Do you approve of Nigeria handing over Liberia's exiled former President Charles Taylor to U.N. Backed Court in Sierra Leone?
The Bush administration has played a major role in pressing for Taylor to face trial at the Sierra Leone U.N. Backed Court.
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UN Backed Special Court violated the Constitution of Sierra Leone:
HOW THE CONSTITUTION WAS VIOLATED
The establishment of the so-called Special Court for Sierra Leone violated the Constitution of Sierra Leone in three (3) principal areas:
* Concurrent Jurisdiction & Primacy
* Appointment of the Registrar, and
* Composition of the Chambers
Concurrent Jurisdiction & Primacy
There is no provision in the Constitution of Sierra Leone for Article 8 (1) & (2) of the Statute giving the Special Court for Sierra Leone concurrent jurisdiction with or primacy over the national courts of Sierra Leone.
Article 8 (2) giving the so-called Special Court primacy over the national courts automatically places the Special Court above the Supreme Court and the other courts of Sierra Leone, thereby altering the Constitution of Sierra Leone without applying the entrenched provisions laid down in Section 108 of the Constitution - especially the approval by a REFERENDUM thus depriving the people of their consent. This act by the Executive is CRIMINAL and should be prosecuted because:
a). A Foreigner, (the President of the Appeals Chamber of the Special Court), by virtue of Art. 8 (2) of the Statute, has automatically been placed as the Super-Chief Justice above our Chief Justice (the Constitutional Head of the Judiciary of Sierra Leone.)
b) Another Foreigner, (a Ghanaian who, as Secretary-General of the United Nations), seems to have incidentally acquired the constitutional authority to appoint Judges to our courts in Sierra Leone, in accordance with Art. 12(1) (a) & (b) of the Statute of the Special Court for Sierra Leone, which is quite against Section 135 (1) & (2) of the Constitution.
Appointment of the Registrar
The appointment of the Registrar for the Special Court by the Secretary-General of the United Nations in accordance with Article 16 (3) of the Statute of the Special Court or a Registrar of any other court stated to be superior to or superseding the Supreme Court of Sierra Leone without the relevant changes to the Constitution as indicated elsewhere in this article is a violation of Section 141 (2) of the Constitution of Sierra Leone. The Registrar of the so-called Special Court appointed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations clearly appears to be a Super-Registrar whose powers exceed the power or powers conferred upon the Registrar-General of the Supreme Court, the Registrar of the Court of Appeal or the Master and Registrar of the High Court. Clearly, no sovereign nation can allow its judiciary to become so subordinate to a foreign court and court officials without becoming in effect a non-sense State.
Composition of the Chambers
The appointment of judges in Sierra Leone and by whom, is clearly stated in the Constitution; so also is the assignment of judges to preside over the courts.
Sierra Leone is not a United Nations Mandated Territory; therefore, the Secretary-General (with the greatest respect) does not have the constitutional authority to appoint judges to any courts in Sierra Leone. Let alone to assign judges to courts that are purported to have authority over the Supreme Court, the Chief Justice and the Judiciary of the Republic of Sierra Leone. Who ever may have advised the Secretary-General on this matter, may have done him a great disservice.
Furthermore, there is no evidence anywhere that any of the judges appointed pursuant to Article 12(1) (a) & (b) above, were so appointed by the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, acting upon the advice of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission and that such appointment received the approval of Parliament as is laid down in the Constitution of Sierra Leone.
There is, however, evidence that judges appointed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations pursuant to Article 12 (1) (a) & (b) above, are presently sitting and presiding over courts in Sierra Leone. It is also a fact that the judges are NOT being assigned by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Sierra Leone, as laid in the Constitution but, by the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone under Article 12 (1) (a) & (b) of the Statue for the Special Court for Sierra Leone.
The Bush administration has played a major role in pressing for Taylor to face trial at the Sierra Leone U.N. Backed Court.
MUST READ
UN Backed Special Court violated the Constitution of Sierra Leone:
HOW THE CONSTITUTION WAS VIOLATED
The establishment of the so-called Special Court for Sierra Leone violated the Constitution of Sierra Leone in three (3) principal areas:
* Concurrent Jurisdiction & Primacy
* Appointment of the Registrar, and
* Composition of the Chambers
Concurrent Jurisdiction & Primacy
There is no provision in the Constitution of Sierra Leone for Article 8 (1) & (2) of the Statute giving the Special Court for Sierra Leone concurrent jurisdiction with or primacy over the national courts of Sierra Leone.
Article 8 (2) giving the so-called Special Court primacy over the national courts automatically places the Special Court above the Supreme Court and the other courts of Sierra Leone, thereby altering the Constitution of Sierra Leone without applying the entrenched provisions laid down in Section 108 of the Constitution - especially the approval by a REFERENDUM thus depriving the people of their consent. This act by the Executive is CRIMINAL and should be prosecuted because:
a). A Foreigner, (the President of the Appeals Chamber of the Special Court), by virtue of Art. 8 (2) of the Statute, has automatically been placed as the Super-Chief Justice above our Chief Justice (the Constitutional Head of the Judiciary of Sierra Leone.)
b) Another Foreigner, (a Ghanaian who, as Secretary-General of the United Nations), seems to have incidentally acquired the constitutional authority to appoint Judges to our courts in Sierra Leone, in accordance with Art. 12(1) (a) & (b) of the Statute of the Special Court for Sierra Leone, which is quite against Section 135 (1) & (2) of the Constitution.
Appointment of the Registrar
The appointment of the Registrar for the Special Court by the Secretary-General of the United Nations in accordance with Article 16 (3) of the Statute of the Special Court or a Registrar of any other court stated to be superior to or superseding the Supreme Court of Sierra Leone without the relevant changes to the Constitution as indicated elsewhere in this article is a violation of Section 141 (2) of the Constitution of Sierra Leone. The Registrar of the so-called Special Court appointed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations clearly appears to be a Super-Registrar whose powers exceed the power or powers conferred upon the Registrar-General of the Supreme Court, the Registrar of the Court of Appeal or the Master and Registrar of the High Court. Clearly, no sovereign nation can allow its judiciary to become so subordinate to a foreign court and court officials without becoming in effect a non-sense State.
Composition of the Chambers
The appointment of judges in Sierra Leone and by whom, is clearly stated in the Constitution; so also is the assignment of judges to preside over the courts.
Sierra Leone is not a United Nations Mandated Territory; therefore, the Secretary-General (with the greatest respect) does not have the constitutional authority to appoint judges to any courts in Sierra Leone. Let alone to assign judges to courts that are purported to have authority over the Supreme Court, the Chief Justice and the Judiciary of the Republic of Sierra Leone. Who ever may have advised the Secretary-General on this matter, may have done him a great disservice.
Furthermore, there is no evidence anywhere that any of the judges appointed pursuant to Article 12(1) (a) & (b) above, were so appointed by the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, acting upon the advice of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission and that such appointment received the approval of Parliament as is laid down in the Constitution of Sierra Leone.
There is, however, evidence that judges appointed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations pursuant to Article 12 (1) (a) & (b) above, are presently sitting and presiding over courts in Sierra Leone. It is also a fact that the judges are NOT being assigned by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Sierra Leone, as laid in the Constitution but, by the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone under Article 12 (1) (a) & (b) of the Statue for the Special Court for Sierra Leone.