Gbarnga — Lawyers at the just ended three-day Annual General Assembly Meeting (GA) of the National Union of Community Forest Management Body (NUCFMB) in Gbarnga, Bong County have told community representatives that they are not under any obligation to select the Forestry Development Authority (FDA) or any of its officials as Arbiter to help resolve conflicts. The lawyers made the statement during presentation on dispute resolution at the DEN-L resource center in central Liberia.
The purpose of the Annual General Assembly was to reflect, share information and give feedback to the union’s members on the operations and programs of the national secretariat and communities. About 50 community representatives from seven forest regions attended the General Assembly, sponsored by the European Union Delegation to Liberia and Co-sponsored by ClientEarth.
The lawyers from the Heritage Partners Law firm said, Chapter 8 of the Community Rights Law clearly spelt out the methods and procedures through which dispute resolution can be handled, adding, selecting FDA is optional, but not binding on communities. “Disputes arising in communities may be resolved through customary process, and not by inviting FDA to serve as Arbiter, as the community right law does not mention FDA as Arbiter”, said Cllr. J. Awia Vankan.
The lack of knowledge on dispute resolution has often compelled communities to invite the FDA to intervene in conflicts arising from forest contracts. In most instances, participants said, the FDA as regulating body does not show up on time when called upon by communities, and often cites financial and logistical constraints as obstacles. But lawyers who participated in the community’s annual meeting in central Liberia have clarified that community members are not forced to wait for the FDA before resolving conflict through arbitration, unless the contract says so, which the lawyers also claimed is not binding.
The dispute resolution section in the 2009 Community Rights Law (CRL) with respect to forest lands does not name the FDA as Arbiter, and does not also compel communities to include the FDA as Arbiter in their contracts with logging companies. Chapter 8 of the CRL says: “Any dispute arising between two or more communities and Authority, communities and third parties about the access to or management of community forest resources may be resolved through customary dispute resolution mechanism or by the application of the Arbitration Laws of Liberia as found in Chapter 64 of the Civil Procedure Law”.
The HPA lawyer reminded communities of the possible types of dispute between communities and other parties during a logging contract, but encouraged them to take preventive action when drafting or entering into contracts, noting, there are also many methods through which disputes may be settled without going to court.
Cllr. Vankan said disputes can be handled through mutual settlement, mediation, conciliation, arbitration and litigation, and that alternative dispute resolution may take less time, promote community harmony and peace, and produce a win-win solution for all. It can be a simple process that the community can easily understand.