‘Brumskine Might Be Called For Questioning’

31 March 2011

The Ministry of Justice has reacted sharply to statements attributed to the Liberty Party Political Leader, Cllr. Charles Walker Brumskine, when he served as guest at the 8th African Economic Forum at the Columbia University, New York, United States of America.

The Justice Minister claimed that Cllr. Brumskine, while serving as guest of the 8th African Economic Forum at the Columbia University, New York, United States of America, described the recent MCSS student demonstration as “bloody Tuesday”, an apparent statement  he made  in reference  to  the police brutal handling of the student solidarity protest  which  led to several injuries.

In a statement delivered by Justice Minister, Christina Tarr, she said the government of Liberia is taken aback by what it termed as wrong information delivered by Cllr. Brumskine regarding the student protest.

According to Minister Tarr, the statement made by Cllr. Brumskine is unconfirmed and as such, she added, his pronouncement could spark what she portrayed as a potentially incendiary climate, owing to the ensuing presidential and general elections.

The Justice Minister argued that beyond the boundary of free speech, she said, Cllr. Brumskine is to be held responsible for utterances he made, particularly within the context of where the speech was delivered and the wider audience it afforded.

“Even though the constitution calls for free speech, but speeches like the one made by Cllr. Brumskine is worth questioning, and he might definitely be called upon his arrival for questioning at the Ministry of Justice”, Liberia’s Attorney General is quoted as saying.

Meanwhile, the Justice Minister has announced that nobody die  in the student demonstration  as was insinuated in the public, and that  investigations, she averred, are underway to authenticate why students were hurt during the protest,  especially when the police were sent to calm down the  situation.

Minister Tarr also applauded the students for what she termed as taking the bold step for legally apologizing and taking the responsibility to repair damage items both in the public and private domain.

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