Special Tribunal In The Gambia: Taa Wongbe Charges ECOWAS To Remain Neutral
…Urges The Gambia To Set Up Tribunal As An Independent State
Princess-Ekwi Ajide
The representative of Liberia at the ECOWAS Parliament, Honorable Taa Wongbe, has advised the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, to remain neutral in order not to lose the confidence and trust of member states.
Honourable Taa, made the call at the sidelines of the ECOWAS Parliamentary session in Abuja as the clamour for facilitating the setting up of a special tribunal in The Gambia by the ECOWAS heads of state for the trial of perpetrators of heinous crimes in the country during the tenure of former President Yahya Jammeh intensifies.
He opined that the regional body must not be seen or perceived to be taking sides or aligning with any of the parties, as such action will not only erode the confidence of member states but will also bring to question the credibility of the body as an independent organization responsible for maintaining regional peace and the advancement of economic development in the West African sub-region.
Hononurable Wongbe, maintained that while it is legally justified and acceptable to punish those who have committed crimes against humanity in The Gambia, to serve as a deterrent to others in future, the institution of the ECOWAS should not be the vehicle to achieving that, as it will sett a bad precedence.
He, however, advised that The Gambia may explore the option of setting up the Tribunal as an independent state or approach the International Criminal Court (ICC) which has th jurisdiction to try suspects that took part in such atrocities.
The representative criticised the role some member states played in the civil war in his home state, Liberia, by deploying troops in support of one party, saying that if ECOWAS had taken sides directly, Liberia would not have been comfortable to continue to be a member of the sub-regional body.
Honourable Taa, explained that from the experience of Civil war in Liberia, which led him to seek refuge in Guinea and Cote d’Ivoire as an internally displaced person, with the attendant human rights violations and the economic as well as social dislocation of the country, no perpetrator of such crime should be allowed to go unpunished.
The ECOWAS heads of state had proposed to the Parliament the setting up of a special tribunal for the trial of suspects who took part in the criminalities in The Gambia.
The ECOWAS Parliament however, in a unanimous resolution, rejected the proposal on the grounds that it will present the West African sub-regional body as biased but advised The Gambia government to take whatever decision it deemed fit as an independent state.