FINAL, EDITED TRC REPORT TO BE RELEASED IN OCTOBER

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MONROVIA 000691

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR AF/W

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/25/2019
TAGS: PGOV KDEM KJUS EAID LI
SUBJECT: FINAL, EDITED TRC REPORT TO BE RELEASED IN OCTOBER

REF: A) MONROVIA 602 B) MONROVIA 549 C) MONROVIA 487
D) MONROVIA 465 E) MONROVIA 125 F) 08
MONROVIA 1064

Classified By: Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield for reasons 1.4 (b) a
nd (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY. Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC)
Chairman Jerome Verdier confirmed to us on September 17 that
the TRC's final, edited report's release date, expected on
September 1, has been pushed to at least mid-October, when
200 copies of the report will be available for government
officials and international partners. Verdier blamed the
delay on a late payment to the printing service in Ghana.
The edited report now contains a list of dead "perpetrators,"
plus the names of non-Liberian mercenaries who fought in the
war. A new annex also outlines the establishment of a
reparation fund for victims of the civil conflict and
envisions a 30 year healing process. President Ellen Johnson
Sirleaf remains listed for political sanction and Verdier
believes she will eventually choose not to run for
re-election in 2011 even though all evident points to the
contrary. (Ref B) Already, Verdier claims, there is a
movement afoot to sideline the report as it has been totally
politicized. In a related action, Sirleaf signed a motion
suspending all action on the TRC report until the final
report is released. The National Legislature will likely be
out of session by then. END SUMMARY.

WHERE IS THE FINAL TRC REPORT?
--------------


2. (SBU) The release of the final, edited version of the
Liberian TRC's report was expected on September 1, but the
date passed without incident and TRC commissioners reportedly
remained out of touch in Ghana, supervising the report's
printing. TRC Chairman Jerome Verdier explained in a
September 17 meeting that TRC commissioners returned to
Monrovia on September 11. After what Verdier calls an
"unexpectedly harsh" reaction to the June 30 release of an
unedited version of the TRC report, the commissioners plan to
maintain low public profiles as they conclude their work.
Verdier attributed the delay in the final report's release to
late payment being made to the Ghana-based printer.
According to Verdier, only his personal intervention on
August 14 assured payment and allowed printing to move
forward.


3. (SBU) The TRC, according to Verdier, has ordered 2,000
printed copies of the report, with completion expected by the
end of October. The commissioners will officially "release"
the final, edited report in mid-October when at least 200
copies are available for distribution to major government
officials (e.g. legislators and the president) and
international partners. This will be accompanied by an
official TRC statement and the Commission will then consider
its mandate complete.

WHAT TO EXPECT IN THE FINAL VERSION
--------------


4. (SBU) Verdier told poloff that few substantive changes had
been made to the final report beyond statistical and
grammatical error corrections. Principal differences from
the unedited version include a listing of 50 dead
"perpetrators," as well as the recognition of non-Liberian
"mercenaries" who fought in the war. Overall, Verdier said,
of 7,000 names in 8,000 documents, fewer than 300 persons
were recommended for prosecution by the TRC. Two names were
added to the 50 listed for political sanction: Wilfred
Clark, a former National Security Agency (NSA) political
director, and Edward Massaquoi, an administration head at the
NSA in the 1980s. For this group, the report recommends that
those appointed to political office should resign
immediately, while elected officials should complete their
electoral terms, but that all be barred from politics for 30
years.


5. (SBU) The final report also includes a new annex
recommending the establishment of a reparation fund for
victims, at an estimated cost of USD 400 million over 30
years. This new segment identifies potential funding sources
and advises that initial funding be spent on those with
immediate medical needs. The new annex also urges that free
education be guaranteed by the GOL for at least 30 years to
ensure an increase in the country's literacy level.
According to Verdier, the 30 year window frequently cited in
the report represents Liberia's 30 year "cycle of conflict,"
beginning with Samuel Doe's 1980 coup and concluding with the
publication of the TRC's report. In the TRC's view, this
same amount of time will be needed for a new generation

MONROVIA 00000691 002 OF 002


untouched by conflict to assume control of a "restored"
Liberia.

SIRLEAF REMAINS ON THE POLITICAL SANCTION LIST
-------------- -


6. (SBU) President Sirleaf remains among those listed for
political sanction in the final report. Verdier foresees
Sirleaf continuing to indicate that she will run for
re-election in the near term, but finally deciding to retire
and not enter an election carrying the "baggage" of being
listed for political sanction. The president, said Verdier,
has more to gain in retiring and continuing in public life as
a senior statesman than fighting a tough re-election bid. A
possible "out" for Sirleaf is the constitutional provision
requiring a presidential candidate to be resident in-country
for 10 years before an election. This residency requirement
was suspended under the 2004 reform law passed by the
National Transitional Legislative Assembly for the 2005
election. The Legislature is now drafting constitutional
measures that could permanently remove this requirement, but
this change would need to be approved in a national
referendum. (Septel) Failure to make this change would
technically exclude Sirleaf from the ballot in 2011 as she
will still lack 10 years of residency in Liberia by election
day.

SENATE BY-ELECTION A FIRST TEST
--------------


7. (C) Verdier suspects there is a scheme afoot by some
government officials and legislators listed in the report to
downplay the final document and finally shelve it with no
action. He claimed that TRC opponents are planning a mass
rally in support of Liberians' right to choose their elected
officials and 500,000 t-shirts have been purchased for this
purpose. In Verdier's view, the November 10 by-election for
the empty Montserrado county senate seat will be a first test
of for the TRC process and the National Elections Commission
should prevent any person disqualified by the TRC's
recommendations from running for public office. (NOTE. So
far, no one listed in the TRC report has publicly indicated
his or her intention to run for the vacant seat. END NOTE.)

GOVERNMENT REACTION TO THE REPORT ON HOLD...FOR NOW
-------------- --------------

8. (SBU) Meanwhile, President Sirleaf signed a legislative
resolution on September 17 to suspend all action on the TRC
report until the final, edited report is released. Sirleaf
also took the opportunity to reiterate her willingness to
work with the Liberia Council of Churches (LCC) in an LCC-led
process of dialogue that will lead to true national
reconciliation despite the fact that legislation which
established the TRC mandates the Independent National Human
Rights Commission (INHRC) to oversee and ensure execution of
the TRC's final recommendations. The President has, however,
forwarded the names of the INHRC commissioner nominees to the
Senate for approval. (Ref A)


9. (C) COMMENT: Verdier's excuse for the postponed release
of the edited TRC report is suspect as the delay appeared to
lengthen each time the Legislature extended its present
session. The TRC commissioners' plan to maintain a low
profile in coming weeks is proof that they expect a second
wave of politically-charged shocks (similar to those that
followed the unedited reports release on June 30) to
accompany the edited document's October release. The report
itself and the work of the TRC has proven divisive. Rather
than promote reconciliation, it re-opened old wounds and
threatened the country's stability. From the beginning, the
process employed by TRC commissioners appeared to focus
heavily on forcing acknowledgment of complicity from sitting
politicians. Political and personal views differed greatly
among the commissioners and two did not sign off on the final
report. The September 17 resolution signed by Sirleaf is
proof that the government has no plans to react immediately
to the report's recommendation, but instead will allow the
discussion to continue (and possible even taper out) through
the fall. Overall, there lacks a sense among Liberians that
the TRC process was a first step in healing the country. A
national recovery will be further delayed or averted if the
INHRC chooses to strictly press for implementation of TRC
recommendations that lead to drawn out, high profile criminal
tribunals. Involvement of civil society will be key to
keeping Liberia on a firm track of reconciliation.

THOMAS-GREENFIELD