Bush Trip to Africa, July 2003
Stop Number One: Senegal and West AfricaKey question for the Bush team here: what to do about Liberia? Will the U.S. lead an intervention in Liberia? Send U.S. troops to join a regional or United Nations force? Or merely provide financial and political support for such an undertaking? A second issue will be the mandate of any future intervention force, which should include U.N. authorization to protect civilians. Liberia has returned to full-scale armed conflict over the last few years, with two rebel groups pitted against Charles Taylor's regime. Many members of Liberian rebel groups were part of other warring factions in Liberia's brutal war of 1989 -1996. With the support of neighboring governments, they have now re-grouped and re-armed, and have initiated a new phase of war in Liberia. The two rebel groups, the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) and a splinter group of ex-LURD members called the Movement for Democracy in Liberia (MODEL), now control the majority of the country. A ceasefire agreement was signed on June 17 in Ghana between the government and two rebel groups, but renewed fighting has threatened the accord. In late June, troops from the LURD entered and then retreated to the outskirts of Monrovia, prompting mass displacement and reports of numerous deaths of civilians in and around the town. While Liberian government forces have routinely abused civilians, including through executions, torture, arbitrary detentions, and the recruitment of child soldiers, civilians living in rebel-controlled territory have fared little better. Thousands of civilians are currently displaced in rapidly deteriorating humanitarian conditions in Monrovia. Outside the capital, the remainder of the population is largely inaccessible to humanitarian assistance. As required by the ceasefire agreement, a joint verification team was deployed to Monrovia soon after the ceasefire was signed, but its activity stalled with the resumption of fighting. All three parties to the conflict have agreed to cooperate with an international stabilization force, which is expected to deploy as soon as its composition and leadership is determined and there is a lull in the fighting. The recurrent instability in West Africa has prompted several peacekeeping initiatives. Some of the more successful efforts include the British intervention in Sierra Leone and the coordinated French and West African action in Ivory Coast. As a nation founded by former American slaves, Liberia is widely considered to be the special responsibility of the United States, and all eyes are on Washington for a deployment that will defuse the current conflict. The future of President Charles Taylor is uncertain. On June 4 the Sierra Leone Special Court announced its indictment and arrest warrant against him. Although Taylor initially committed to stepping down, recent statements appeared to backtrack. The United States must support his indictment and state clearly that it will provide no safe haven for Taylor, who should be prosecuted for his crimes. At the same time, the Bush team should lay out a plan for strengthening the ceasefire, stabilizing the country, and committing U.S. resources to rebuild post-war Liberia. As Human Rights Watch has documented, civilians and neighboring states have long borne the brunt of the spillover effect of the Liberian wars. Guinea is home to more than 100,000 Sierra Leonean, Ivorian, and Liberian refugees, but the Guinean government has also contributed to the regional unrest by supporting the LURD rebels, thereby violating a U.N. arms embargo. Guinea is currently a U.N. Security Council member and the United States should announce its intention to support sanctions against Guinea if it does not cease its support for the LURD. Côte d'Ivoire has been wracked by civil war for the past eight months and Ivorian civilians in the west have suffered numerous abuses due to the spillover of the Liberian conflict. A ceasefire is in force and the government of reconciliation is making some progress in Abidjan, but the Ivorian peace remains fragile. The United States should support efforts to bring abusive fighters to justice, including Liberian fighters who operate in Côte d'Ivoire, and ensure that adequate funding is available to humanitarian and development agencies bringing urgently needed assistance to the devastated western region. More information from Human Rights Watch is available online: The Regional Crisis and Human Rights Abuses in West Africa: A Briefing Paper to the U.N. Security Council (June 20, 2003)
West Africa: Taylor Indictment Advances Justice Liberian President Must Be Arrested: A Human Rights Watch Press Release (June 4, 2003)
Liberia: Maintain U.N. Embargo: Abuses in Liberian War Threaten Region: A Human Rights Watch letter to the U.N. Security Council (May 5, 2003)
Côte d'Ivoire: Liberian Fighters Attack Civilians: U.N. Security Council Should Take Action: A Human Rights Watch letter to the U.N. Security Council (April 14, 2003)
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