Impunity Watch: Africa

Brown Discusses the Possibility of Harare's Readmission

By Jennifer M. Haralambides

Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

HARARE, Zimbabwe - Gordon Brown said that significant reforms are still needed by the national unity government in Harare before they can be readmitted to the Commonwealth.

In 2003, President Robert Mugabe resigned Zimbabwe's membership in the Commonwealth of Nations in protest of their continued suspension over human rights issues. 

Gordon Brown, British Prime Minister, has raised the possibility of readmitting Harare while he was on his way to the summit of Commonwealth nations in Trinidad and Tobago that opened on Friday.  This would be the first time in years the Commonwealth leaders were scheduled to debate whether they should allow Zimbabwe back into the fifty three member club.

Brown said that although they are aware of the progress made by the unity government, Britain remains concerned about the rate at which the reform is taking place.  In an article for the Zimbabwe Independent Newspaper, Brown was quoted saying that the power-sharing government had made some recognized achievements such as raising the living standards of local residents, and taming of hyper-inflation. 

The next step should be for the Commonwealth to make an offer of readmission that is conditional on the Zimbabwean government's fulfillment of the 2008 Global Political Agreement (GPA) on power-sharing.  The agreement was intended to lead to a new constitution by August 2010 and free elections.

"I sincerely hope that by the time of our next meeting in 2011, Zimbabwe will have made enough progress for us to welcome them back into the Commonwealth," said Brown.

Brown wants to see progress on reforms in security, justice, and the economy.  He would also like to see Zimbabwe embrace a "vibrant free press."  Moreover, the most important implementation Brown is hoping for is a genuinely free and fair election.

News reports quoted Didymus Mutasa, the Zimbabwe's Minister of State, saying that Zimbabwe did not want want to rejoin the commonwealth.  Also, some skeptics say that Mr. Mugabe is using the illusion of a power-sharing relationship with Mr. Tsvangirai as a way of re-establishing himself in the international community as statesman. 

For more information, please see:

The Sydney Morning Herald - Mugabe's Fate - 29 November 2009

Telegraph.co.uk - Robert Mugabe: Will Zimbabwe be Let Back Into Commonwealth? - 28 November 2009

Reuters - Brown Hopes Zimbabwe Can Rejoin Commonwealth - 27 November 2009 

VOA - Britain's Gordon Brown Moots Readmission of Zimbabwe to Commonwealth - 27 November 2009

UN Helicopter Attacked in DR Congo

By Kylie M Tsudama
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

KINSHASA, DR Congo - A UN helicopter flying over northern Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) on Thursday was fired at, injuring five people on board.  This is the second time this week that gunmen fired at UN helicopters.

According to MONUC, the UN peacekeeping mission in DR Congo, the helicopter was in the town of Dongo in Equateur province delivering supplies to twenty recently deployed Ghanaian peacekeepers.  Five of the thirty onboard were injured and the pilot quickly took off and landed in neighboring Republic of Congo instead.  Upon arrival in Republic of Congo, those injured were tended to.

The helicopter "was attacked while it was on the ground.  It seems there were five people wounded but their lives are not in danger," said MONUC spokesman Madnodje Mounoubai.

Armed movement Patriots-Resistance of Dongo claimed the attacks.  The movement, in a confused statement, denounced MONUC's alleged "complicity" with Rwandan occupation forces, or "Mafia-like imperialists," who the movement alleges is in the area.

"The Patriots-Resistance have again inflicted a resounding failure on the occupation forces and have retaken the town of Dongo.  A MONUC helicopter engaged in the fighting was hit by our fire," said Patriots-Resistance spokesman Ambroise Lobala Mokobe.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon condemned the attack that left three peacekeepers, a member of the Congolese national police, and a civilian pilot wounded.

"The Secretary-General calls on the Government of the DRC to ensure that the perpetrators of the attack against MONUC are held accountable," said his spokesperson.

Additionally, the Secretary General has charged MONUC with assisting the government in protecting the civilian villagers in Dongo, and has encouraged the government to move toward a peaceful resolution of these violent clashes.  He has pledged MONUC's assistance to the government in reaching a peaceful end to the violence.

The fighting in Dongo escalated last month when over 100 people were killed, including forty-seven policemen.  The local Lobala and Boba tribes are fighting over fishing rights.  At least 50,000 people have fled their homes because of the violence.

For more information, please see:

Xinhua - UN Chief Condemns Attack on UN Helicopter in DR Congo - 28 November 2009

AP - UN Helicopter Attacked in DR Congo; 4 Wounded - 27 November 2009

UN News Centre - Ban Deplores Attack on UN Helicopter in DR Congo - 27 November 2009

AFP - Armed Group Claims Firing at UN Chopper in DR. Congo - 26 November 2009

Reuters - Congo Gunmen Fire at U.N. Helicopter, Five Wounded - 26 November 2009

UN Expert Calls for End to Inhuman Practices Following Stonings in Somalia

By Kylie M Tsudama
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Following the recent stonings in Somalia an independent UN expert called for an end to the "cruel, inhuman and degrading" practices taking place there.

Shamsul Bari, the Independent Expert on the Situation of Human Rights in Somalia, said the executions by flogging and stoning highlight the "deteriorating" human rights situation in this country.

"I strongly condemn these recent executions by stoning in Al-Shabaab-controlled areas of Somalia," he said. 

According to the strict interpretation of Sharia law (Islamic law) that Al-Shabaab follows, one can be found guilty of adultery if he or she has an affair and has ever been married, even if divorced.  An adultery offense is punishable by stoning to death.  An unmarried person who has sex before marriage is liable for 100 lashes.

Last week, a 20-year-old divorced woman from a small village near the town of Wajid (250 miles from the capital of Mogadishu) was buried up to her waist and stoned to death in front of a crowd of about 200 on the public grounds.  Her boyfriend was sentenced to 100 lashes.

Judge Sheikh Ibrahim Abdirahman, who works for Al-Shabaab militant group, said she was guilty of having an affair with an unmarried 29-year-old man and giving birth to his stillborn child.  That made her guilty of the offense.

This is believed to be the second woman stoned to death by Al-Shabaab for committing adultery.

Last year a 13-year-old girl was stoned to death for adultery after she was gang raped.  Islamist militants, however, said she was older and married.  She was buried up to her neck and stoned to death by 50 men in front of a crowd of 1,000.

Earlier this month a man was stoned to death for adultery.  His pregnant girlfriend awaits the same punishment but has been spared until she gives birth.

Somalia's moderate Islamist president Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed believes Al-Shabaab is ruining Islam's image by killing people and harassing women, saying, "Their actions have nothing to do with Islam."

Bari has urged all Islamist groups and religious leaders to follow their obligations under international human rights and humanitarian laws.

For more information, please see:

UN News Centre - Somalia: UN Expert Urges end to Inhuman Practices After Recent Stonings - 27 November 2009

Examiner - Al-Shabab Stoning Men, Women, Children in Somalia - 21 November 2009

Al Jazeera - Somali Woman Stoned to Death - 19 November 2009

AP - Somali Woman Stoned to Death for Adultery - 18 November 2009

BBC - Somali Womand Stoned for Adultery - 18 November 2009

Temporary Camps For Those Displaced in Burkina Faso Floods Are Set to Expire.

By Jared Kleinman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso — The Burkina Faso government says thousands of flood-displaced families have till November 30th to leave temporary camps that were set up throughout the capital Ouagadougou.

In September severe flooding in Ouagadougou claimed more than 14 lives and left over 150,000 people homeless. Over 10 inches of rainfall was reported on the capital city, the heaviest 12-hour period since 1953. In reaction to the floods, the government, along with the UN and aid agencies, set up temporary housing throughout the capital for those left homeless.

"It will be difficult to leave and relocate at this point," said Jean Baptiste Bambara, one of some 14,000 displaced people the UN estimates are living at the 18 sites. "Many people do not have homes to go to and living with relatives would place too great a burden."

The government has designated 15,000 plots of land where displaced families are to relocate, and will give cash and materials to help people rent or build homes, according to officials. "Naturally the deadline will not be the same [for those without any options]," said Housing and Urbanism Minister Vincent Dabilgou. But he said people can live in tents at the new designated sites as they await construction of new homes.

The government is to provide 50,000 CFA francs (US$114) to those who were renting and 280,000 CFA francs in money and building materials to people who lost their own houses to the flooding.

Displaced resident Bambara echoed many other displaced people in saying that the amounts are insufficient. "Many flood victims do not work; the government must help us with more money."

The government says the project as planned will require about 8 billion CFA francs ($18 million). The money is coming from the government as well as private and public donors to a national fund set up to help flood victims.

The World Food Programme will provide food aid to people upon their departure from the camps, Annalisa Conte, WFP head in Burkina Faso, told IRIN. "We will give a ration that will cover two months of their food needs - cereals, beans, vegetable oil, sugar and fortified food blend for the children."

Burkina Faso is a landlocked West African country considered to be one of the poorest countries in the world and is ranked 174 of 177 according to the Human Development Index. Burkina Faso has almost half of its population under the poverty line. For every 3.4 children, one will die by the age of 10. These alarming figures have been exacerbated due to the effects of September's floods. 

For more information, please see:

IRIN - Coping With Urban Flood-Displaced - 26 November 2009

Lawrentian - Speaker Brings the Reality of Poverty in Burkina Faso to LU – 13 November 2009

PRNewswire- Barcelona FC Inaugurates a New XICS in Burkina Faso to Offer Comprehensive Attention to More Than 100 Children – 16 November 2009

Reliefweb - IDB Delivers First Batch of Emergency Relief to Flood Victims in Burkina Faso - 09 November 2009

Witnesses Are Threatened in Congolese Warlord Trial

By Jared Kleinman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — Witnesses testifying against two Congolese warlords at the International Criminal Court have been threatened and the court does not have the resources to fully protect them, a senior investigator testified Wednesday.

The investigator spoke on the second day of the trial of Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo, who are accused of planning and directing a February 2003 attack on the village of Bogoro in Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) northeastern Ituri region. Hundreds of people were killed and many women forced into sexual slavery in that February 24th, 2003 attack.

Prosecutors plan to call 26 witnesses to testify and 21 of them will be given protective measures in court to shield their identity to try to prevent possible retaliation. The investigator testified Wednesday as the first witness to outline how her team built its case against Katanga and Ngudjolo. Her identity also was shielded.

Investigators and prosecutors at the tribunal give witnesses advice on how to protect themselves but the unidentified investigator and first witness said sometimes "these quite simply have been not enough." She did not elaborate on whether any witnesses had suffered physical harm, but her comments showed the difficulties of building cases in conflict zones.

Katanga, the alleged commander of the group known as the Force de Résistance Patriotique en Ituri (FRPI), faces three counts of crimes against humanity and six counts of war crimes for a deadly assault on the village of Bogoro, in the province of Ituri. Ngudjolo, the alleged former commander of the rebel National Integrationalist Front (FNI), faces three counts of crimes against humanity and six of war crimes, and is alleged to have played a key role in designing and carrying out the Bogoro attack.

Among those crimes, the two men are accused of using children under the age of 15 in active hostilities, including as bodyguards and combatants, during the deadly assault on Bogoro. Ten child soldiers will be among the 345 people authorized to take part in the trial.

Katanga and Ngudjolo both have pleaded not guilty to three counts of crimes against humanity and seven war crimes including murder, rape, pillage, sexual slavery and using child soldiers in the slaughter. Defense attorneys have denied the two men were involved in the attack on Bogoro and instead blamed Ugandan forces that had been occupying Congo's mineral-rich Ituri region where the village was located.

The prosecution says more than 1,000 fighters of Katanga's Patriotic Resistance Force (FRPI) and Ngudjolo's Nationalist and Integrationist Front (FNI) entered Bogoro on February 24th six years ago "with one communicated and agreed goal: to erase the village".

The ICC is an independent, permanent court that tries persons accused of the most serious crimes of international concern - namely genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. This particular trial is expected to take several months.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press - Congo massacre witnesses were threatened – 25 November 2009

AFP- ICC Trial of Congolese Militiamen to Reveal 'The Truth' – 24 November 2009

PressTV - Congo Warlords Stand Trial – 24 November 2009

Reuters- Congo Warlords in the Dock At Hague Court – 23 November 2009

AllAfrica - International Criminal Court Trial of Two Former Leaders Opens Tomorrow - 23 November 2009

Katanga and Ngudjolo Plead Not Guilty In First Day Of Trial

By: Jonathan Ambaye
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa Desk

THE HAGUE, Netherlands-Today marked the first day of the human rights and war crimes trial of two Congolese militia leaders, Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo.  Katanga and Ngudjolo both plead not guilty to charges stemming from an accusation that they directed an attack on the village of Bogoro in 2003, in which more than 200 people were killed. The specific charges the two face include, ordering attacks on civilians, sexual slavery, rape, and enlisting child soldiers. Today both Katanga and Ngudjolo denied the allegations and expressed sympathy for the victims.

Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo opened the case against the two defendants, alleging they tried to wipe out the entire village of Bogorao. Ocampo used the prosecution’s opening to give a graphic illustration of the horrors that took place in the village of Bogorao. During the course of the attack he said, “some villagers were shot dead in their sleep, some cut up by machetes to save bullets. Others were burned alive after their houses were set on fire by the attackers. “He described the defendants, Katanga and Ngudjolo, as the top commanders of the troops that killed, raped, and pillaged. He further alleged in his opening, “they used children as soldiers, they killed more than 200 civilians in a few hours, they raped women; girls and the elderly, they looted the entire village and they transformed women into sex slaves.

Katanga’s defense attorney claimed that Katanga was “merely defending his own people” and had no part in the Bogoro attack. Ngudjolo’s defense attorney also said that Ngudjolo had not been involved in the attack at Bogoro, and that he had a “clear conscience”.

For more information please see:

AP – 2 Warlords Plead Innocent In Congo Massacre Trial – 24 November 2009

BBC – Congo Warlords Deny Atrocities – 24 November 2009

VOA – Rebel Leaders Plead Not Guilty In Congo Massacre Trial – 24 November 2009

Rebel Leaders Accused of War Crimes and Human Rights Violations Begin Trial Tuesday

By Jennifer M. Haralambides
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

THE HAGUE, Netherlands - The trial against two former Congolese rebel leaders accused of authroizing the attack on civilians, the rape of women, and the enlistment of child soldiers in "the greatest armed conflict" since Word War II is set to begin tomorrow.

Germain Katanga, 31, and Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui, 39, are to appear before the International Criminal Court (ICC) tomorrow.  They are accused of an attack on the village of Borgoro in the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) northeastern region. 

Katanga is a senior commander from the group known as the Force de Resistance Patriotique en Ituri (FRPI).  Ngudjolo is a former commander of the rebel National Integrationalist Front (FNI).

The men are faced with ten counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.  Katanga and Ngudjolo are both of Lendu ethnicity, and the the Bogoro residents were mostly Hema.  Chief prosecutor of the ICC, Luis Moreno-Ocampy described that "[t]he women of the Hema community were raped before they were killed.  They pillaged the entire village.  They kept some women as sex slaves."

"This specific attack was part of a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population in Ituri," continued Moreno-Ocampy.  This attack is said to have killed over 200 people in February 2003.

Defense council reports that both of the accused men have denied the charges against them.  The men have been described as relieved and happy the trial will begin on Tuesday.  Both men have also wished to express their sympathies to the victims.

"The victims have the right to know the truth and the defense has the right to a fair trial, so we are all seeking the same thing.  We are all seeking the truth," says Katanga's lawyer, Andreas O'Shea.

Jean-Pierre Kilenda, defense council for Ngudjolo said, "At no time did he [Ngudjolo] concoct a criminal scheme to raze Bogoro village.  He disputes the fact that he was ever the supreme commander of the FNI." 

The defense council also contends that the war in these regions had its roots in the Rwanda conflict.  He believes the international community failed to prevent a genocide there and allowed armed groups to take control, supported by Rwanda and Uganda. 

Victims of these horrible events can participate in the trial by expressing their views and concerns, provided it is done in a manner consistent with the rights of the accused and a fair trial.  Ten child soldiers will be among these 345 people authorized to take part in the trial.

This is the second trial to be held at the ICC with regard to the situation in the DRC.  The first was that of Thomas Lubanga Dyllo, a Congolese warlord accused of recruiting child soldiers, whose trial began in January 2009. 

The DRC's information minister, Lambert Mende, says that the countries official radio and TV stations will provide live coverage of tomorrow's trial. 

"[w]e are also prepared to dispatch it by our national radio and national television.  So that every Congolese in Kinshasa and all the eleven provinces and Ituri where the atrocities have been committed can follow it and see that we are very committed to punish everybody who violates human rights in our country," said  Mende

For more information, please see:

AFP - ICC Trial of Congolese Militiamen to Reveal "The Truth" - 23 November 2009

ReliefWeb - DR Congo: Press Conference on the Opening Tomorrow of the Second Trial Before The International Criminal Court - 23 November 2009

Reuters - PREVIEW-Congolese Warlords to Stand Trial at World Court - 23 November 2009

VOA - DRC Government to Broadcast Live ICC Trial - 23 November 2009

UN News Centre - International Criminal Court Trial of Two Former Congolese Leaders Opens Tomorrow - 23 November 2009

UN Condemns Latest Rebel Attacks in CAR

By Kylie M Tsudama
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

KAMPALA, Uganda - The UN has urged the Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic (CAR), and Sudan to protect civilians, especially women and children, by sharing information with the UN.  There has been an upsurge of attacks by the Lord's Resistance Army, a rebel group, in these countries.

"The (15) members of the Security Council strongly condemned the continued and recently increasing attacks carried out by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Central African Republic and Sudan," said a statement by the Security Council.

According to Austrian Ambassador Thomas Mayr-Harting, who holds the council's rotating presidency this month, the LRA's attacks "have resulted in the death, abduction and displacement of thousands of civilians."  He also encouraged the regional governments' full cooperation with the United Nations in order to protect civilians.

The LRA guerilla group first appeared in northern Uganda in 1988 and has since expanded into these three other countries.  LRA Chief Joseph Kony is wanted by the The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC).  The rebels are known for mutilating and murdering civilians and kidnapping children for fighting and sexual slavery.

The UN Security Council has called on MONUC (UN Mission in the DRC), UNMIS (in the Sudan), MINURCAT (in Chad and the CAR), UNAMID (African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur), and BONUCA (United Nations Peace-Building Office in the CAR) to coordinate strategies for civilian protection.  

On Tuesday the Ugandan army killed Lt. Col. Okello Ogutti, a commander of the LRA.  

"Okutti used to be the overall commander for LRA operations in Pader district, and he was a senior commander among the groups currently in CAR," said Lt. Col. Felix Kulayigye, the Defense and Army spokesman for Uganda.  Although they killed Ogutti, he added, "Our unique ideology is that while the targeting of LRA commanders continues, the door for Joseph Kony to sign a peace agreement is still open."

Currently, Ugandan special forces are seeking out LRA rebels within the DRC, the CAR, and Sudan.

The Security Council has demanded "that the LRA immediately cease all attacks on civilians, and urged them to surrender, assembly [sic] and disarm, as required by the Final Peace Agreement."

For more information, please see:

AFP - Ugandan Troops Kill Top Rebel in Centr.Africa - 20 November 2009

AllAfrica - America Moves to Make Life Harder for Kony Rebels - 19 November 2009

AFP - UN Condemns Rebel LRA Attacks in Africa - 18 November 2009

Taiwan News - UN Condemns Upsurge in Ugandan Rebel Attacks - 18 November 2009

UN Condemns South African Xenophobic Attacks

By Kylie M Tsudama
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

(Source:Al Jazeera)

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa - The United Nations refugee agency condemned the latest xenophobic attacks in South Africa.  According to the UNHCR (United Nations High Commission for Refugees) this is the first large-scale xenophobic attack on refugees and asylum-seekers in a year and a half.

"We have moved quickly to help the displaced," said Andrej Mahecic, UNHCR spokesperson.  "They are now awaiting the outcome of negotiations with local farmers who attacked their homes on Tuesday, accusing them of stealing their jobs by accepting cheaper wages in vineyards."

Competition for farm jobs has sparked xenophobic attacks at squatter camps in the Western Cape town of De Doorns.  The South African Red Cross has asked for humanitarian aid to protect and shelter some 3,500 foreigners, many of whom are Zimbabweans.

Zimbabweans living in South Africa have been accused of stealing the work and bread of nationals by underbidding for farm labor and other employment.  At least 62 were killed in the violence and more than 2,500 Zimbabweans have been displaced because of this violence.

"This time we are dealing with a problem caused by the exploitation of migrant workers by both labour brokers and farmers in the affected province," said Deputy Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba.  "We have learnt that the farmers favour employing migrant labourers so that they can pay them very little, while labour brokers fleece the same employees by taking away as much as two thirds of their monthly salaries for organizing those jobs for them."

He added, "The exploitation has alienated the migrant community from the locals, who are now not being employed because they do not accept the exploitation."

The International Red Cross Society has begun to provide assistance.  The local government, however, has said that it will not provide any aid deferring all responsibility to the local municipality.

Those who have fled say that they still fear for their safety and would not be returning anytime soon. 

For more information, please see:

The Zimbabwean - SA Government Blames Xenophobic Attacks on Labour Brokers and Farmers - 21 November 2009

BBC - UN Condemns South Africa Attacks on Zimbabwe Workers - 20 November 2009

UN News Centre - Xenophobic Attacks in South Africa Draw Condemnation From UN Agency - 20 November 2009

VOA - Anti-Zimbabwean Sentiment in South Africa Rises With Unemployment Rate - 19 November 2009

Taylor Denies Everything

By Jonathan Ambaye
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa Desk

THE HAGUE,Netherlands-This week Charles Taylor responded to a number of allegations by prosecutors, that included Taylor jailing journalists, lying to United Nations Panel of Experts and his involvement in plans to attack Sierra Leone.

Taylor although admitting to jailing journalists, denied prosecutors allegations that he jailed them for investigating diamond smuggling. Taylor said he jailed the foreign journalists because they were trying to assassinate him, not because they were investigating his alleged involvement with diamond smuggling in Sierra Leone. While Taylor was President, he says a foreign television crew was detained for being part of a plot to assassinate him with a “cancer-causing” laser beam. The journalists were later released after security officers could not determine who was behind the plot.

Taylor also responded to allegations that he supported plans to attack Sierra Leone while he was in Libya. The prosecution questioned Taylor about his associations in Libya where rebel forces were being trained to eventually invade Liberia and Sierra Leone in 1989 and 1991. Taylor has repeatedly asserted he never knew about the formation of the Sierra Leonean rebel group Revolutionary United Front (RUF) and that he never met the group’s leader, Foday Sankoh, in Libya. Taylor insists he only met the leader of Sierra Leone’s Pan-Africanist Movement, Ali Kabbah, who was a former student leader.

The prosecution also questioned Taylor about testimony that he was not honest with the United Nations Panel of Experts (UNPE). The prosecution pointed out that in 2000, when Taylor met with the UNPE, he lied to them about the whereabouts of notorious Sierra Leonean rebel commander Sam Bockarie. According to witness testimony, Bockarie, after falling out with the leadership of the RUF, was invited by Taylor to relocate in Liberia. Taylor refuted these allegations. Taylor insisted he was honest in his response to the UNPE, saying that he was never directly asked where Bockarie was.  “I was never asked precisely where he was. I was being honest with the UN because as president of Liberia, I needed to be sure of where he was. I told them the official position of my government that he was escorted to the Ivorian border,” he said.

For more information please see:

Charles Taylor Trial – Charles Taylor Denies Supporting Plans To Attack Sierra Leone While In Libya – 18 November 2009

Charles Taylor Trial – Charles Taylor Was Not Honest With The United Nations Panel Of Experts, Prosecutors Say – 19 November 2009

VOA – Taylor Denies Jailing Journalists For Investigating Diamond Smuggling – 19 November 2009