---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Sat, 01 Jun 2002 09:43:23 -0700 From: charlotte utting <[log in to unmask]> Reply-To: [log in to unmask] To: [log in to unmask] Subject: [WASAN] FW: WEST AFRICA NEWSLETTER,Vol.2, N0.7--Press release&Book Review ---------- From: [log in to unmask] Reply-To: [log in to unmask] Date: Sat, 01 Jun 2002 04:57:23 -0500 (CDT) To: [log in to unmask] Subject: RE: WEST AFRICA NEWSLETTER,Vol.2,N0.7--Press release&Book Review International Center and Liberia Institute of Journalism WEST AFRICA NEWSLETTER Reporting on Human Rights, Democracy & Development Vol. 2 No.1 April 5, 2002 Please send this newsletter to anyone who is interested!!! CONTENTS 1. EDITOR’S COMMENTS 2. RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY 3. REFUGEES 4. HEALTH/ ENVIRONMENT 5. DEVELOPMENT 6. MEDIA/TECHNOLOGY 7. GRANTS 8. WORLD BANK PIPELINE 9. ANNOUNCEMENTS 10. ABOUT US XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 1. EDITOR’S COMMENTS http://www.lij.kabissa.org In this week edition of WEST AFRICA NEWSLETTER(WAN), we will deal with only two issues a press release from LURD rebels and a book review. Your comments will be highly appreciated. The LURD rebel has send us a Press release tittled "LURD WANTS PEACE BUT INSISTS ON TAYLOR'S EXIT ". Our concern is asking "Taylor to exist" is it the democratic way? what happened to the ballot box? The LURD are now coming as "savour", have we Liberians realized that the same bullet they will use to get rid of Taylor is the same bullet they will use to keep themselves in power, suppress the very people they claim to be liberating and step on press freedom? Why must we flount our constitution everytime someone gets greedy for power? We do appreciate them wanting peace and so we will share with our readers their "BUTS" in their press release. We have also received a book review on the recent published book by Gabriel Williams a Liberian journalist. Book Review - Liberia: The Heart of Darkness By Emmanuel D. Abalo The literary effort, LIBERIA: THE HEART OF DARKNESS, written by an enterprising, young Liberian professional, journalists and human rights campaigner Gabriel I.H. Williams, is by far, in recent memory, a well-written narrative of a personal, historical and professional masterpiece that rises from the ruins of a nation state. The book for its historical merit, details the creation in the 1800’s of the West African state of Liberia, which creation some historians maintain, was doomed to self destruct because of the societal perpetuation of two classes of people for well over a century and a half. Namely, the well educated, "civilized" and elite Americo-Liberian settlers who are in the minority versus the aborigines, impoverished, less educated and less sophisticated majority. According to the author, " a general understanding prevails that the problems of inequality and injustice that have long plagued Liberia amount to the sum total of the country’s self destruction. While there is also agreement that the problems began and were known from the beginning of Liberia’s founding, it becomes puzzling as to how successive governments over more than a century failed to adequately address those problems" .Thus the basis for the "prolonged period of enmity" that existed between the natives and the settlers known as Americo-Liberians. Liberia’s political history is replete with various attempts, through violent means, to change the status quo, prominent being the military overthrow of the Tolbert government in 1980 by enlisted men led by a native Samuel Doe. Through the brute force of arms to violently change the government and perpetuate itself in power, the erstwhile People’s Redemption Council of Samuel Doe and its subsequent second Republic " civilian" structure" set into motion a platform or blueprint for others to copy or follow to "resolve" whatever gripe they had against the government. And so began the formation and launching of the, the National Patriotic Front (NPFL) rebel organization and its various offshoots that unleashed a modern day calamity on the country and West African sub region. But the author, in his unique style, revisits his genealogy so as to portray his connection between his upbringing and how he is thrust into a century long national struggle. As is evident, most readers would share a common bond with the writer, especially some of the everyday growing experiences and family life except for some, the unfortunate and unimaginable terror visited upon his person and close family members by combatants and circumstances of the war. The mind-blowing and near fatal account of his arrest, interrogation and death sentence by fighters of one of the rebel factions, the Independent National Patriotic Front (INPFL) led then by Prince Johnson, in itself vividly illustrates how the writer, Mr. Williams, came to realize the futility of his selfless contributions he had been making to his community and nation.. He writes, " I could not believe that my life was coming to such a tragic end simply for trying to be well-meaning and a advocate for the common good of general society. In my late twenties, at the time of the war, I was already regarded as one of the rising stars in the Liberian media". He continued, " this very terrible and traumatic experience gave me a deeper understanding of the very destructive nature of the war, particularly how unarmed people became fair game for4 the combatants of the various factions." The author, however, recounts the redeeming and unending initiatives of local civic and religious organizations including the national Press Union Of Liberia ( PUL), the Interfaith Mediation Committee and some politicians to still find a negotiated settlement to the long-running and intractable national crisis. The international community, including the United States and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have also been extensively involved in the peace process, including the intervention of a peacekeeping force ECOMOG . The ECOWAS Peace Plan remains the framework for an appreciable long-term resolution of the ugly and embarrassing state of affairs today in Liberia. In his profound frustration at the intransigence of the rebel warlord Charles Taylor, during the war, Mr. Williams averred, "the Taylor scenario is yet another example that a despot can never be easily appeased, and the resulting effects are often human tragedies". The Liberian author , in the book, extensively enumerates his professional growth and development as a media personal and pays tributes to many senior local media professionals and colleagues who nurtured him. Prominent among which are Rufus M. Darpoh, Kenneth Y. Best and others including colleagues like Klon Hinneh, T. Max Teah, Isaac Bantu , Lamini Waritay and your humble servant. It is worth noting the author’s participation in the Herculean task of reuniting the fractious Liberian Press after the civil war. His commitment to undertaking this task in his capacity as Secretary General of the Press Union of Liberia along with others PUL executives was an opportunity to keep hope alive and guarantee that the national dialogue continues towards a peaceful negotiated settlement of the war. Despite the hardcore positions and sometimes inflexible positions of all factions in the conflict, the efforts of Mr. Williams and others sought to maintain equal access to the media as an alternative to the armed solution.. He concludes in chapter seven of his book, under the subtitle, " The Liberian Press During the War," by saying, "Indeed, ours was a very challenging mission to keep alive a dream for a free press and society, a cause for which many of courage have sacrificed in the past and continue to do so…" Another important aspect examined in the book is the "strategic interests" of the United States during the period of the Cold War which were regarded then as "vital". However, the Liberian situation was further compounded. According to Mr. Williams, " as the Liberian civil war degenerated into un uncontrollable state of mass death and destruction and appeals were made for timely U.S. intervention, , American policy makers simply looked the other way. State Department officials argued that there was no justification for direct U.S. intervention because Liberia was no longer of strategic importance to the United States." However, the U.S. remains very involved in the sense that it continues to encourage national reconciliation, continues to provide humanitarian assistance and maintains pressure on the current Taylor government to function under acceptable and civilized international laws. The Liberian journalist and author succinctly identifies the core of the Liberian problem when he says, "Liberia, a glaring example of a failed states, says a lot about the questions regarding the ability of Black people to govern ourselves. We often tend to become slaves to greed and personal ambition to the detriment of general society." Accordingly, he furthered, " the fate of Liberia lies in the hands of none but its own citizens." This 455 page narrative which draws on its powerful imageries from real life, first hand accounts, media report and the author’s ability to evoke emotive reactions is quite commendable. And so for those seeking a historical perspective, a personal flair and an insight into the author’s professional development and association and continued engagement in the international arena to tell the Liberian "story" and seek help for the resolution of the conflict, I strongly recommend the book, LIBERIA: THE HEART OF DARKNESS by Gabriel I.H. Williams. The book is published by Trafford Publishing. This review was written by Emmanuel D. Abalo, a Liberian journalist, human rights activist and former Vice President of the Press Union of Liberia (PUL) xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Office of the National Spokesman & Coordinator Central Working Group Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy(LURD) Voinjama, Lofa County, Republic of Liberia May 28, 2002 Press Release LURD WANTS PEACE BUT INSISTS ON TAYLOR'S EXIT In view of genuine appeals and repeated calls from the United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, the Inter-Religious Council of Liberia, international institutions, and the Liberian populace in general, Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD), have elected to reduce and/or halt our military activities in the country with immediate effect. This is done with the view of providing the international community, particularly the UN, OAU, EU, the inter-Religious Council of Liberia, and other international groupings the opportunity to derive a reliable solution to the Liberian situation and its prevailing consequences. However, our forces will vehemently defend areas under our full control and, retaliate should they come under any form of attack from Taylor's NPFL /NPP Monrovia regime rebel ATU soldiers. We in LURD stand for peace and want security for our country and the Mano River Union basin which has been grossly criminalized by Taylor and his Libyan allies for the past decade. In furtherance of our sobriety and quest for peace and economic development for our country and people, we call on the international community to seize this vital opportunity in prioritizing the Liberian question by paving the way for the departure of Taylor. We are prepared to dialogue with any individual or group of Liberians, except Charles Taylor who is the sole problem for the region. We wish to state clearly that the civilians who were massacred near the Sierra Leonean borders in Cape Mount County, Liberia were killed by the Monrovia regime’s ruthless ATU rebel soldiers on the orders of Taylor. We strongly condemn this ugly act and call on the international community to prevail on the Taylor regime to respect the civilian dimension relative to protection in armed conflict. We want the world to know that looting, massacres and extra judicial killings are trademarks of Charles Taylor and his followers. Taylor and his evil forces have been doing this for the last decade. So news report that LURD's forces bother civilians is absolutely misleading. This is an inaccurate and unsuccessful projection of Taylor's action and tendencies on our Movement. These Monrovia gangs do these evil acts with the view of making us (LURD) look bad in the eyes of the international community and Liberians in general. At the moment LURD’s forces have under control Lofa, Gbarpolu, and Bomi Counties, and key areas in central Liberia. Suehn, B.F Goodrich Rubber Plantation and surroundings close to Bong Mines are also under full control of our forces. These latter areas are battle front-lines which are within striking distances of the capital, Monrovia. There is increased unity and progress in LURD. Rumors and misguided lies carried out by Taylor's stooges that there is a rift in our midst are false and very cheap. Our leadership is together and we are focused on cooperating with other Liberian groupings in sorting out a post Taylor political and economic formula through which our country can have genuine democracy, peace, freedom and economic development. The End 2. RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY 3. REFUGEES News Conference to Release The: World Refugee Survey 2002 http://www.uscr.org The U.S. Committee for Refugees-a nonprofit humanitarian organization that works for the protection and assistance of refugees, asylum seekers, and internally displaced persons worldwide. Thursday, June 6, 2002, at 10:00 a.m. The National Press Club,Lisagor Room, 13th Floor, 529 14th .N.W.,Washington,D.C. The World Refugee Survey 2002 is an authoritative annual report published by the U.S. Committee for Refugees. It details refugee situations in 133 countries around the world. The 290-page report reviews refugee conditions and government policies affecting refugees and displaced persons, provides statistics on refugees worldwide, and features articles on current issues affecting refugees. Among these are articles addressing the impact of September 11 on refugees in the United States and internationally. 4. HEALTH/ENVIROMENT Diarrhoea, Malaria Claim 700,000 Children Yearly http://allafrica.com/stories/200205310484.html No fewer than 700,000 children below five years old die yearly as a result of diarrhoea, malaria and other child-killer diseases.Out of this number, 170,000 children die before they reach one month, just as 45,000 women die yearly of pregnancy related causes. 5. DEVELOPMENT 6. MEDIA/TECHNOLOGY View the webzine version of the IFEX "Communique" on line at: <http://www.ifex.org> or <http://Canada.ifex.org>. International Freedom of Expression eXchange Clearing House 7. GRANTMAKERS The Foundation Center in Washington, DC, has over 65,000 names of donors. You can logon their web page at http//: www.fdncenter.org. You might just get a donor to fund your project. 8. WORLD BANK PIPELINE PROJECT 9. ANNOUNCEMENT http://www.lij.kabissa.org On January 15-16, 2002, the Liberia Institute of Journalism (LIJ), hosted a two- day Symposium on “Creating a Space for Dialogue between and amongst journalists, human rights advocates/activists, civil society, women groups, youth groups, decision-makers, traditional leaders and politicians,” from the three Mano River Countries, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea to create a space for dialogue that will create an enabling environment for peace in the Union. The proceedings and Resolutions have been published. We will be happy to send a copy to anyone interested. We ask that you send us $25.00 to help cover shipping and handling. Just email us your request at [log in to unmask] Welcome to the first issue of InterConnection’s electronic newsletter, IConnect. IConnect is a monthly newsletter that showcases how organization are using their websites to accomplish their missions, provides information on technology assistance tools and training, and lists sources of support for non- profits. If you would like to suggest a resource for IConnect let us know by writing to [log in to unmask] </cgi-bin/compose? curmbox=F000000001&a=61a9380a129dd1e170d4d0cd4c72a335&mailto=1&to=iconnect@i nter connection.org&msg=MSG1022796611.82&start=431933&len=7105&src=&type=x> A note to remind you of the online conference Information Access for Rural Women that begins next week, June 3. Following is information about the conference, including a registration form. For each week of the 3-week conference we shall have a set of facilitation messages (brief introductory message + questions) to help us share and discuss the issues. The facilitation messages (English, French, Spanish) are available at: <http://www.wougnet.org/Events/IARW/iarwdiscuss.html <http://216.33.148.250:80/cgi-bin/linkrd? _lang=EN&lah=50109cc20a4af48ce1b4f334857ae7cd&lat=1022921638&hm___action=htt p% 3a%2f%2fwww%2ewougnet%2eorg%2fEvents%2fIARW%2fiarwdiscuss%2ehtml>> Online Conference: Information Access for Rural Women June 3 - 21, 2002 10. ABOUT US http://www.lij.kabissa.org The WEST AFRICA NEWSLETTER (WAN), is an online publication of the Liberia Institute of Journalism (LIJ), located at the corner of Broad and Johnson Sts., in Monrovia, Liberia, West Africa, and funded by the International Center-731 - 8th S.E., Washington, DC. To subscribe just logo our webpage at http://www.lij.kabissa.org or email the editor Vinnie Hodges at [log in to unmask] We do publish news, information and articles free of charge send all to the editor Vinnie Hodges. --- WestAfrica-Newsletter is hosted on Kabissa - Space for change in Africa To post, write to: [log in to unmask] Website: http://www.kabissa.org/lij ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Kwick Pick opens locked car doors, front doors, drawers, briefcases, padlocks, and more. On sale now! http://us.click.yahoo.com/ehaLqB/Fg5DAA/Ey.GAA/DKgolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Next WASAN meeting is Wednesday, May 29, 2002. Location: Douglas Truth Library, 2300 E Yesler Way, Seattle 7:00 PM WASAN business meeting 7:30 PM PROGRAM: Good Read. A free event. We usually meet the fourth Wednesday of the month. For a calendar of local Africa events see http://www.ibike.org/africamatters/calendar.htm . 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