War crimes trial

As Taylor's war crime trial resumed at the Special Court for Sierra Leone in The Hague on Monday, his lawyer asked that people approach the case "with an open mind."

"We do appreciate that Mr. Taylor faces a wall of prejudice in presenting his case," said Taylor's lawyer Courtenay Griffiths. "But all we ask ... is that people approach his evidence with an open mind and try and view what he has to say objectively."

Griffiths told the court the former president did not participate in war crimes and that Taylor was seeking to bring peace to the country during the war in Sierra Leone, in which more than 250,000 were killed.

Suspicions of human right violations

Taylor has been on trial in The Hague since June 2007. The 61 year-old faces 11 charges which include recruiting child soldiers, rape, murder and torture.

After bringing 91 witnesses to the stand, the prosecution closed its case in February.

The prosecution has attempted to show that Taylor supported Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels during the civil war in Sierra Leone which ran from 1991 to 2002. Taylor is accused of providing the rebels with weapons in exchange for diamonds. The prosecution suspects Taylor directed RUF rebels in a campaign of terror against civilians, seeking to boost his self influence and control Sierra Leone's diamond mines.

"It's not for us to make predictions. That's not to say that we don't have confidence in our case," Chief Prosecutor Stephen Rapp said Monday. "We laid out what we were going to present when I did the opening here two years ago, and we believe that we delivered on what we promised.

"In fact we were very pleased with the witnesses that appeared and their recollection of events, and that so many of them despite the perils that they face, and the concerns that a lot of them had about their futures were able to come and testify."

Numerous witnesses will be called to the stand for the duration of the defense which is due to last between six and nine months. Taylor has denied all 11 charges and is expected to take the stand for several weeks starting on Tuesday.

Author: Paddy Maguire (mo)
Editor: Trinity Hartman