UNMIL supports the Government of Liberia to convene one-day working session to discuss ways to enhance security sector accountability
On 15 September 2017, UNMIL facilitated one day session held for members of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) and the Liberia National Police (LNP) on the 2016 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Justice, which established procedures for subjecting AFL soldiers accused of certain crimes to the jurisdiction of the civilian courts, until the Ministry of Defense does not have the capacity to establish the court martial. The session aimed to raise awareness of LNP and AFL personnel and discuss ways to address the implementation challenges.
They further recommended the decentralization of the training on the MoU and dissemination of the document to low ranking soldiers. They also suggested LNP to prioritize cases involving AFL, to share contact lists, and to hold joint radio talk-show for awareness rising on the MoU and human rights. A team of AFL and LNP was designated to compile the challenges and recommendations for further actions that will enhance the implementation. The session was attended by the 30 participants (15 AFL & 15 LNP with 30% female)