I had an opinion piece in in last Thursday's Christian Science Monitor on the trial of Charles Taylor by the Special Court for Sierra Leone. (The article is also here.) This trial is being conducted not in the SCSL's own seat in Freetown, but in one of the ICC's unused courtrooms in The Hague.
In the piece I write the following text... Be aware, though, that I's inserted he mark-ups, formating, and hyperlinks in what follows into the version of this post that I earlier puiblished on my home blog, Just World News:
As it is, though, don't all these courts-- and especially the ICC-- look worryingly like European-dominated institutions that seek to haul over the coals some naughty Africans while completely ignoring the role that people of European heritage have played for centuries, and all too often continue to play, in fomenting, enabling, and conniving in the commission of atrocious violence in Africa?
Then, regarding the expense of the SCSL, I did try to do find out the size of its global budget. The best estimate I could come up with, from combining the figures in various annual reports and doing one needed act of interpolation (for FY2003-04), was that for its whole duration, 2002-2009, SCSL will have budgets totaling about $200 million... and that, to try a total of 11 indictees. Which would be a per-case processing cost of around $18 million. This would be a considerable improvement over the ICTR, whose per-case costs were at one point running at about $43 million... But the figure still looks outrageous and excessive.
(Per-case processing costs for the many, often very complex amnesty applications processed by South Africa's TRC came to just under $4,300-- see my Amnesty After Atrocity book, p.193.)
You might also want to take into consideration that in 2004 the GDP per capita in PPP$ for Sierra Leone's 5.3 million war-battered people was $561, while for Liberians it was literally unmeasurable because of the lengthy perpetuation of post-civil war impoverishment and social breakdown in the country. (In the Netherlands, meanwhile, it was a very comfortable $31,789.) In 2004, Sierra Leone received a total of $359.7 million of overseas aid.
In another note on the expenses of the Charles Taylor trial as such, AP reported on Friday that SCSL acting registrar Herman von Hebel had told reporters that the court had decided to allot Taylor a budget of some $100,000 per month to conduct his defense.
Tha report added:
... Taylor is entitled to receive the money because the court has ruled he is indigent, meaning he cannot pay for his own defense, despite prosecutors and U.N. experts suggesting he has millions of dollars stashed in bank accounts around the world.
"We believe there are tens of millions," said prosecutor Stephen Rapp.
... Investigators are working to track down Taylor's alleged loot. If it is found and can be linked directly to him, the court has the power to make him pay back money he has been given to fund his defense.
Taylor's new defense team is expected to be in place in time for his trial's scheduled resumption on Aug. 20.
Premier Singles - TulsaSingles.org launches local dating service in Tulsa
Dating Service Opens Second Office
Just weeks after the successful launch of its dating service in Oklahoma City, Premiere Singles has opened another office just up the I-40 turnpike in Tulsa. Jason Breakey, the CEO and co-founder of the matchmaking site, says the satellite office, TulsaSingles.org, has become a tremendous hit in the short time its offices have been open.
“The reception we received in Tulsa exceeded my expectations by a long shot,” said a surprised Breakey. “A lot of the success has to do solely with the people we hired to run our office. They are exceptional individuals who not only take the time to listen to our clients, they take a personnel interest in their social lives as well.”
Alicia Spinozzi is the Director of Sales and Marketing for Tulsa Singles. She is teamed up with Claele Smith, who was recently promoted to National Training Director in the sales division.
“We have two amazing people working for us in Tulsa,” commented company president Barrett Stone. “Claele’s energy is contagious, and her positive attitude is constant. As far as Alicia goes, you really can’t measure how important she’s been to our company in words. Her actions in Tulsa have spoken louder than anything I could possibly say.”
Recently, two members of Tulsa Singles announced their engagement. It was a thrilling moment for the Tulsa office, says Stone.
“Claele and Alicia were instrumental in getting these two lost souls together,” said Stone. “They met at one of our social events, hit it off, and were constant companions after that. The girls were thrilled to get the phone call announcing the engagement, and were especially please they were singled out for their role in bringing the two together.”
Jason Breakey is the President of Premier Singles and Barrett Stone is the CEO. tulsasingles.org is part of the PremierSingles.com network.
TulsaSingles.org is a division of PremiereSingles.com. The offices are located at 7181 S. Braden Avenue. For more information, visit the website at www.TulsaSingles.org or call 918 / 794-9623 to set up an appointment.
Posted by: mahesh chauhan at January 10, 2008 02:39 AMKeywords = Premier Singles, Raleigh Singles,singles,personals,personal ads,dating,match maker
Press Release Author - Jason Breakey and Barrett Stone
RaleighSingles.com making the right connections
“I truly believe our Raleigh office is destined to change a lot of people’s lives in a positive way,” said Jason Breakey, the CEO and co-founder of Premiere Singles, one of the nation’s leading dating services. Opened since September, Raleigh Singles has already made an impact on the community at large.
“We’ve gotten off to a promising start in Raleigh,” replied Breakey. “We go out of our way to make our clients feel comfortable about joining our service, not trapped. Our staff goes the extra mile to do everything they can to improve our member’s social life. We push people out there a little bit to get the ball rolling for them. After that, it’s up to them.”
The Sales Director for Raleigh Singles is Stephanie Harrington. The office is located 4030 Wake Forest Road, Suite 300. The satellite office recently held its first social event for its membership that was a huge success.
“When you join our dating service,” remarked Sunny Davis, the company's National Director of Member Relations, “you don’t have to be rich in order to have a rich experience. With Raleigh Singles, it doesn’t matter who you are or where you come from. It doesn’t matter if you feel you have shortcomings or limitations. What matters to us is you are a special and deserving person – so deserving that you can dare to dream that real companionship and love is not only attainable, but a reality we are determined to help you attain.”
Jason Breakey is the President of Premier Singles and Barrett Stone is the CEO. RaleighSingles.com is part of the PremierSingles.com network.
For more information, visit the website at www.RaleighSingles.com or call 919 / 719-2717 and set up an appointment.
Premier Singles - CharlotteSingles.com launches local dating service in Charlotte
Keywords = Premier Singles, Charlotte Singles,singles,personals,personal ads,dating,match maker
Press Release Author - Jason Breakey and Barrett Stone
CharlotteSingles.com making the right connections
“I truly believe our Charlotte office is destined to change a lot of people’s lives in a positive way,” said Jason Breakey, the CEO and co-founder of Premiere Singles, one of the nation’s leading dating services. Opened since September, Charlotte Singles has already made an impact on the community at large.
“We’ve gotten off to a promising start in Charlotte,” replied Breakey. “We go out of our way to make our clients feel comfortable about joining our service, not trapped. Our staff goes the extra mile to do everything they can to improve our member’s social life. We push people out there a little bit to get the ball rolling for them. After that, it’s up to them.”
The Sales Director for Charlotte Singles is Stephanie Harrington. The office is located 4030 Wake Forest Road, Suite 300. The satellite office recently held its first social event for its membership that was a huge success.
“When you join our dating service,” remarked Sunny Davis, the company's National Director of Member Relations, “you don’t have to be rich in order to have a rich experience. With Charlotte Singles, it doesn’t matter who you are or where you come from. It doesn’t matter if you feel you have shortcomings or limitations. What matters to us is you are a special and deserving person – so deserving that you can dare to dream that real companionship and love is not only attainable, but a reality we are determined to help you attain.”
Jason Breakey is the President of Premier Singles and Barrett Stone is the CEO. CharlotteSingles.com is part of the PremierSingles.com network.
For more information,
charlottesingles.com
4940 Park Rd
Charlotte, NC 28209
Email: charlotte@premiersingles.com or
member.support@premiersingles.com
Phone: 1-888-558-7188 or 1-866-558-7188
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