Sierra Leone: more funds needed to set up special court, Security Council told

Noting that more funds were needed to set up a Special Court for Sierra Leone, members of the Security Council today said justice for the country's people should not be held up.

"Members expressed concerns that delay in establishing the Court is a delay in bringing justice and reconciliation to the people of Sierra Leone," the body's President, Ambassador Patricia Durrant of Jamaica, said in a press statement following closed-door consultations. Earlier, the Council was briefed by Under-Secretary-General Hans Corell, head of the Office of Legal Affairs, on the status of the establishment of the Court.

While noting that additional funding was still required to set up the Special Court, Council members expressed appreciation to countries that had pledged contributions for it, Ambassador Durrant said. She added that the UN Secretariat was sending a planning mission to Sierra Leone at the end of the month.

The Special Court is being set up to try persons deemed most responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity and other violations of international humanitarian law.