Liberia ritual killings warning

The leader of Liberia's transitional government, Gyude Bryant, has promised to use the death penalty against anyone found guilty of sacrificial killings. During an address on state radio Mr Bryant said people were killing in the belief it would make them successful, rich, or the next president.

A BBC correspondent in Liberia says the number of ritual murders are growing. Sacrifices have been reported in three of Liberia's counties - the latest involving beheading and organ removal. Election edge "We'll find you, we'll arrest you, we'll prosecute you and let me say again to everybody, if the judge passes down a ruling to say you must die by hanging, I will hang you," Mr Bryant said. "I will sign the death warrant without batting my eye."

The BBC's Paul Welsh in Monrovia says that almost two years of peace in Liberia have done little to help ease the poverty in what is one of the world's poorest nations. Elections for the first president since Charles Taylor left the country are due in October, which, our correspondent says, is the likely reason for the increased number of ritual killings. Human parts such as genital organs are believed to offer supernatural powers, especially by aspiring politicians and so the number of alleged ritual killing rises in the run-up to elections.

According to local media reports the latest such killing, which occurred in the northern Bong County, involved a female who was beheaded and had her genital organs removed. "If you killed because you want to make a sacrifice to be president or senator, you fool yourself," Mr Bryant said. "Stop ritualistic killings, it will not pay you anything, it will not make you rich, it will not give you jobs."

In January extra United Nations peacekeepers had to be sent to south-eastern Liberia following violent protests over alleged ritual killings.

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Liberian Observer

LIBERIA: Will Sign Your Death Warrant And Sleep Well,' Says Bryant

The head of the National Transitional Government of Liberia says he will have no regret signing such a death warrants for people who are killing, believing that it could help them become rich, become successful or become the next president.

The transitional chairman Charles Gyude Bryant says he will sign a death penalty on convicted ritualistic killers if the court recommends that such a sentence be carried out either by hanging or firing squad. Ritualistic killing has reportedly surfaced in many parts of the country especially in River Gee and Grand Bassa counties recently. Addressing a news conference at the Executive Mansion Tuesday, Chairman Bryant said people were killing, believing that it could help them become rich, become successful or become the next president. He will have no regret signing such a death warrant.

According to the transitional chairman, suspects have been arrested on a number of occasions but so far there have been no reports of any conviction. "If you are found to have taken somebody's life because you want to perform a sacrifice, where you will be made president, speaker, or senator, you're fooling yourself. If we find you; we will arrest you; we will prosecute you," Chairman Bryant warned. "Let me say again to everybody, if the judge passes down a ruling to say you must die by hanging, I will hang you. I will sign the death warrant without batting my eye. If they say we must fire at you and kill you, we will fire at you and kill you. I will sign it," he said in the strongest terms. "Stop ritualistic killings. It will not pay you anything. It will not make you rich. It will not give you a job.

So stop it. I'm appealing to all of our people to stop it. "We have some processed, some arrests we've made in Grand Bassa and we're going after it on a constitutional basis and pray the court doesn't bring you down guilty and sentence you to death because you will die. I will sign the death warrant and I will not even think about it, I will sleep well," he told journalists to informed those ritualistic killers. On other killings in the country, especially the massacre which allegedly took place in River Gee County some time ago, transitional chairman Bryant said this has come up because this has been picked up by the European Commission. "They keep telling us that we will not benefit from certain European Union grant assistance to the country if the issue is not cleared up," he said.

The European Union announced in Monrovia some time ago that it is withholding some 445 million Euros for development initiatives in Liberia until the transitional government meet several bench marks. Information Minister, Dr. William Allen, at a news briefing following a cabinet meeting held some time back was quoted as saying that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told the cabinet that the EU has expressed serious concern over crimes committed during Liberia's fratricidal war especially the massacre that occurred in River Gee County.

At the cabinet meeting, Information Minister said the transitional chairman Gyude Bryant responded to some of the concerns and ordered the Justice Minister to report to him within a few days about what has happened relative to the massacre in River Gee County.

Mr. Bryant said other forms of killing over the years will be address by the newly established Truth and Reconciliation Commission.