CHARLES TAYLOR AND THE SIERRA LEONE SPECIAL COURT

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABUJA 001049 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/08/2014 TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM LI NI SUBJECT: CHARLES TAYLOR AND THE SIERRA LEONE SPECIAL COURT REF: A. ABUJA 896 ¶B. ABUJA 445 ¶C. ABUJA 312 ¶D. 03 ABUJA 1996 Classified By: AMBASSADOR JOHN CAMPBELL FOR REASONS 1.5 (B) AND (D). ¶1. (C) Charles Taylor's status in Nigeria is unlikely to be affected in the short term by the recent Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) ruling that it has jurisdiction to try him for war crimes in Sierra Leone. As President Obasanjo told us in March (Ref B),he plans to allow Taylor to stay in Nigeria until a democratically elected (i.e. post-October 2005) Liberian government requests that Taylor be returned to Liberia. ¶2. (C) Foreign Minister Adeniji reiterated the GON stance in a television interview June 7, saying the international community had reached consensus that Taylor should get out of Liberia and Nigeria had accepted him on the basis of that consensus. No pressure was being put on Nigeria to send him to any tribunal, FM Adeniji continued, and it would be unrealistic to do so at this time due to the repercussions on the peace and stability of LIBERIA and the region. CAMPBELL