Charles Taylor: Difference between revisions
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|occupation = President of Liberia (1997 - 2003)<br>Leader of the National Patriotic Front of Liberia (1989 - 1996)|skills = Training as a guerrilla fighter<br>Knowledge of politics|goals = Become President of Liberia (succeeded)}} | |occupation = President of Liberia (1997 - 2003)<br>Leader of the National Patriotic Front of Liberia (1989 - 1996)|skills = Training as a guerrilla fighter<br>Knowledge of politics|goals = Become President of Liberia (succeeded)}} | ||
{{Quote|Little countries do not have the luxury of defending themselves. We have to do it before the fact, not after the fact.|Charles Taylor}} | {{Quote|Little countries do not have the luxury of defending themselves. We have to do it before the fact, not after the fact.|Charles Taylor}} | ||
'''Charles Ghankay Taylor''' (January 28<sup>th</sup>, 1948 - ) was the 22nd President of Liberia from 2 August 1997 until his resignation on 11 August 2003. Prior to his presidency he served as the leader of the National Patriotic Front of Liberia, which initiated the First Liberian Civil War, and was known as one of Africa's most preeminent warlords. | '''Charles Ghankay Taylor''' (January 28<sup>th</sup>, 1948 - ) was the 22nd President of Liberia from 2 August 1997 until his resignation on 11 August 2003. Prior to his presidency he served as the leader of the National Patriotic Front of Liberia, which initiated the First Liberian Civil War, and was known as one of Africa's most preeminent warlords. | ||
==Biography== | ==Biography== | ||
Taylor was born in Arthington, a town near the capital of Monrovia, Liberia, on 28 January 1948, to Nelson and Bernice Taylor. He attended The Newman School in his early years. He took the name "Ghankay" later on, possibly to please and gain favor with indigenous Liberians. His mother was a member of the Gola ethnic group, part of the 95% of the people who are indigenous to Liberia. According to most reports, his father was an Americo-Liberian (descended from African-American colonists) who worked as a teacher, sharecropper, lawyer and judge. | Taylor was born in Arthington, a town near the capital of Monrovia, Liberia, on 28 January 1948, to Nelson and Bernice Taylor. He attended The Newman School in his early years. He took the name "Ghankay" later on, possibly to please and gain favor with indigenous Liberians. His mother was a member of the Gola ethnic group, part of the 95% of the people who are indigenous to Liberia. According to most reports, his father was an Americo-Liberian (descended from African-American colonists) who worked as a teacher, sharecropper, lawyer and judge. | ||
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[[File:Sierra Leone War Victims.jpg|thumb|273x273px|Several mutilated victims of the Civil War]] | [[File:Sierra Leone War Victims.jpg|thumb|273x273px|Several mutilated victims of the Civil War]] | ||
As president, Taylor restructured the army, filling it with members of his former militia. Conflict ensued between Taylor and the opposition, and Monrovia became the scene of widespread gun battles and [[looting]]. Governments around the world accused Taylor of supporting the rebelling [[Revolutionary United Front]] in Sierra Leone, and in 2000 the United Nations Security Council imposed sanctions on Liberia. The country was subsequently gripped again by civil war, and Taylor, accused of gross human rights violations, was indicted by a UN-sponsored war-crimes tribunal (the Special Court for Sierra Leone) in 2003. Following widespread international condemnation, Taylor agreed to go into exile in Nigeria. In March 2006, however, the Liberian government requested Taylor’s extradition, and Nigeria announced that it would comply with the order. Taylor subsequently attempted to flee Nigeria but was quickly captured. Charged with [[crimes against humanity]] and [[war crimes]] committed during Sierra Leone’s civil war, he was later sent to The Hague, where he was to be tried before the Special Court for Sierra Leone. | As president, Taylor restructured the army, filling it with members of his former militia. Conflict ensued between Taylor and the opposition, and Monrovia became the scene of widespread gun battles and [[looting]]. Governments around the world accused Taylor of supporting the rebelling [[Revolutionary United Front]] in Sierra Leone, and in 2000 the United Nations Security Council imposed sanctions on Liberia. The country was subsequently gripped again by civil war, and Taylor, accused of gross human rights violations, was indicted by a UN-sponsored war-crimes tribunal (the Special Court for Sierra Leone) in 2003. Following widespread international condemnation, Taylor agreed to go into exile in Nigeria. In March 2006, however, the Liberian government requested Taylor’s extradition, and Nigeria announced that it would comply with the order. Taylor subsequently attempted to flee Nigeria but was quickly captured. Charged with [[crimes against humanity]] and [[war crimes]] committed during Sierra Leone’s civil war, he was later sent to The Hague, where he was to be tried before the Special Court for Sierra Leone. | ||
The trial began in June 2007, despite Taylor’s refusal to appear in court for the opening session. The proceedings at The Hague unfolded slowly. The court heard the testimony of 91 witnesses called to testify against Taylor before the prosecution rested its case in February 2009. It was not until July 2009 that Taylor took the stand in his own defense. In his testimony he denied all charges against him, including conscripting child soldiers, ordering amputations and other mutilations of civilians, and illegally dealing in diamonds to fuel the 1990s conflict (so-called “blood diamonds”). The investigation into whether Taylor had indeed trafficked in diamonds was highly publicized, in part because British model Naomi Campbell was called to testify in August 2010 about a stone (or a number of stones) that Taylor allegedly had given her in South Africa in 1997. | The trial began in June 2007, despite Taylor’s refusal to appear in court for the opening session. The proceedings at The Hague unfolded slowly. The court heard the testimony of 91 witnesses called to testify against Taylor before the prosecution rested its case in February 2009. It was not until July 2009 that Taylor took the stand in his own defense. In his testimony he denied all charges against him, including conscripting child soldiers, ordering amputations and other mutilations of civilians, and illegally dealing in diamonds to fuel the 1990s conflict (so-called “blood diamonds”). The investigation into whether Taylor had indeed trafficked in diamonds was highly publicized, in part because British model Naomi Campbell was called to testify in August 2010 about a stone (or a number of stones) that Taylor allegedly had given her in South Africa in 1997. | ||
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== Gallery == | == Gallery == | ||
<gallery> | |||
Charles-Taylor.jpg | |||
charles-taylor2.jpg | |||
charles-taylor-4.jpg | |||
taylor-a7674bc2c2617829e3435b8bf3aeb5b701efdfb3-s800-c85.jpg | |||
</gallery> | |||
[[Category:List]] | [[Category:List]] | ||
[[Category:War Criminal]] | [[Category:War Criminal]] | ||