Liberian Lawyers Divided Over Massaquoi’s Appointment

A group of lawyers in Liberia has rallied in defense of Cllr. Jonathan Massaquoi, who was recently appointed by President Joseph Boakai to lead efforts in establishing a war and economic crimes court as its Executive Director. This appointment has sparked controversy, with a coalition of civil society actors and human rights advocates, under the banner of the Coalition for the Establishment of War and Economic Crimes Court in Liberia, urging the President to withdraw the nomination due to an alleged conflict of interest.

Critics, including human rights activists, have pointed to Cllr. Massaquoi’s past legal representation of Madam Agnes Reeves Taylor and Sierra Leonean national Gebril Massaquoi, both of whom faced trials for their alleged involvement in the Liberian civil war. They argue that this history compromises his suitability for the position.

In response to these criticisms, several veteran Liberian lawyers have defended Cllr. Massaquoi. Cllr. Elijah Forkoyo, who served as the Law Clerk of the Supreme Court of Liberia for over eight years, and Cllr. Amara Sheriff, along with other prominent lawyers, have dismissed the civil society organizations’ claims as baseless.

However, former commissioners of the defunct Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Massa Washington and John Steward, have supported the civil society organizations, stating that the nominee lacks the necessary credentials in human rights issues both locally and internationally.

Peterson Sonyah, a 50-year-old massacre survivor and head of the Transitional Justice Working Group of Liberia and the Liberia Massacre Survivor Association, expressed his dismay at the appointment, describing it as a slap in the face to the real victims of the conflict.

 

 

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