The Massaquoi Affair: the Finnish model put to the test

Special focus 21 publications
In February 2021, a Finnish court began the trial of Gibril Massaquoi, a former commander and spokesman for the Sierra Leonean rebellion, accused of crimes against humanity committed in Liberia twenty years ago. However, the Finnish method profoundly disrupts the traditional way of exercising universal jurisdiction. The court decided to relocate to Liberia and then to Sierra Leone to hear most of the witnesses. The model is attractive, but does it meet the expectations it has raised and is it easily replicable? The evidence provided to date in the case also raises many questions. Justice Info offers exclusive coverage of this symbolic and unusual trial.
© Leslie Lummeh for JusticeInfo.net
Massaquoi trial in Liberia
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Acquitted twice in Finland on charges of war crimes in Liberia, Gibril Massaquoi is claiming more than 800,000 euros in financial compensation. Photo: Massaquoi, wearing a dark suit, laughs during an interview with Justice Info.
Gibril Massaquoi tries for the jackpot
28 June 2024 by Thierry Cruvellier
Former Sierra Leonean rebel commander Gibril Massaquoi, twice acquitted by the Finnish courts, has filed a claim for compensation totalling around 815,000 euros for his lengthy detention. He has also taken legal action in Liberia, [...]
Gibril Massaquoi was acquitted on appeal following a second trial in Finland. Massaquoi affair: epilogue to a fiasco
2 February 2024 by Thierry Cruvellier
On January 31, the Turku Court of Appeal in Finland confirmed the acquittal of Gibril Massaquoi on all charges. The former Sierra Leonean rebel commander was accused of multiple crimes committed in Liberia between 1999 and 2003. A [...]
Gibril Massaquoi: Finnish trial on appeal in Liberia Massaquoi case: Finnish court of appeal arrives in Liberia
27 January 2023 by Thierry Cruvellier
Finnish judges, prosecutors and lawyers are expected to arrive in the Liberian capital on 31 January. They are to stay for two months for the appeal trial of the former Sierra Leonean rebel commander, Gibril Massaquoi. Massaquoi w [...]
Gibril Massaquoi at the Tempere court in Finland Massaquoi acquittal: What has it Wrought?
3 May 2022 by Lansana Gberie
Lansana Gberie, a renowned expert on the civil wars in Sierra Leone and Liberia, provides an exclusive analysis of the trial of Gibril Massaquoi before a Finnish court, and how it led to a full acquittal on April 29. He worries ab [...]
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Gibril Massaquoi
29 April 2022 by Thierry Cruvellier
Acquittal of Massaquoi: reality check for Finnish justice What was supposed to be an innovative and exemplary judicial experiment has turned into an adventurous rush to conviction, with questionable investigative practices and fanciful historical theories. On April 29, by acquitting Gibr [...]
Gibril Massaquoi, pensive, is installed in an armchair
18 February 2022 by Thierry Cruvellier
Liberia: Massaquoi freed from jail in run-up to Finnish verdict There’s a new surprise in the trial of Gibril Massaquoi. On Wednesday February 16, the Finnish court released this former Sierra Leonean rebel after almost two years in detention. The trial verdict is expected by April 29, and his [...]
Gibril Massaquoi and his lawyers in the courtroom of Tampere (Finland)
27 January 2022 by Thierry Cruvellier
Liberia: Massaquoi trial closes in Finland The trial of Gibril Massaquoi, a former Sierra Leonean rebel accused of crimes committed in Liberia, came to an end on Monday, January 24, before a Finnish court. One year after the start of this trial, which included four months [...]
Gibril Massaquoi during his trial in Finland
26 July 2021 by Thierry Cruvellier
In new twist, Massaquoi trial to return to Liberia There is a new twist in the trial of former Sierra Leonean rebel commander Gibril Massaquoi. The Finnish court that is trying him plans to return to Liberia to hold new hearings, provided Liberian authorities agree. According to t [...]
Special Court for Sierra Leone
21 May 2021 by Kelvin Lewis
Massaquoi: the battle of the alibi plays out in Sierra Leone At full speed over the last ten days, a Finnish Court has heard 18 witnesses in the trial of rebel Revolutionary United Front member Gibril Massaquoi, accused of committing war crimes in neighbouring Liberia, in a series of hearin [...]
Aaron Weah
27 April 2021 by Thierry Cruvellier
Aaron Weah: “Liberians have been reminded that justice is still possible” JUSTICE INFO IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS Aaron Weah Civil society activist and scholar on transitional justice issues Aaron Weah is a leading expert on transitional justice in Liberia. He is the only Liberian scholar to have attended the [...]
Salle d'audience du procès Massaquoi (Liberia)
22 April 2021 by Thierry Cruvellier
Massaquoi: Please hide this trial from Liberians The trial of former Sierra Leonean rebel commander Gibril Massaquoi before a Finnish court concluded its hearings in Liberia on 7 April and is to resume on 28 April in Freetown, Sierra Leone. In Liberia, civil society had high exp [...]
Gibril (Gabriel) with the angel Gabriel in the background
13 April 2021 by Thierry Cruvellier
Massaquoi Trial: The appearance of Angel Gabriel Hassan Bility was the first to say that Gibril Massaquoi was known as “Angel Gabriel”. Up until 2018, he was the only one. His testimony was the basis for investigations that led to the trial of the former Sierra Leonean rebel com [...]
Welcome to Lofa
6 April 2021 by Thierry Cruvellier
Massaquoi trial: “Every living thing that drinks water can forget” Since 16 March, fifteen witnesses from the villages of Lofa (north-east) have come to Monrovia to testify in the trial of former Sierra Leonean rebel Gibril Massaquoi, before a Finnish court that was moved to Liberia. They were fo [...]
Peinture de la cour finlandaise au Liberia pour le procès Massaquoi
19 March 2021 by Thierry Cruvellier
Massaquoi trial: the date that can change everything The Finnish court trying Gibril Massaquoi in Liberia finished the first part of its hearings on March 16, devoted to crimes that the accused allegedly committed in Monrovia at the end of the civil war. Of the 21 witnesses heard, o [...]
Massaquoi trial: Drawing of the Finnish prosecutors in Monrovia
5 March 2021 by Thierry Cruvellier
The Massaquoi Trial: Double or quits before a Finnish court The first hearings in Gibril Massaquoi’s trial before a Finnish court temporarily relocated to Liberia have outlined the controversial shape of the case. The prosecution is counting on mass witness testimony, while the defence is [...]
Liberian flag on the wall of a house in a village in Liberia
1 March 2021 by Asymmetrical Haircuts
Justice for Liberia is on the map at last It has been a very long wait for Liberians to begin to see some accountability on the many crimes committed during their two civil wars between 1989 and 2003. And the change of trend has come from outside the country. After a few [...]
Liberia-Finland_trial-court-off-road-convoy_@Thierry-Cruvellier
23 February 2021 by Thierry Cruvellier
Massaquoi trial: Finnish court goes to deepest Liberia Arriving in Liberia on February 15, Finnish judges, prosecutors, and lawyers spent their first week visiting sites where Gibril Massaquoi, a former rebel commander from Sierra Leone, allegedly committed crimes against humanity. Th [...]
Massaquoi's trial (Frontpage Africa newspaper)
1 February 2021 by Thierry Cruvellier
Universal jurisdiction: the Finnish revolution The trial of Gibril Massaquoi opens today in Finland, hardly two years after the opening of an investigation into this former Sierra Leonean warlord. It has been done in record time and is a revolution in universal jurisdiction, a [...]
30 April 2020 by Wayne Jordash
Insiders: The Special Court for Sierra Leone’s dirty laundry The arrest in Finland on 10 March of Gibril Massaquoi, the main informer of the Prosecutor of the U.N. tribunal for Sierra Leone, has sparked a sensitive debate on how international tribunals make deals with alleged criminals. Way [...]
14 April 2020 by Thierry Cruvellier
The Massaquoi Affair: Special report on the Judas of Sierra Leone (Part 2) Gibril Massaquoi, the main informer for the prosecutor of the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL), was arrested in Finland on 10 March. This is the first time that a UN court "insider" has been prosecuted by a national court wit [...]
7 April 2020 by Thierry Cruvellier
The Massaquoi Affair: Special report on the Judas of Sierra Leone (Part 1) Gibril Massaquoi, who was the top informer for the prosecutor of the Special Court for Sierra Leone, was arrested in Finland on March 10. Twelve years after getting asylum and protection measures, the former Sierra Leonean rebel c [...]