Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Rule of Law Tamrat Samuel has been visiting various counties, touring rule of law institutions, and interacting with key actors in the administration of justice since his arrival in Liberia in February this year.

His latest port of call was Gbarnga, the Bong County administrative capital. Accompanied by the new Chief of Human Rights and Protection Section, Marcel Akpovo, and other senior UNMIL officials representing different areas of the rule of law sector, DSRSG Samuel paid a courtesy call on Acting County Superintendent Anthony Sheriff and traditional leaders, and met civil society organizations.

The UN envoy also visited the circuit and magisterial courts and held discussions with the bench, the bar and the prosecution, in addition to touring the regional police station and the Gbarnga Central Prison, as well as the Gbarnga Regional Justice and Security Hub, where he interacted with officials of the hub and heads of security agencies. 

Prior to that, Samuel had met UNMIL staff members working in different divisions of the rule of law sector in the county, who briefed him on the rule of law situation in the county.

At all the places he visited, the message for the DSRSG seemed to be the same: lack of human resources, training, infrastructure, logistics, and funding for justice and security operators in the county.

In an interview at the end of the visit, DSRSG Samuel said he was impressed with the achievements in the rule of law sector in the county, pointing out that, “a lot of good work had been done under difficult conditions,” but added, “Obviously there is much more work to be done.”

He noted that “a lot of the challenges and constraints are related to capacity issues – both financial and human resource – and they will have to be met in the near future if we are going to be effective.”  

  
One of the main purposes of Samuel’s visit was to see how rule of law institutions in Bong are developing in the context of the Gbarnga Regional Justice and Security Hub, a model to be replicated in other parts of the country, and even beyond the frontiers of Liberia. 

Asked whether the much-advertised regional hub was delivering to the expectations of the people, the DSRSG said, “I think, it is beginning to bear results; we have to see how it works, and we have to see the results in the coming months; but I am very hopeful.”