The General Services Section (GSS) was responsible for providing logistical and administrative support to all areas of the Court. The services provided by the section included facilities management, transport, general supply, travel, traffic, mail services, and inventory control. The section also generated 24 hour power on-site and was responsible for the provision of all utility […]
The Procurement Section was charged with the development of the physical and support infrastructure of the Court and of obtaining value for the money spent, a critical task given the Court’s reliance on voluntary contributions which often resulted in the underfunding of budgets. Beginning in 2003, Procurement focused on the temporary courthouse and detention facility […]
Outreach and Public Affairs was formed by the merger in 2007 of the Public Affairs Office (PAO), or “Press and Public Affairs,” and the Outreach Section. The two sections had long cooperated, and their formal merger brought together two sections with a strong tradition of innovation and a commitment to accessibility. Situated, as the Court […]
Throughout the lifespan of the Court, the Personnel Section was responsible for the recruiting, hiring and retention of international and national staff, as well as contractors and interns, who worked at the Special Court’s offices in Freetown, The Hague, and New York. The Section was also responsible for assisting personnel in upgrading their skills, and […]
The Finance Section established the financial infrastructure for the Court. It was responsible for developing its infrastructure to ensure compliance with the financial regulations and rules adopted by the Court which were partially based on those of the United Nations. During the first year of the Court’s work, the Section established an accounting system, a […]
The Court Management Section (CMS) provided administrative, judicial and logistic support in all proceedings before the Trial Chambers and the Appeals Chamber. The Section was made up of five units: Court Records, Court Support, Language, Stenography, and Library and Archiving. Court Records Unit The Court Records Unit was responsible for the receipt, filing, reproduction and […]
Due to security concerns in Sierra Leone when the Special Court was established, the first (temporary) courthouse and detention facility were established in 2003 on Bonthe Island, where eight Special Court indictees subsequently made their initial appearances. The Bonthe Island facility was, at the time, a disused compound owned by the Sierra Leone Prison Service, […]
The location of the Special Court in the country where the conflict occurred represented one of the major challenges to the organisation. During the first two years of its operations, numerous major events raised the visibility of the Court in the region. In January 2003, the New England site near central Freetown was occupied by […]