Charles Taylor to begin his war crimes defence

THE HAGUE – For a year, prosecution witnesses accused former Liberian President Charles Taylor of atrocities ranging from cannibalism to commanding Sierra Leone rebels who hacked off villagers’ limbs, and of selling weapons and ammunition in exchange for so-called blood diamonds.

Now Taylor is giving his version of events at his trial before the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone.’His case is that he was not involved,’ Taylor’s British lawyer Courtenay Griffiths told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. ‘That he was a peacemaker, not a warmonger.’Griffiths will deliver his opening statement today and the former president will take the stand tomorrow for what is expected to be weeks of testimony aimed at winning acquittal on 11 charges including murder, torture, rape, sexual slavery and spreading terror.Prosecutors say Taylor commanded Sierra Leone rebels responsible for the atrocities from his base in the neighbouring West African nation of Liberia, where the former warlord was the elected president.Taylor, the first African head of state to be tried by an international court, has pleaded not guilty to all charges.He was forced into exile after being indicted in 2003 and was finally arrested in Nigeria three years later. He was sent for trial in The Hague in June 2006 because officials feared staging the case in Sierra Leone could spark further violence.Taylor boycotted the start of his trial in June 2007 and fired his attorney, holding up proceedings until January 2008 when prosecutors called their first witness. – Nampa-AP