On Monday the prosecution called Ms Farrow and Ms White to testify on allegations that Mr Taylor gave the supermodel Naomi Campbell blood diamonds during a dinner hosted by Nelson Mandela in South Africa in 1997.
Last week Ms Campbell told the court about how she was woken up by two unknown men and given a gift of “dirty-looking stones”. According to Ms Campbell, she was unaware who was behind the gift, and it was only after she had shared her account of the night with Ms White and Ms Farrow, also guests at Mr Mandela’s dinner, did one of them suggested that the diamonds had come from Mr. Taylor.
Both Ms White and Ms Farrow gave accounts that differed significantly from Ms Campbell’s evidence.
Ms. Farrow started the day’s testimony and provided an alternative account of how Mr. Taylor’s became linked to the gift. Ms. Farrow told the court that Ms. Campbell had informed her that Mr. Taylor had sent men to deliver the diamonds to her:
“Ms Campbell entered the room, my children and I were already eating breakfast, and, as I recall it, she was quite excited and said, in effect, ‘Oh my God, in the middle of last night – or last night I was awakened by knocking at the door and it was men sent by Charles Taylor and he sent me’ – as I recall – ‘a huge diamond.’”
The Presiding Judge, Julia Sebutinde, then asked, “the suggestion as to where this gift had come from, whose suggestion was that?”
Ms Farrow replied, “Only hers. I didn’t know anything about it.”
Mr Koumjian later asked Ms Farrow directly, “did you tell Naomi Campbell that the diamond or diamonds came from Charles Taylor?”
“Absolutely not” responded Ms Farrow and subsequently confirmed again that the diamond had come from Charles Taylor.
Under cross examination Ms. Farrow admitted that she had difficulty recollecting the events of the evening and that her testimony not only contradicted Ms Campbell’s but also Ms. White (an individual Ms Farrow told the court that she did not remember).
Mr Anyah summarised the position saying ‘So we have your account of a diamond, a large diamond; Naomi’s Campbell’s account of two or three small dirty looking stones; Carole White’s account of six small greyish pebbles.’
Mr Anyah then asked Ms Farrow, “Do you stand by your account that it was a ‘huge diamond?’
Ms Farrow replied “Yes, but, sir, I didn’t see the diamond or diamonds. I can only tell you what Naomi Campbell said.” but latter admitted that “a lot of events have taken place” since that event.
Ms. White testified after the conclusion of Ms Farrow’s evidence. Ms White told the court that Mr. Taylor and Ms. Campbell “were being charming to each other…mildly flirting…they were just being affable.”
“Naomi I think was flirting with him [Mr. Taylor] and he was flirting back…they were enjoying each other’s company,” she said.
Ms. White told the court that Ms Campbell was expecting to receiving diamonds that night having been told as much by Mr. Taylor.
“Naomi was very excited and said,’Oh he is going to give me some diamonds’,” Ms. White said.
Ms. White explained how Ms Campbell and Mr Taylor had discussed how two men would enter the guesthouse and give Ms. Campbell the diamonds. As such, Ms White told the court that she and Ms Campbell had stayed up that night waiting for the delivery.
Ms White told the court that she had been the first to hear the men arrive and woke up Ms Campbell to receive the gift.
“I heard some clinking noises on my window…I opened the window and there were two guys standing on the ground…’we, [the two men] have something for Ms. Campbell’…and I told them to wait. I went to Ms. Campbell’s room and told her that the men were here,” she explained.
Ms White explained that Ms Campbell was given a “scruffy piece of paper” containing five to six diamonds, which “were quite disappointing because they were not shiny”
Mr Griffiths lead the cross-examination, and suggested that Ms White had “a very powerful motive for lying about Ms. Campbell” because “you don’t come to this court with clean hands…your motive for lying…is to provide yourself with ammunition for use against her in the lawsuit.”
Ms. White told the court that her civil matter had nothing to do with events in this court.
The Defence’s cross-examination of Ms White continued on Tuesday and Mr Griffiths continued to question the authenticity of Ms White’s account of how Mr Taylor allegedly sent men to deliver Ms Campbell diamonds in the middle of the night. However, Ms White told the court that:
“I have known this story since 1997 and it’s, you know, quite an amazing story…however, when I was told by my lawyer that Charles Taylor had been in The Hague in a war crimes trial, I realized it was very serious and the blood diamond issue had a big bearing on the case and it was my duty to tell my story, it happened 13 years ago, I haven’t lied and it is a true story.”
Mr Griffiths suggested to Ms White that, “this flirtation between Mr. Taylor and Naomi Campbell is a figment of your imagination. You’ve made that up.” But Ms. White denied having done so.
Mr Griffiths then from Ms. White’s statement given to prosecutors prior to her appearance in court, and suggested that Ms White “embellished this account with a number of blatant lies”. Ms White again denied Mr. Griffiths’ allegation.
Mr. Griffiths also questioned Ms. White on the portion of her statement that noted that she (Ms White) had “heard Mr. Taylor tell Ms. Campbell that he was going to send her diamonds.”
Under cross examination Ms White conceded that she had not heard Mr. Taylor speak but “when Naomi Campbell leaned back to tell me that Mr. Taylor was going to send her diamonds…Mr. Taylor was definitely acquiescing.”
“Mr. Taylor nodded that he was going to send her diamonds. I didn’t hear the words. I don’t recall…he was nodding in agreement.”
Mr. Griffiths also took issue with Ms. White’s account of how the two men allegedly sent by Mr Taylor alerted Ms White of their presence. Ms White had informed the court that the two men threw pebbles at her window, and it was this noise that caused her to inform Ms Campbell.
Mr Griffith enquired “How did the men know which window to throw pebbles at?” Ms. White told the court that she did not know and that “maybe it was a lucky guess”.
When the men arrived, Mr Griffith enquired whether the men did or “did not say they were from Liberia or from the Liberian President.”
Ms White told the court that the gentlemen said “that they had a gift for Naomi Campbell”
Unsatisfied with the answer Mr Griffith searched for clarification as to whether they said “they were bearing a gift from the Liberian President.” Ms White confirmed that they did not.
On Wednesday Issa Sesay returned to the witness box after the conclusion of the celebrity testimony of Ms Campbell, White and Farrow. Mr Sesay’s testimony focused on events in May 2000 when the RUF took hundreds of UN peacekeepers hostage and seized their arms, ammunition and equipment.
The prosecution alleged that the materials seized from the peacekeepers were taken to Liberia by Mr. Sesay and used by Mr. Taylor. Mr. Sesay denied this account, telling the court that items taken from the UN were subsequently returned to them Sierra Leone.
Mr Sesay told the court, “That did not happen…I did not send any artillery pieces to Mr. Taylor in Liberia.”
“I did not give any instruction to take any UNAMSIL [United Nations Missions in Sierra Leone] weapon to Mr. Taylor in Liberia. The weapons that were captured from them were handed back to the UN before disarmament,” he added.
Mr. Sesay also challenged some of the specific details provided by the prosecution witness, telling the court that the witness “is lying because I do not recall that mortars were captured from the peacekeepers. It was BZTs that we captured, and I did not send them to Monrovia.”
Mr. Sesay also denied that he had handed the weapons to Benjamin Yeaten, Director of Liberia’s Special Security Services (SSS). Mr. Sesay told the court that “during this time when I was in contact with Benjamin Yeaten, the war was not continuing in Sierra Leone, and I did not have any arms dealings with Benjamin Yeaten”.
Mr Sesay also added that he “did not have anybody that was bringing arms and ammunition for me from Benjamin Yeaten” and that he “did not talk to Benjamin Yeaten on satellite phone…or send a radio message to Benjamin Yeaten after the capture of the UN peacekeepers.”
On Thursday the defence team concluded their three week examination in chief of Mr. Sesay and continued to distance the RUF from Mr. Taylor’s control.
Mr. Sesay denied allegations that Sam Bockarie obeyed commands from Benjamin Yeaten when the RUF entered Freetown in 1999.
Mr. Sesay told the court that “I have never heard about that, about Benjamin Yeaten’s involvement in the January invasion of 99. It is only in this court that I have heard this. Even in my trial, I did not hear this.”
Mr Sesay concluded his testimony by telling the court how he has nothing to gain from testifying for Mr. Taylor.
Mr Sesay explained that “My decision to come here is because I was sitting in my detention and listening to the radio and hearing people say lies about me just because I disarmed the RUF, so I decided to come here and testify. I have nothing to gain.”
After the end of the defence’s examination in chief the prosecution commenced Mr. Sesay’s cross examination.
Mr. Nicholas Koumjian began by looking at Mr. Sesay’s own defence testimony during his own trial before the Special Court of Sierra Leone, and focused on the arms and ammunition purchased to attack Kono in December 1998.
Prosecution counsel noted that Mr. Sesay’s previous account differed from his account for Mr. Taylor. In 2007, he testified that the ammunition used for the attack on Kono was obtained from Burkina Faso by Mr. Bockarie. This account is supported by a number of prosecution witnesses. However, Mr. Sesay’s told the court this month that the ammunition used on the attack on Kono was purchased from the United Liberation Movement for Democracy in Liberia (ULIMO) rebels.
Confronted with this contradiction, Mr Sesay said that he was mistaken in 2007 and that he can now recall what actually happened. Mr. Koumjian put it to him that he was lying.
“Because you yourself testified in 2007…that the ammunition came from Burkina Faso and you are lying to this Trial Chamber about it, trying to protect Charles Taylor for his responsibility for the terrible things that happened in 1998 and 1999 in Sierra Leone, isn’t that true…you testified under oath in 2007 the ammunition came from Burkina Faso. That was the truth. Were you telling the truth in 2007 or were you lying?”
Mr Sesay responded, “I said when after I had testified, when I was reading the transcript, I realized that the account I had given was not the right account.”
