Blah Cross-examined

PRESIDING JUDGE: Good morning. Unless there are some preliminary matters I will remind the witness of his oath.

MR GRIFFITHS: Very well, your Honour.

PRESIDING JUDGE: Appearances appear to be as Friday, am

I correct, Mr Rapp?

MR RAPP: That is correct, your Honour.

PRESIDING JUDGE: Mr Griffiths, appearances as before?

MR GRIFFITHS: Your Honour, yes.

PRESIDING JUDGE: Mr Witness, I remind you again this

morning as I have done on other mornings that you took the oath

to tell the truth. That oath is still binding on you, you must

answer questions truthfully. Counsel for the Defence will have

some questions.

THE WITNESS: Your Honour.

WITNESS: MOSES ZEH BLAH [On former oath]

PRESIDING JUDGE: Please proceed, Mr Griffiths.

MR GRIFFITHS: May it please your Honour.

CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR GRIFFITHS:

Q. Former President Blah, you didn't want to attend this Court

voluntarily, did you?

A. No. Yes, yes.

Q. You were quite happy to attend here and give evidence, were

you?

A. Yes, under condition that if I was subpoenaed I was going

to come to testify.

Q. You understand what a subpoena means, don't you? A

subpoena is normally used where a witness is reluctant to attend

court and so therefore the Court has to in effect force that

witness through threats to attend. You understand that, don't

you?

A. Yes, I understand that.

Q. So can I start with my first question again then, former

President, and it is this: You did not want to attend this Court

voluntarily, did you?

A. Yes, I wanted to attend, but it should be through subpoena

because what we said was that there were a lot of delays that

I had to go to the hospital and even to the hospital I went, the

things that I went through and if I was subpoenaed I will accept

to come to the Court.

Q. That is exactly the point I am trying to make, you see,

former President. That you were willing to attend on condition

that you were subpoenaed by the Court?

A. No, I was willing to attend the Court under condition and

that I did because there were a lot of delays, I had to go to the

hospital, I went for a press conference for over two days and

I came. I was willing to come and I was willing to come after

the last discussion.

Q. Let me approach the topic differently then. Were you at

any stage concerned that the people of Liberia might think if you

appeared at court voluntarily giving evidence against your former

comrade in arms and fellow President Charles Taylor that you had

betrayed him? Were you concerned about that?

A. Under condition again I will say this: That there were

just rumours all around that if I came to testify here I will be

killed, my people will be destroyed, my house will be burnt down

and those were intimidations on my part and that I did not mind,

so I came.

Q. I am trying to ask a very simple question.

A. Yes.

Q. Were you concerned that the people of Liberia might

consider it a betrayal if you came voluntarily to give evidence

against your former comrade in arms?

A. Well, how will I know if somebody was thinking about me as

such that I was coming to betray the former President? It was

not openly said to me. It was rumoured around and I had to

address the issue and I said that I was only coming to say the

truth and nothing but the truth.

Q. And it's right, is it not, that prior to attending at this

Court you held a press conference in Monrovia , didn't you?

A. Yes.

Q. I wonder, please, if the witness could be shown - and, your

Honours, I have prepared a bundle of documents which your Honours

should have before you. That is the bundle, your Honour, yes.

I am going to invite the witness's attention behind divider 1,

please, and page 1. You will see that here we have a press

report, dated 7 April 2008, and it reads as follows:

" Monrovia : Liberia 's former Vice-President Moses Blah said

Monday that he has been called to testify in the trial of

Charles Taylor, the first African leader to face an international

tribunal for war crimes. Blah said that the United Nations

Special Court for Sierra Leone , which is trying Liberia 's

ex-President Taylor in The Hague for his alleged key part in a

brutal civil war in the neighbouring country, had sent him a

Then it quotes you as saying:

"'I will speak the truth. That is why I am surprised that

some people are worried that there is the possibility of me

testifying' said Blah, who served as Vice-President under Taylor

and then briefly took over when he was ousted."

Can I pause there, please. Did you say that?

A. Yes, I said it.

Q. It continues:

"Blah said that he would tell the Court in The Hague about

the death of Sam Bockarie."

Then can I miss a couple of paragraphs and now can we go

over the page to page 2, please. This is another press report of

that press conference, dated 8 April 2008, and if I could invite

your attention, please, to the fourth paragraph from the bottom

of the page where the report reads as follows:

"Asked whether he would say the truth if he faces his

former chief Mr Blah said, 'I swear on the Bible I will say the

truth and nothing but the truth. I will not be there to testify

for or against, but answer whatever questions truthfully."

Can I pause there. Did you say that?

A. Yes.

Q. So can I take it then, former President, that you are not

here taking sides either for the Prosecution or the Defence. You

are here playing with a straight bat, straight down the middle,

concerned merely to tell the truth? Would that be a fair

assessment?

A. Yes, and that I have done.

Q. It continues in the penultimate paragraph on that page:

"In a subpoena testificandum dated March 7, 2008 with

reference number 155/2008, Mr Blah, a one time inspector general

of the defunct National Patriotic Front of Liberia, has been

ordered to appear voluntarily before the Special Court for Sierra

Leone next Monday April 14, 2008, at 9.30 am or show good cause

why he cannot comply with this subpoena. The subpoena placed in

the hands of Mr Blah said any willful failure on the part of the

former President constitutes contempt of the Special Court

pursuant to Rule 77 of the rules. The subpoena: 'Should you

fail to comply the Trial Chamber may deal with the matter

summarily itself, refer the matter to the appropriate authorities

of Sierra Leone , or if there are sufficient grounds to proceed

against you for contempt issue an order in lieu of an indictment

and direct independent counsel to prosecute the matter.'"

The subpoena states, adding:

"If you are convicted for contempt of the Special Court you

may be imprisoned for up to 7 years or fined up to 2 million

leones or both."

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