LONDON, June 20 (UPI) -- Convicted war criminal and ex-Liberian President Charles Taylor has submitted a request to be moved from his prison in England to a prison in Rwanda in order to be closer to his family.
Taylor's attorney, John Jones QC, said that "In the eight months that he has been in the UK he has not received a single visit from his wife and children."
Jones asserted that Taylor's family members have been denied visas because immigration officers were "not satisfied that they are going to return to Liberia after their visit to see him, which is ridiculous."
Jones is arguing that "the UK has a duty to ensure family life, not just for him but for his family. It's a clear duty under international law and English domestic law." If moved to Rwanda, his family and minor children would be able to visit him.
Taylor, 66, arrived in the UK in October 2013 after being sentenced to 50 years in prison by the United Nations-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone in The Hague. He was found guilty of 11 charges, including terrorism, rape, murder, and the use of child soldiers.
