Nelson and Charles

So, Madam Hissyfit from Streatham is to go to the Hague, all because of what happened in the hours after this photo was taken. What an odd bunch of people were there - Imran, Quincy, Mia. Were they all there by design?

The question I cannot dislodge from my mind is why on earth Charles Taylor had been invited. The horrific civil war in Sierra Leone was in full fury at that time, and the ongoing proceedings in Holland will only confirm what we already know: that Taylor's role as buyer of blood diamonds and supplier of small arms in return was central. Much of this was already known or suspected at the time. Why then would Nelson Mandela have him as a guest in his house?