By Aminata Phidelia Allie
Defence lawyer in the on-going trial of 14 soldiers, presently standing trial for alleged mutiny, has demanded that the Sierra Leone government provides legal aid for the accused persons because “it is their right as provided for in the Legal Aid Act”.
Roberts Kowa, representing the 14th accused, Capt. Prince Sesay, was addressing the military court at Cockerill where the soldiers made their seventh appearance yesterday, April 30.
For the second week running other defence lawyers hired by government to represent them made a no-show on grounds of non-payment.
Lawyer Kowa stated that the absence of the defence lawyers, though it had not been announced in court, was all over the news, adding that it was the duty and responsibility of the government to ensure that they were represented so as to prevent denial of justice through delay.
He also applied that an order be made by the court for the accused persons to access their salaries and any other benefit due them so that they could take care of their families and pay for legal services as the government had refused to provide them with any “whether for deliberate reasons or otherwise”.
“Their cheque books have been seized, they have no access to their salaries, if at all it is running, and the government has failed to provide them with any legal representation" he said, asking rather rhetorically "Are they being punished before they are tried or is the government doing this to achieve something?”
He said the men were still service men on the government’s payroll and as such they should be treated as honourable human beings. He went on: “I am sure if they are granted access to their salaries, they could afford legal representation for themselves”.
State prosecutor Gerald Joseph Soyei objected to the defence lawyer’s application, arguing that the issue of salary was not before the court. He pleaded with Judge Advocate Otto During to limit himself to the issues for which he had been invited to determine. He said the salary issue was an administrative one which could only be settled by administrative machinery, and not the court.
“You are neither the accountant general nor the pay or quarter master. Besides, there is no documentary proof on payment or non-payment of salaries. I therefore maintain that you have no jurisdiction to grant order for payment of salaries but to try the accused persons”, Soyei said.
Though he was in agreement with the issue of legal aid, the prosecutor pointed out that that was not mandatory as the legal aid act had not “imposed it as an absolute duty upon the government” to provide accused persons with such.
He said it was discretional on the part of the state to provide legal services for accused persons, imploring the Judge Advocate to restrain himself from “setting a bad precedent” by agreeing with the defence that it was a duty for the state to provide solicitors for accused persons.
“It will be a bad precedent to the extent that all sorts of criminals will commit offences at will bearing in mind that they are entitled to legal services from the government, which is an enormous burden on the state”, he noted.
In his ruling, Judge Advocate During noted that although it was not mandatory for the government to provide accused persons with legal aid, it had however been a practice over the years for the state to provide legal aid, especially in cases of murder and mutiny. He said he would again rule against the release of the soldiers’ cheque books “at least for now”, adding that when the trial proper starts, "I will consider it”.
He said the oath he took as Judge Advocate was not only to try the accused persons on legal grounds but also on humanitarian grounds and added that he was sure the “hitch” between the government and the defence lawyers would be settled soon.
The soldiers were arrested in August of last year at Teko Barracks in Makeni on allegations that they were plotting to mutiny. Four of them have been released after spending about eight months at Pademba Road Prisons even though the state could not proffer any charges against them.
The matter comes up again on Monday, 5 May when evidence is expected to be led.
(C) Politico 01/05/14
