Prince Johnson, Liberian warlord, dies in bed and his victims are left without justice

Chijioke Obinna

Prince Johnson, Liberian warlord, dies in bed and his victims are left without justice

Prince Johnson, a former Liberian warlord, died on November 28 in a hospital bed in a residential suburb of Monrovia. Its victims, 22 years after the end of the conflict, are still waiting for justice.

Johnson’s name appeared first on the Liberian Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s list of ‘notorious perpetrators’ during the country’s two civil wars (1989-2003). Their crimes, according to the Commission, included murder, extortion, massacre, destruction of property, forced recruitment, assault, kidnapping, torture, forced labor and rape. In addition to the use of many minors as soldiers. One of his most notorious acts was the torture and murder of Liberian President Samuel K. Doe on September 9, 1990. In a video that was widely circulated throughout the country and its neighbors, Johnson could be seen sitting, calmly drinking a beer, already a woman fanning him, while she watches how her men mutilate and murder the president.

Although the Liberian government produced a report in 2009 highlighting Johnson’s atrocities in the two civil wars and calling for him to be brought to justice, he was never prosecuted. Instead, he was elected as a senator from 2005 for his native county, Nimba, a position he held until his death. The country’s two former presidents, Nobel Peace Prize winner Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and George Weah, went to his funeral chapel to pay respect to their families. Meanwhile, the victims of the long conflict continue to wait for justice and compensation for the atrocities they suffered.

In May 2024, the current President of Liberia, Joseph Boakai, established a War and Economic Crimes Court. But many think that this measure comes too late. Johnson’s death, without having been brought to justice, demonstrates this. Hence, after decades of impunity for the warlords and their followers, Liberians have little hope that justice will be done this time. However, the creation of this court has been a recurring demand of Liberian civil society. Tired of the indifference shown by the country’s leaders and politicians towards the victims of the conflict, she presented a petition to Parliament on several occasions to establish a war and economic crimes court. Grouped under the name ‘Citizens of the Republic of Liberia’, the citizen and human rights associations that promoted these proposals were convinced that until the instigators of the war and the perpetrators of the atrocities committed during the conflict faced prosecution justice, we will not be able to speak of true reconciliation in Liberia.

The Liberian war was very atrocious. It recorded more than 250,000 deaths, thousands of injured, displaced and refugees. Hundreds of girls and boys were used as soldiers and the country’s entire infrastructure was destroyed. But the majority of those responsible for these crimes have never gone through the courts, they reintegrated directly into civilian life, eventually occupying relevant positions in Parliament and in society. Only two warlords have faced justice: former president Charles Taylor, who was sentenced by the Special Criminal Court for Sierra Leone to 30 years in prison, which he is serving in the United Kingdom, for war crimes and crimes against humanity; and Mohamemed Jabbateh, better known by his nickname, Junggle Jabbah, sentenced to 30 years in prison in the United States, where he fled at the end of the war, for lying about the role he played during the conflict in requesting asylum in the country. Witnesses arriving from Liberia for the trial testified about killings, rapes, mutilations and acts of cannibalism ordered or in which Jabbateh participated.

Unlike its neighbor Sierra Leone, Liberia’s peace agreements did not provide for the creation of a court to try war crimes, only a Truth and Reconciliation Commission that presented a report on the causes and consequences of the war to the Parliament in June 2009. However, its recommendations have never been taken into account. These included establishing a Space Criminal Court to try serious human rights violations, providing reparations to victims, and disqualifying certain individuals from holding public office for their role in the conflict, including Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the president at the time. . Civil society always demanded that those documented cases of individuals who appropriated public property during or after the conflict be prosecuted. A way to persecute officials and rulers who took advantage of the conflict to enrich themselves.

Now, the court has finally been created. But he faces many difficulties, such as obtaining evidence that the warlords have dedicated themselves to erasing these years, or the gradual disappearance of these, as in the case of Johnson, and of some witnesses. In the end, few, if any, victims will get the reparation they have sought for more than two decades.

In the image, Prince Johnson at the Caldwell base, surrounded by an armed child in October 1990 in Liberia. Photograph: Roger JOB/Getty

Chijioke Obinna

I've been passionate about storytelling and journalism since my early days growing up in Lagos. With a background in political science and years of experience in investigative reporting, I aim to bring nuanced perspectives to pressing global issues. Outside of writing, I enjoy exploring Nigeria’s vibrant cultural scene and mentoring young aspiring journalists.