A Tortuous Road to Peace

Transcription

1 A/ A Tortuous Road to Peace The Dynamics of Regional, UN and International Humanitarian Interventions in Liberia EDITED BY FESTUS ABOAGYE AND ALHAJI M S BAH A project of the Peace Missions Programme at the Institute for Security Studies, funded by the Embassy of Finland in Pretoria, South Africa.

2 CONTENTS About the Editors About the Contributors Preface Foreword I Foreword II Glossary of Abbreviations, xxv list of Figures and Tables vii ix xiii xv xxi xxxi CHAPTER ONE Introduction 1 Festus B Aboagye and Alhaji M S Bah Introduction 1 Background to the project 5 Regional and international interventions in Liberia: ECOWAS intervenes - a case of humanitarian intervention? 8 CHAPTER TWO The Intervention Dilemma: The Dynamics of Civilian Protection in the post-cold War Era 21 Alhaji MS Bah Introduction 21 The evolution of the principles of civilian protertion 22 The AU, ECOWAS and the protection challenge 29 Enter human security 34 Sovereignty or survival 36 The intervention dilemma: Regional and international responses 39 Conclusion 43 CHAPTER THREE Liberia's War and Peace Process: A Historical Overview 51 Lansana Gberie Introduction 51 Humanitarian disaster and ECOMOG intervention 53 Failed peace agreements and Taylor's presidency 58 Second phase of war: A continuing quest for peace 62 The national transitional government of Liberia 64

3 iv Contents Another chequered disarmament process? 65 Conclusion 66 Some lessons learned 67 CHAPTER FOUR Synergies of Regional and UN Interventions: The ECOWAS Mission in Liberia and the Protection of Civilians 73 Colonel Theophilus Tawiah and Festus B Aboagye Introduction 73 Just cause or military adventurism? 75 A synopsis of statutory and non-statutory forces in Liberia 78 Verifying the ceasefire: The ECOWAS Joint Verification Team 82 The ECOWAS Mission in Liberia 86 Transition to United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) 94 Conclusion 94 CHAPTER FIVE Synergies of Regional and UN Interventions: The Contribution of the UN Mission in Liberia to Civilian Protection 99 Festus B Aboagye and Alhaji M S Bah, PhD Introduction 99 Transition to the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) 101 The UNMIL mandate 102 A head-start establishment and deployment 105 Framework operations: DDRR and reform of the LNP and AFL 108 Reforming the law enforcement sector 117 Reforming the AFL 121 Conclusion 122 CHAPTER SIX The Mechanics of Rebuilding a Failed State: The Governance Challenge in Liberia 127 Abiodun Bashua Introduction 127 Overview of the rule of law 127 Overview of governance 129 Transition challenges 130 The role of civil society 135 The role of the international community 137 Policy recommendati ons 138 CHAPTER SEVEN Mainstreaming Gender in Peace Support Operations: The United Nations Mission in Liberia 147 Fatoumata Aisha

4 Introduction 147 Framing the generic issues of gender 148 Instructive experiences of violence against women and girls in the Liberian conflict 150 A legal framework for the protection of and respect for the human rights of women and girls 150 An operational framework 152 Conclusion 162 CHAPTER EIGHT An Integrated Approach to Peace Support Operations: Overview of UN and International Humanitarian Agencies in Liberia 165 Albert Fiawosime Introduction 165 Mandates, roles and activities of key UN agencies 166 Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) 171 Civil-military coordination in the mission 172 Coexistence 179 The integrated mission concept 181 Conclusion 187 Policy recommendations 189 CHAPTER NINE Ending Impunity: The Case for War Crimes Trials in Liberia 191 Chernorjalloh andalhagi Marong, LLD Introduction 191 An overview of serious human rights violations committed in the Liberian conflict 193 Law applicable to the Liberian conflict 196 International humanitarian law 196 International human rights law 201 Potential mechanisms for accountability in Liberia 206 International Criminal Court 211 International or hybrid court for Liberia? 213 Possibility of trials at the Special Court for Sierra Leone 214 Conclusion 218 CHAPTER TEN Truth, Justice and Reconciliation: Analysis of the Prospects and Challenges of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Liberia 229 Dr Abdul Rahman Lamin Introduction 229 Liberia's troubled past with the rule of law 231 National impunity: A paradigm rooted in the past 234 Restoring the rule of law and protecting civilians: Is the TRC an answer? 234

5 vi Contents Liberia's proposed TRC: A copy-cat of post-conflict peace-building experiments in West Africa? 238 International efforts to promote the rule of law in Liberia 240 Reflections and some thoughts on the way forward 242 CHAPTER ELEVEN Enhancing post-conflict Democratic Governance through effective Security Sector Reform in Liberia 249 Festus B Aboagye and Martin R Rupiya, PhD Introduction 249 The concept of security sector reform 252 Background to security sector reform assisted by UNMIL in Liberia 252 The case for human rights, rule of law and transitional justice reforms in Liberia 255 The case for security sector reform in Liberia 258 An overview of UNMIL's reform efforts 260 A task that needs to be 'done well': Reforming Liberia's armed forces 263 Liberia's security complex and concerns: the way forward for security sector reform 266 Conclusion 274 CHAPTER TWELVE Liberia's Road to Recovery: Trends, Prospects and Challenges 281 Festus B Aboagye and Alhaji M S Bah, PhD Political will and consensus 285 Gaining and sustaining early entry points 286 Mandates and rules of engagement 287 Imposition and enforcement of sanctions 288 Mission readiness and regional capacities 289 Mission readiness 289 External initiatives for the enhancement of generic capacities 290 Command, control, communications and information systems (C 3 IS) 290 Logistical capacity and support 291 Restoration of civil authority 292 Security sector reform 294 Disarmament, demobilisation, rehabilitation and reintegration 296 Transitional justice 297 Flexibility in the application of the integrated mission concept 299 Bibliography 303 Index 313