ECOWAS Disputes UN Sanctions on LiberiaA body of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Wednesday disputed the U.N. allegations that Liberia has not fulfilled its requirements thus attracted the sanctions.The ECOWAS Security and Mediation Council said in a report after its six-day fact-finding mission to Liberia that the international community should accept Liberia's request for placement of neutral monitors on its territory to probe Liberia's alleged links with the Sierra Leone's rebels. It urged the U.N. to confront Liberia with evidence of "its wrongdoing to underline the spirit of fairness and transparency." The body's recent mission, attended by delegates from Cote d' Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Nigeria, Togo and the ECOWAS secretariat, visited Liberia to find out whether Liberia has complied with the U.N. demands. Last Friday, U.N. Security Council approved additional sanctions on Liberia to punish its alleged help accorded towards the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels in Sierra Leone via " bloody diamond trade". The U.N. has already imposed an arms embargo on the country from March 7. The Liberian government has been describing the sanctions as unfair and unjust, arguing that it has done everything to comply with the U.N. demands. |
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