetting process has already closed, yet we aren’t getting any information about our status. However, we are waiting.”
Members of the committee are: George Kingsley, Representative of the National Civil Society Council of Liberia; Adama K. Dempster, Representative, Human Rights CSOs; Cllr. T. Dempster Brown, Independent Human Rights Commission; and Cllr. Sylvester D. Rennie, President, Liberia National Bar Association, along with representatives of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union, and the Inter-Religious Council of Liberia.
Others are Nathaniel Kwabo, Director General of the Cabinet; Cllr. Cora Hare-Konuwa, Deputy Minister for Codification, Ministry of Justice; and Atty. Siaffa Bahn Kemokai, Special Assistant to Justice Minister Tweh.
President Joseph Boakai in August revoked the appointment of Jonathan Massaquoi as Executive Director of the Office of the War and Economic Crimes Court (WECC), following nearly two months of criticism from various stakeholders, including the 177th Independence Day Orator, Dr. Robtel Neajai Pailey.
Dr. Pailey and other critics expressed concerns about the lack of transparency and consultation in the appointment process, calling for a restart to ensure the inclusion and confidence of Liberia’s victim community.
The WECC’s office was established under Executive Order #131 to put in place the modalities and mechanisms to ensure the creation of a Special War Crimes Court for Liberia and an Anti-Corruption Court. Massaquoi was appointed by the President to lead this process.
However, the decision to withdraw his appointment comes after significant public outcry and demands for a more transparent and inclusive selection process for this crucial role. Dr. Pailey, alongside other human rights advocates and the Bar Association of Liberia called for a reconsideration of the appointment and emphasized the need for the Office of the War and Economic Crimes Court to be staffed with reputable Liberian human rights defenders.
“President Boakai, I urge you to withdraw this nomination and not allow politics to derail one of the most important appointments of your time in office,” she said, continuing, “Staff the Office with upstanding Liberian human rights defenders, many of whom have been advocating in the trenches for decades.”
In a few weeks after Dr. Pailey’s public criticism of the President, the government, through the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs, and Tourism (MICAT), announced that Massaquoi had been relieved of his post and that a committee would be established to recruit and vet candidates for the WECC Executive Director position.
“This committee, led by the Justice Ministry and including representatives from key organizations, has a 21-day deadline to recommend three candidates to the President,” the MICAT’s statement said.
However, since the announcement of the committee, much is yet to be done to speed up the process, despite the mandate elapsing since September 9, and also considering the fact that the Executive Order expires after twelve months, though there is an opportunity of its extension by the President.
“We are supposed to pass the stage of recommending the three names to the President by now,” the source said. “There is a lot that we need to do. There is a lot of interest in this war crimes court process and the snail pace at which things are moving is not helping the cause. This is not encouraging.”
President Boakai, following the signing of the Executive order #131, told Liberians that his government remains firm in its stand against injustice and impunity.
“There is no doubt that the move will go a long way in helping to restore respectability and integrity to Liberia,” the President said.
The situation speaks loudly to anyone thinking about whatever their motive might be, especially if the courts should be established, and a total understanding of the interest of our development partners, the United States of America.
It can be recalled that from September 22-24, 2024, an interagency delegation of representatives from the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Global Criminal Justice, Homeland Security Investigations, Department of Justice (U.S. Attorney’s Office, Philadelphia), and Federal Bureau of Investigation were in the country, to strengthen U.S.-Liberian cooperation across the justice sector and contribute to Liberian efforts to establish a War & Economic Crimes Court.
Unfortunately, the delegation did not meet with the Executive Director of the Office of the War and Economic Crimes Court as there was none yet appointed.
Nevertheless, the delegation met with representatives from the Liberian government, as well as Liberian counterparts in law enforcement, the legal sector, and civil society, to build partnerships, exchange ideas, and share experiences with regard to prosecuting complex cases in a trauma-informed and victim-centric way.
According to a US Embassy statement, the delegation brings extensive experience investigating and prosecuting war crimes and other atrocity crimes, as well as victim support.
“We commend Liberia’s commitment to build a War and Economic Crimes Court, and we are proud to send this delegation to Liberia to support local efforts towards justice and accountability,” said US Ambassador-at-Large for Global Criminal Justice, Beth Van Schaack. “We stand ready to be a partner as Liberia takes on this challenge, and we hope this visit will be the start of a productive relationship, where both U.S. and Liberian officials can learn from each other.”
