Sierra Leone
War on trial
Swiss Press Photo 2007: Award for best foreign feature
At the dawn of the 21st century, one of the notions which tends to gradually impose itself is the notion of international justice. From Saddam Hussein’s trial to the International Criminal Courts for ex-Yugoslavia and Rwanda, from the International Criminial Court to the future Special Court for Lebanon, which will prosecute Rafic Hariri’s murderers, or the debate on the illegality of the United States’ pre-emptive war in Iraq, the notions of genocide, humanitarian interference or military aggression, these issues are being discussed through the viewpoint of international law. Whether it’s considered a reference or an object of scorn, international law is becoming a concept that can’t be ignored. Where does Sierra Leone fit in?
Most of the wars being fought today are civil or internal wars. Although conflicts between states are the focus of international relations, they are rare. The war in Sierra Leone started in 1991, and when it ended, officially on 1st January 2002, 200’000 people had been killed, and another 2’000’000 displaced. Eleven years. During these eleven years of conflict, the worst atrocities were committed: campaigns of mass amputations, rape, mutilations, slavery, war crimes and crimes against humanity. Those eleven years represent a continuous gush of violence in a country where the resulting wounds and trauma are still terribly present today.
The fact that the war took place between 1991 and 2002 is far from insignificant. The decade during which Sierra Leone was engulfed in war represents a transition point between two centuries, a passage from the 20th to the 21st century. This conflict is also an illustration of the typical war scenario of our time.
The Special Court for Sierra Leone, established by Security Council resolution 1315, is competent to judge those who bear the greatest responsibility for the most serious violations of humanitarian law, for crimes against humanity and for violations of the Geneva Conventions during the conflict, especially from 1996 to 2002. The court is currently examining the main criminals who have been charged by the court and its prosecutor. Charles Taylor is considered to be the main defendant in the case of the Sierra Leonian war.
Ever since its outbreak, the war in Sierra Leone has been the gripping and breathtaking stage for today’s main issues and stakeholders: finance, the trade of natural resources – for instance, the world’s most valued diamonds –, the US-UK partnership policy, the crisis of the UN, realpolitik, terrorism, the Hezbollah, Al-Qaïda, the war in Iraq, and the emerging of modern international criminal law.
All these elements fit together to form a thrilling puzzle that unfolds like a spy novel.
The diamonds of Sierra Leone are at the heart of the conflict. Diamonds and their international trade are the defining element of this war, from its beginning to its conclusion and aftermath.
The Revolutionary United Front (RUF), an armed group that went on a rampage across the country, often recruited young so-called rebels from the ranks of exploited workers in diamond mines. The diamond-rich areas also served as backup for the rebel troops, given the role of this resource in financing the war. During that time, the government of Sierra Leone hired South African and British mercenaries, with the approval, the back-up and logistic support of Tony Blair’s government, to face the RUF. Today, these private armies have received, in compensation for their support, exclusive mining contracts for the largest diamond mines in Sierra Leone.
On June 4, 2007 the trial of Charles Taylor -former president of Liberia and warlord- started at the Hague. He is considered as one of the most brutal war criminals of our time and the main instigator of the conflict in Sierra Leone.
Sylvain Savolainen’s feature examines the emergence of international justice, by looking at the attempt of the Special Court for Sierra Leone to pursue justice in a country torn apart by the brutality and horror of war.
It is also the story of a tug-of-war, between justice and one accused of the worst perpetrators of war crimes in our time, Charles Taylor. The former Liberian president, main defendant in the Special Court for Sierra Leone, was recently arrested. His upcoming trial in 2007 will be the framework for the confrontation between justice and war.
This story is also about a forgotten war. It is an insight into the mechanics of a war. And not just any war, but the one that bridges two distinct centuries. It tells the story of our time, and of our particular wars.
It raises and answers the following questions:
- What did the war in Sierra Leone feed on?
- How was it financed?
- What was the role of diamonds, and generally speaking the diamond trade?
- What is the impact of civil wars, whether conscious or indirect?
- What is the role of the ethnic and religious aspect in a conflict? Is it really an engine of war?
- Why is a country more likely to go to war?
- Why is it that the most prevalent type of war is civil war?
- Do we know exactly how to stop or fuel a conflict?
- Which factors prolong or limit a conflict?
- If there are clearly people who bear responsibilities for the crimes commited, who are those responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity? According to which criteria is this determined? And in which manner can they be judged?