Civil Rights Groups Pressure Nigeria to Revoke Taylor?s Asylum

On December 11, 2003, a coalition of West African civil rights group clamored for the Nigerian Government to revoke asylum for the former Liberian President Charles G. Taylor. They contended that harboring an indicted war criminal violates the Nigerian Constitution. The coalition includes Nigerian, Liberian and Sierra Leonean organizations. They asked Nigeria to surrender Mr. Taylor to the Special Court for Sierra Leone, an ad hoc tribunal in which the U.N. has helped organize and support. The Tribunal has charged Mr. Taylor with crimes against humanity, but, even thereafter, Nigeria granted Mr. Taylor asylum when Taylor agreed to leave office in August.