Special Court For Sierra Leone (sl)
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Sierra Leone > Court
The Special Court for Sierra Leone is the first functioning 'hybrid' tribunal, in that it combines both the domestic law of Sierra Leone and International Law. It is located in Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, and has been receiving cases since 2004. It follows the model of the International criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and is intended to prosecute those who "bear the greatest responsibility" for atrocities committed during Sierra Leone's civil war.
The set up of the Special Court for Sierra Leone
The Special Court for Sierra Leone was set up after a process of negotiation between the Government of Sierra Leone and the United Nations. The Civil War in Sierra Leone lasted almost 10 years and destroyed most of the countries economy and infrastructure. Endemic corruption in the judiciary prior to the start of the civil war in 1991 and the near total break down of the rule of law between 1991 -2001 created a need for fresh institutions to deal with the aftermath of the conflict.
The Civil War in Sierra Leone was host to some brutal atrocities and all the parties in the conflict were responsible to varying degrees for these incidents. All parties in the conflict actively used child soldiers and engaged in terror tactics against the civilian, population such as looting property, mutilating captives (usually by cutting off people's hands and forearms) and engaging in acts of rape and murder. The Revolutionary United Front (RPF) who initiated the conflict in 1991, routinely launched operations with titles such as "operation no living thing" and had close ties with the regime of Charles Taylor in Liberia. After 1997 they worked in consort with the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (ARFC) to try and defeat the remaining government forces and civilian militias (known for the purposes of indictments before the Special Court as the CDF). They were eventually defeated in 2001 by British and UN forces.
In 2001 President Kabbah of Sierra Leone wrote to the United Nations Secretary General, formally requesting his assistance with the setting up of an international court to try those "most responsible" for the events in Sierra Leone.
