A group of civil society organisations under the banner Liberia civil society initiative for Transitional justice has ended a one day engagement meeting in Monrovia.
Hosted by one of its key network members, the Association of Female Lawyers of Liberia, the one day meaningful initiative brought together heads and officials of the office of the establishment of war and economic crimes court in Liberia (OWECC) including network members.
AFELL is part of the dignity consortium comprising: Community Health care initiative, and Liberia Association of Psychosocial services.
This group coordinate a network of civil society organisations that is into transitional justice and accountability issues.
Speaking at the opening session was Cllr. Evelyn Lah Gongloe who stated that the meeting was among other things meant to build relationships with the office of the Establishment of War and Economic Crimes Court in Liberia.
Cllr. Gongloe said issues of transitional justice and accountability for past Crimes is critical to achieving lasting peace in Liberia.
She encouraged fore runners in the sector to critically assess and examine these critical indicators that may have serve as a barrier to achieving their overall aims and objectives.
Madam Gongloe who at the same time commended Dignity for providing funding for the one day meeting also appreciated the Irish Embassy accredited Monrovia led by its Ambassador Gerard Considine for support to AFELL.
Also speaking at the occasion was the Executive Director for the office of the Establishment of War and Economic Crimes Court in Liberia Cllr. Jallah Barbu who hailed AFELL and advocates in general for their contributions to the society.
According to him, advocacy is a difficult terrain characterized by all sorts of risks with some visible and some invisible as such acknowledged the fore soldiers for said courageous tasks over the period.
Dr. Barbu also challenged major actors and Liberians in general to have an ownership approach to the establishment of the War and Economic Crimes Court in Liberia.
” We need to work harder more than ever before to the process that leads to the establishment of the War and Economic Crimes Court in Liberia including the anti corruption court for Liberia “, he re-emphasized.
Liberia like other Countries he explained is complaining about the stop work order including the withholding of USAID support to Countries.
“We see from the level of National Government indicators that we are troubled by the lack of USAID support but from the past few weeks of the suspension of USAID support, Liberia has been surviving “, he told the gathering.
Speaking further the Head of the Establishment of War and Economic Crimes Court in Liberia stressed the need for the government and stakeholders to recalibrate, rethink and look outside of the box to make the necessary interventions for the people and the Country in general.
He disclosed that Liberians are resolved to ensure that the courts are established as such challenge actors to work until they collectively can reach the final end.
Dr. Barbu informed the gathering that the Office of the Establishment of War and Economic Crimes Court in Liberia is not just a structure but a system which is an integral part of the transitional justice system.
Cllr. Barbu stated that one of their mandates is to consult and over the period of their existence, they have consulted very well and have now expanded its consultation to inclusivity.
By inclusiveness , he emphasized that they are leaving no one behind in the process stating that they are engaging every stakeholder relevant to the process and are given the necessary opportunity to air their views.
Providing more updates about their ongoing and past activities, Dr. Barbu underscores the importance of collaboration and coordination which he noted is also key to their operations as part of one of their key mandates.
” We are also working to ensure that the messages we disseminate to the public are accurate and consistent in order to avoid distortions which could lead to confusion and lost of trust from the public especially in our work”, he reechoed.
Cllr. Barbu who also stressed the significant role and input of civil society to the work that they do was also quick to call on them to work together.
“We need your inputs and direct participation and we are open to remain engaged until we can achieve one goal”, he added.
The one day acquaintance meeting which brought together transitional justice actors from different Civil Society Organizations concluded with the direct actors committing to working together in order to promote and advocate effectively for transitional justice issues actors the Country.
Meanwhile, the Liberia Civil society initiative for transitional justice especially its over thirty members actively participated in the one day session.
In a brief remark, the coordinator of the LCSITJ, Seidu Swaray said the overall focus of the one day gathering is to promote the visibility of the LCSITJ, understand the mandates and build relationships with the Office of the War and Economic Crimes Court (OWECC) of Liberia.
He at the same time pleged network members commitment to remaining engaged with the process for the betterment of the people.
