LIBERIA HOLDS RULE OF LAW RETREAT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MONROVIA 000742

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/W AND INL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/18/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL EAID LI
SUBJECT: LIBERIA HOLDS RULE OF LAW RETREAT

Classified By: Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield for Reasons 1.4 B and D.


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: After more than a year of rancor between
Chief Justice Johnnie Lewis and Minister of Justice Phillip
A.Z. Banks III over issues of separation of powers, the two
came together to hold Liberia's first rule of law retreat
September 15-16. In a mostly cordial atmosphere, the
Judiciary and the Ministry agreed to form an
inter-governmental taskforce to continue dialogue on
controversial issues such as the training of paralegals,
unqualified magistrates, and provisions for legal aid. The
Judiciary will stop boycotting the Governance and Rule of Law
Pillar of the Poverty Reduction Strategy in exchange for the
ability to co-chair the Rule of Law sub-pillar. The Ministry
of Justice will work towards putting Liberia's laws on its
website after all concerns over copyrights of past laws are
worked out. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) Chief Justice Johnnie Lewis and Minister of Justice
Phillip A.Z. Banks III presided over Liberia's first-ever
Rule of Law Retreat September 15-16. Longtime colleagues and
sometime friends, the two were barely on speaking terms
earlier this year because Chief Justice Lewis said he would
not work with a Minister directly because a Minister is
"beneath his rank" as head of a branch of government. This
argument, combined with a general clash between their
individually strong personalities, meant that there had been
no overall policy coordination on rule of law issues and the
Governance and Rule of Law (GRL) Pillar of the Poverty
Reduction Strategy (PRS) was ineffective. Since the Liberia
Poverty Reduction Forum in Berlin in June, President Sirleaf
and UNMIL have been pressuring both sides to find a way to
work together. This retreat was the first step in achieving
that goal.


3. (SBU) The principal result of the retreat was that an
inter-governmental rule of law taskforce, made up of the
Judiciary, the Ministry of Justice, the Legislature, and the
Liberia Bar Association, was set up to look at ongoing issues
that have been causing friction between the Judiciary and the
MOJ. Everyone agreed that paralegals would help address the
shortage of attorneys in country, but the issue of how much
training paralegals would need and who would regulate them
was delegated to the taskforce. The taskforce was also asked
to determine how to train the vast majority of magistrates
who are unqualified for their positions because they do not
possess a law degree, as required by law. Finally, the
taskforce was asked to introduce guidelines on the provision
of legal aid and ensure that all non-lawyers providing legal
aid are supervised by a qualified attorney.


4. (C) The Chief Justice has long boycotted the GRL Pillar of
the PRS so as to not be "subservient" to the Executive
branch. Though he yelled "I am independent!" several times
throughout the retreat, he did concede that no real rule of
law progress could happen without both the Judiciary and the
Ministry working together. It was finally decided that the
Ministry of Planning would retain the chairmanship of the GRL
Pillar, but that the Judiciary and the MOJ would co-chair the
Rule of Law sub-pillar on monitoring and evaluation.


5. (SBU) Donor attendees of the retreat were concerned that
copies of the law are not available to attorneys and judges
nationwide, and virtually inaccessible to the public at
large. The retreat's resolution called for the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs to make paper copies of all new laws for the
General Services Agency to sell to the general public. The
Minister of Justice agreed that the MOJ would publish the
laws on its website but said that he would not do that before
he could put "all previous Liberian law online as well."


6. (C) COMMENT: The Rule of Law Retreat was a qualified
success in that, for the first time during the Sirleaf
Administration, the Judiciary and the Ministry of Justice
were able to have a frank discussion about the problems in
the justice sector and agree on ways they can work together
to solve them. The proposed inter-governmental rule of law
taskforce is key to making this happen. If it succeeds, then
there is real potential that access to justice for the
general Liberian population will improve and the GRL Pillar
of the PRS will finally catch up with the other three
pillars. If it fails, then the a corrupt and inefficient
justice system will continue to hinder the development of
this nation and the lagging GRL Pillar will continue to hold
back the entire PRS process.

COMMENT cont.: The Minister of Justice's comment on copyright
was a reference to the fact that the Minister, in partnership
with Liberia Law Experts, Inc., claims copyright to some of
the Liberian law books that his group drafted under a USG

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grant. His group has been seeking a financial payout for
this copyright and was implying that he would not put the law
online until the issue was settled. While the wrangling
continues, prosecutors and private defenders do not have full
access to case law, putting them at a disadvantage with
private law firms, who can afford to buy the books. Despite
the apparent conflicts of interest and questions to this
claim, we believe that a quick, equitable settlement of the
claim is the best way forward.
THOMAS-GREENFIELD