Aware of the important role effective law enforcement and administration of justice plays in consolidating peace and state authority, as well as accelerating development in a post-conflict environment, UNMIL continues to help Liberia revamp its war-ravaged judicial and security sector with the construction and renovation of rule of law facilities. Two such facilities – a courthouse and police station – constructed through UNMIL Quick Impact Projects, were recently turned over to the Government of Liberia at Sokopa, in Saclepea Statutory District of Nimba County.
Speaking at the hand-over ceremony, Liberia’s acting Chief Justice Francis Korkpor commended UNMIL’s outstanding contribution to the rehabilitation of Liberia’s justice and security sector, noting that UNMIL had constructed and renovated police stations, courthouses and immigration posts throughout the country. “When you have police stations and courthouses like these, they help bring justice to the people,” he pointed out.
Turning to the magistrates of the newly constructed court, the acting Chief Justice urged them to be courteous and impartial in the discharge of their duties. “The court is for the people of this area; it is not above them; don’t look down on them; don’t talk at them; if you do so, they will not accept the court, and there will be no peace, and no reconciliation,” he warned.
Highlighting the strategic importance of Sokopa as the site for a magistrate court and a police station, Korkpor said the location of the town on the St. John River, bordering Nimba and Bong counties, would help maximize access to justice in the two heavily populated counties.
Mbogori Kagwiria, Officer-in-Charge of UNMIL’s Legal and Judicial Systems Support Division, reiterated UNMIL’s continued commitment to Liberia improving its judicial system, noting that UNMIL had supported the construction and renovation of more than 35 similar facilities in various parts of the country. She commended the local community for being supportive of the two projects.
