Trial of Liberia`s Taylor Delayed Until Jan `08

Judges postponed until January 2008 the war crimes trial of former Liberian President Charles Taylor.

Judges on Monday postponed until January the war crimes trial of former Liberian President Charles Taylor as lawyers argued over whether victims of the atrocities in Sierra Leone need be called to testify.

Taylor is accused of instigating murder, rape and mutilation in a quest for diamonds during the civil war in Sierra Leone.

His chief defence counsel, Courtenay Griffiths, said he saw no reason why victims of the war need testify unless the prosecution was trying to make an "emotional impact". Prosecutors replied that their testimony was required.

Taylor, 59, boycotted the opening of his trial in June in a dispute over the resources allocated to his defence, prompting weeks of legal wrangling and repeated delays.

More funds were made available to Taylor and a new defence team was appointed last month.

The team requested a delay until January to prepare the case. "Time allowed now will help reduce the length of the trial in due course and save money," Griffiths said in his plea.

"In the chamber's view, the period of four months is indeed a reasonable time ... to grapple with a complicated case," said Judge Julia Sebutinde, who noted the prosecution had not opposed the request.

Taylor, 59, attended the hearing, wearing a double-breasted grey suit with gold cufflinks. His lawyer said the former president, who has pleaded not guilty to all charges, was also anxious to begin his trial as soon as possible.

NEW ARCHIVE MATERIAL

Griffiths said there were some 40,000 pages of material submitted by prosecutors to be examined, and 50,000 pages of material from Taylor's personal archives had surfaced in Monrovia which could be crucial to the case.

But bringing victims to The Hague to testify was unnecessary, he said.

"No one is denying that horrific acts were committed ... the question is: were those horrible things done at the behest of or in the knowledge of this defendant?" Griffiths asked.

"Let's get rid of all this emotional baggage which the prosecutor is seeking to bring before the court," he told journalists afterwards.

In Sierra Leone, a generation of civilian amputees -- their hands or legs hacked off by rebels -- are a painful reminder of the cruelty of the conflict.

Drugged rebels and militia fighters, often only children themselves, killed, raped and maimed men, women and children.

Prosecutors say in the indictment that Taylor tried to gain control of Sierra Leone's mineral wealth, particularly its diamond mines, and destabilise the Freetown government to boost his own influence throughout West Africa.

The indictment focuses on abuses between 1996 and 2002, and catalogues the horrific practices of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels, who it says Taylor supported and supplied.

Taylor's trial is being held in The Hague because of fears it could spur instability if held in Sierra Leone. On Saturday, the country held its first elections since the departure of U.N. peacekeepers two years ago. The trial will resume on Jan. 7.