As thousands of soldiers and civilians cheered, 13 ministers and other top officials of the Liberian Government deposed on April 12 were put to death on a beach here today by a firing squad of riflemen and machine gunners. Those shot included former Foreign Minister Cecil C Dennis Jr. and Frank E Tolbert, the presideng officer of the Senate and elder brother of the President, William R Tolbert Jr., who was killed during the coup. Also executed were the speaker of the House of Representatives, the Chief Justice and the chairman of the party that for a century had governed this country, long the closest African friend of the United states.
They had been sentenced to death by a five-man military tribunal that declared them guily of "high treason, rampant corruption and gross violations of human rights." They had been allowed no defense counsel nor had they received any details of the charges against them.
After the executions, a staff sergeant emptied the magazine of his weapon into the bodies, turned to a reporter standing next to hi, and said that those put to death had had "no right to live" because they had made Liberians suffer for years, "Killing people and stealing our money." Reporters were summoned to the beach shortly after attending the first news conference given by Liberia's new leader, Samuel K Doe, the 28-year-old former master sergeant who led the coup of April 12. Anwersing only two of the dozens of prepared questions during the conference, which lasted seven minutes, Mr Doe said he would return Liberia to cicilian rule and call elections "when things have calmed down."
The governing military body, headed by Mr Doe and called the People's Redemption Council, rejected plead from the United States and other Western embassies to spare the prisoners' lives. The 13 Government ministers, legislators, party officials and others condemned to die today were transported by bus to a sandy dune at Monrovia's beachfront Barclay military training base, wehre thousands of civilians and hundreds of soldiers had gathered. Nine thick wooden posts had been lined up along the dune 10 feet apart. The death sentences were carried out in two groups. Nine of the 13 prisoner were first stripped to the waist and tied, one to each post and facing away from the sea. A single long green rope was used.
Soldiers in battle fatigues, mostly armed with submachine guns, milled around the posts jeering at the prisoners who were tied by their waists. It took half an hour for their officer to get them to move far enough back to make room for the firing squad. Mr Tolbert, the Senate president, and Richard A Heneries, the 72-year-old Speaker of the House, apparently fainted, and the firing squad killed them as they sagged to the ground on the rope.
Only the former Foreign Minister Dennis and F Reginald Townsend, former chairman of the long-governing True Whig Party, appeared calm as they faced their executioners. One soldier with a rifle was positioned in from of each post at a distance of 15 yards. As the order was given, each fired several shots. The first shots missed Mr Dennis and some others. The former Foreign Minister appeared astonished. Then other soldiers opened up with bursts of machine-gun fire for several minutes amid wild cheering from the soldiers and from civilians lined up some distance from the beach.
The nine bodies were cut down and left at the foot of the stakes, and the second group of four was brought forward. Moments later, another volley rang out. Besides Mr Dennis, Mr Tolbert, Mr Heneries and Mr Townsend, those put to death today were identified as Joseph Chesson, Justice Minister; James A Pierre, Chief Justice' James T Phillips, Finance Minister; David Franklin Neal, Minister for Economic Planning; Frank Stewart, Budget Director; Cyril Bright, Agricultural Minister; John Sherman, Trade Minister; Charles TO King, a congressional representative, and Clarence Parker, Tru Whig Party treasurer.
Source: New York Times
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