By Lincoln G. Peters
Carey Street, Monrovia, May 17, 2026: Following the submission of the draft bill on the establishment of a War and Economic Crimes Court (WECC) and the National Anti-Corruption Court (NACC), Liberia’s Witness Protection Agency (WPA) has assured full protection, security, and institutional strategic mechanism readiness for potential witnesses who are willing to testify against accused persons.
The Witness Protection Agency (WPA) of Liberia, was established to ensure the safety, security, and welfare of witnesses, whistleblowers, and victims who testify in criminal and corruption cases or people who disclose information about the commission of crimes. It operates as an autonomous agency under the Executive Branch to strengthen the rule of law and foster public trust in the justice system.
The institution, providing comprehensive public engagement in keeping with an invitation from the Center for the Promotion of Intellectual Development (CENPID), on Carey Street, on its mandate and responding to Inquirer from Liberian regarding their preparedness to provide protection, security, safety and motivational incentive to those who wants to testify during the war and economics crimes court trial, layout the strategy framework of the institution and the readiness.
Making a proxy for the Director of the Witness Protection Agency, Hon. Teklo Maxwell Grigsby II-Esq, Mr. Ephraim T. Nyumah, Manager, Program and Policy said that the establishment of the Witness Protection Agency is not only a further step to protect witnesses and whistleblowers in Liberia but a further fulfilment of Liberia’s obligations under treaties and conventions the country has already signed onto and ratified.
According to the former Secretary General of the Federation of African Law Students (FALAS), since the formation of the WPA four months ago, there have been substantial steps in terms of preparing for witness intake and admission mechanism including preparation for a safe home, noting that the safe home is where those who come to testify and feel insecure are kept till the trial starts and finishes based on witness intake regulations.
The prospective Louis Arthur Grimes School of Law graduate stated that ordinarily, Liberia’s judicial trial process lasts for forty-two days, something which he said is outside of the pre-trial hearing, because the courts open four times a year.
He added that during the process, they get ten days of pre-trial hearing and forty-two days of trial hearing, therefore, keeping the witnesses safe for those periods is important so as to ensure that Justice is served and accountability is restored.
” So, as you have asked me, in the case of war crimes, it may not take that normal time, it might be a year or two before a trial cycle is completed. So, in terms of protection, I can say for sure that the WPA has step-by-step preparation for the protection of witnesses and victims. It may not be at 100% at this time, but I can say that we have making substantial efforts as an agency to ensure that those who will come to testify when we are ready for the court, we are prepared to give them protection and security” he assured.
According to him, in 2004, Liberia signed and ratified the Rome Statute that established the International Criminal Court (ICC), and the United Nations Convictions Against Corruption (UNCAC). However, under the ICC, the court doesn’t automatically gain jurisdiction over international crimes (genocide, Crimes against humanity, war crimes, and crimes of aggression) in a country but through the principle of Complementarity. Under the principle of complementarity, the ICC acts as a court of last resort but only steps in to prosecute core international crimes when national legal systems like ours are either unwilling or unable to investigate and prosecute those cases themselves. Not protecting witnesses and victims is a sign of unwillingness by the State to prosecute war crimes but the enactment of the Liberia Witness Protection law and the Witness Protection Agency shows substantial preparedness by Liberia to acquire complete jurisdiction over war crimes, crimes against humanity, and others.
The Teaching Assistant at the Department of Economics, University of Liberia, pointed out that for the ICC to gain jurisdiction, it means that the state (Liberia) has failed to ensure that they have the environment available for prosecutions, where the trial will be fair.
” I want to testify against an accused warlord, a man also accused of committing economic crimes. How safe am I to testify? Am I safe to testify against the person if you can’t protect me? So, if we can’t prove that we can protect our witness, it means that we will lose jurisdiction over war crime prosecutions, while the ICC might likely come in and our national court will just be an observer”, Mr. Nyumah explained.
The former Secretary General of the Federation of African Law Students, argued that to resist that, Liberia decided to put into place mechanisms such as the enactment of the Witness Protection Agency, which will give witnesses, whistleblowers, and victims protection to ensure that those who come to testify in war and economic crimes are well protected physically and emotionally.
The LACC report said that 35% of their cases that go to court are based on whistleblowers’ information and so, we asked ourselves if we can’t protect whistleblowers who are potential witnesses, what becomes of the work of the LACC? Because conviction in criminal cases is not based on emotion but concrete evidence and corruption being an opportunistic crime relies heavily on witness testimonies to convict. That can only happen when you have realistic motivational incentives for whistleblowers and protection for witnesses to make them feel secure and protected to testify”, he asserted.
Providing the operational partners, he stated that they effectively carry out their mandate by working closely with development partners like the United Nations Human Rights Office, and key justice and law enforcement stakeholders, including the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC), and others to keep the agency grounded and fully functional.
Mr. Nyumah stated that Liberia is just among the few countries in Africa including Kenya, South Africa, and Rwanda among others that have established the Witness Protection Agency that is making an impact and restoring trust and confidence for witnesses to come out and provide information on crimes.
“People must account for their actions and the WPA will work with Justice actors to ensure justice is served in our country.”
