Gaddafi Slams Nigeria for Handing over Taylor

By Frank Kintum with agency report, 06.02.2006

The acceptance of Nigeria to hand over former Liberian President, Charles Taylor for war crimes trial by a United Nations Tribunal has been condemned by Libyan President, Muamar Gaddafi who described it as unacceptable precedent that threatened all African leaders.
Nigeria deported Taylor on March 29 to Liberia, which promptly sent him to Sierra Leone where he awaits trial on 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity for backing rebels during Sierra Leone's 1991-2001 civil war.
The United Nations is seeking to move the trial to the International Criminal Court in the Hague amid security fears, but the process has been stalled as no third country has yet volunteered to act as Taylor's jailer if he is convicted.
During the week, Liberian President, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, had called on a European country to accept the task of jailing Taylor if convicted.
According to Gaddafi, handing Taylor to the ICC would undermine Africa's credibility and seriously harm Nigeria, which could no longer be considered a haven.
"This also means that every (African) head of state could meet a similar fate -- this sets a serious precedent," he said.
Gaddafi has sought a leading role in African disputes, trying to mediate a peace deal in Darfur and sooth tensions between Sudan and Chad, and each time fiercely opposing outside intervention in the continent's affairs.
"Taylor must stay in Nigeria without facing any trial and without being handed over to any tribunal because there is absolutely no right for that," the Libyan leader said.
"When I talk about Taylor I might not agree with his policies but a principle should be applied," he added.
Gaddafi was yesterday, addressing a gathering of heads of state of the Community of Sahel-Saharan States, including Johnson-Sirleaf, who supports moving Taylor's trial to the Hague.
Nigeria had given Taylor asylum in 2003 as part of a deal to end Liberia's own 14-year civil war.
President Olusegun Obasanjo later came under intense international pressure to deport Taylor to Sierra Leone to stand trial, but he insisted he would only hand over Taylor to an elected Liberian government if it made such a request.
Johnson-Sirleaf, Liberia's first elected postwar president, asked Obasanjo in early March to hand over Taylor, but she wanted him sent to Sierra Leone. Nigeria and Liberia were at odds over what to do with Taylor for several weeks.
At the time, human rights activists accused Nigeria of prevaricating, precisely because Obasanjo was reluctant to set a precedent of sending an African head of state to face trial.
In the end, Taylor escaped from his asylum residence in Calabar, the Cross River State capital in circumstances yet to be fully explained, and was captured the following day trying to cross into Cameroon.
Thereafter, he was flown to Liberia, where U.N. forces immediately transferred him to Sierra Leone.
Taylor led an uprising in Liberia in 1989 that turned into a civil war that spilled across borders, killed a quarter of a million people and spawned a generation of child soldiers.
Libya backed Taylor and supplied his forces with arms during the 1980s after he escaped from a jail in the United States.
But since then the North African country has abandoned support for revolutionary movements and mended relations with the United States, which restored full diplomatic relations with Libya last month.

Technically we didn't hand Taylor over to the war crimes court. We handed him over to the Liberian Government at the request of that Liberian Government. If Gaddafi is scared that a new Libyan leader might request his extradition from some other African country where he's hiding in retirement or whatever, that's his problem.

As far as I'm concerned, Nigeria did nothing wrong.

Qaddafi should shut the fu$k up. He would do the same or even worse. He used to be one of the arch enemies of the West. Now he is the poster boy for the nuclear proliferation campaign and of countries that are renouncing their nuclear programs under pressure from the West. This is a good thing and he should not condemn other nations that are trying to do the right thing. Afterall, Charles Taylor is an alleged war criminal. Why protect him?

Gadaffi is senile,

He committed a crime against humanity and he must pay for it.

Anyway when it comes to international politics he may have a point, we all know that Baba needed the support of US to remain in power beyond 2007 and I think that is Gaddafi’s annoyance.

But also Gaddafi knows the agreement that took Mr. Taylor out of Liberia’s so he should not condemn Baba and the country for asking Taylor to go back to Liberia in order to go and answer charges of war crime that he committed.

This is one reason why leaders should lead and be exemplary
not to be rulers, as they must one-day answer to their wrongdoing.

President Gadaffi is only worried about what may befall him when Charles Taylor's trial starts in earnest. It is on record that he trained and armed Taylor as a revolutionary leader, among other similar cases in other African countries. Gadaffi is not comfortable that all the genocidal acts carried out by these rebels could be linked to him indirectly. I think President OBJ did nothing wrong to hand over Taylor to an elected government in Liberia-that was his promise ab initio.

Gadafi need fi shut fi im PIE HOLE an gweh! Taylor is a murderer.

Ghadaffi and the word jihad can be used interchangably eg of proof; swiss. Blodclot nicca!. A stupid dictactor who has become so delusional just like Mugabe. I don't have a problem with their ideology but their actions of hugging onto power as if no one in their country is/are capable of following up and even doing better. They are simply m-e-a-n people in power just with lesser global power.
Ghadafi allow Libya to progress without you in charge. Libya is not your birth right or family right. And you are not that great of person f***n crook. Nigeria is your leader don't forget that. capital of AU = Nigeria.

We didn't "hand over" Taylor today, why did he wait till now to talk? Paranoid thing.

The international community is putting up a serious campaign against Nigeria. . . This is just sad!

haha the deluded king of africa is focusing on naija instead of his sh.ithole of a country.

Tufiakwa

Tufiakwa X 2

Gaddafi's criticisms and antics may very well be just what we need in Nigeria. We need a common enemy that will make us realise that we are indeed one. Gaddafi can go to hell and burn - he is flexing his muscles because he thinks we are vulnerable.

Ghaddafi is 100% correct here. It was very wrong for Nigeria to hand over Charles Taylor for war crimes because he was betrayed by Nigeria who promised to host him if he would agree to leave Liberia to put an end to the war there.

This is an issue that bothers on trust and credibility and one can only imagine what would happen if a similar scenario plays out where the head of state is being asked to leave the country for the sake of peace - obviously such a leader would cite the Taylor treatment and betrayal and would refuse which means that future mediations led by Nigeria will not be deemed serious or credible.

Why must the West demand for the trial of African leaders and a few other leaders from outside Africa where as the powerful nations commit worse crimes and their presidents are never tried?

Why is Bush not facing war crime charges in the Hague for the illegal invasion of Iraq based on lies that has led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands if not millions?

Handing over Charles Taylor was wrong and unfortunate. This decision will hurt Nigeria the most as time goes on because we have basically told the world that we cannot be trusted to keep to our words.

Instead of attacking Ghaddafi we should analyze his comments. The average Nigerian is not doing any better than the average Libyan and that is based on the people oriented projects and policies of this man. Good leadership is about the citizens being happy not about whether the White House of No 10 Downing Street approves of such leadership.

On second thought, I think David Mark was correct!

Afam:

Ghaddafi is 100% correct here. It was very wrong for Nigeria to hand over Charles Taylor for war crimes because he was betrayed by Nigeria who promised to host him if he would agree to leave Liberia to put an end to the war there.

This is an issue that bothers on trust and credibility and one can only imagine what would happen if a similar scenario plays out where the head of state is being asked to leave the country for the sake of peace - obviously such a leader would cite the Taylor treatment and betrayal and would refuse which means that future mediations led by Nigeria will not be deemed serious or credible.

Why must the West demand for the trial of African leaders and a few other leaders from outside Africa where as the powerful nations commit worse crimes and their presidents are never tried?

Why is Bush not facing war crime charges in the Hague for the illegal invasion of Iraq based on lies that has led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands if not millions?

Handing over Charles Taylor was wrong and unfortunate. This decision will hurt Nigeria the most as time goes on because we have basically told the world that we cannot be trusted to keep to our words.

Instead of attacking Ghaddafi we should analyze his comments. The average Nigerian is not doing any better than the average Libyan and that is based on the people oriented projects and policies of this man. Good leadership is about the citizens being happy not about whether the White House of No 10 Downing Street approves of such leadership.

bros what are you talkin about

Baba did d right tin.but i tink Africa should not any body any where.