This book provides a comprehensive narrative history of Liberia’s first civil war, from its origins in the 1980s right through the conflict and up to the peace agreement and conclusion of hostilities in 1997. The first Liberian Civil War was one of Africa’s most devastating conflicts, claiming the lives of more than 200,000 Liberians, and sending shockwaves across the world. Drawing on a wide range of local and international sources, the book traces the background of the war and its long-term and immediate causes, before analysing the detail of the unfolding conflict, the eventual ceasefire, peace agreement and subsequent elections. In particular, the book shines a light on hitherto unseen first-hand Roman Catholic indigenous and missionary sources, which offer a rare intimacy to the analysis. Detailing the impact of Liberia’s individual warlords and peacemakers, the book also explains the roles played by non-governmental agencies, national, regional and international actors, by the UN, ECOWAS and the Organisation of African Unity, and by nations with special interests and influence, such as the USA and other West African states. This book’s detailed narrative analysis of the Liberian conflict will be an important read for anyone with an interest in the Liberian conflict, including researchers within African studies, political science, contemporary history, international relations, and peace and conflict studies.
The civil war in 1989 promised freedom from ten years of vicious dictatorship; instead the seeds of Liberia's devastation were sown. Mark Huband's account of the conflict is a portrayal of the war as it unfolded, drawing on the author's experience of living amongst the fighters.
This book challenges the dominant view that the first Liberian civil war was caused by ethno-cultural antagonisms between and among the country's various ethnic groups. Alternatively, the book argues that the war was the consequence of the multifaceted crises of underdevelopment - cultural, economic, political, and social - generated by the neo-colonial Liberian State.
This text aims to unravel the tangled web of the conflict by addressing questions including: why did Nigeria intervene in Liberia and remain committed throughout the seven-year civil war?; and to what extent was ECOMOG's intervention shaped by Nigeria's hegemonic aspirations.
The Mask of Anarchy traces the history of the civil war that has blighted Liberia in recent years and looks at its roots in the way governments have been established in West Africa during the 20th century.
*INCLUDES BONUS DISCUSSION GUIDE! **PORTION OF PROCEEDS BENEFIT CHARITY. What is it like to be on the other side of the gun, running for your life and losing everything? What if you are only eleven years old? The Walk is a real life account of an adolescent boy, Brima Lamin, whose desperation for survival took him across several foreign countries ultimately seeking refuge in the United States. In this gripping memoir, the author tells how the entire course of his life was changed on one horrendous day, July 2, 1990 when rebel soldiers armed with AK-47s stormed his neighborhood. Over the course of four years to follow, he witnessed brutal atrocities barely escaping death during what many call one of the most horrific wars of all time, the Liberian Civil War. In the midst of losing it all, he came of age, found God and was able to come to a country that he had always dreamed about. The Walk challenges the reader to wonder how they will "walk" in the midst of the storm.
The Liberian civil wars of the 1990s and 2000s became notorious for their atrocities, and for the widespread use of child soldiers. Girls and young women accounted for up to 40 per cent of these soldiers, but their unique perspective and experiences have largely been excluded from accounts of the conflict. In Liberia's Women Veterans, Leena Vastapuu uses an innovative auto-photographic methodology to tell the story of two of Africa's most brutal civil wars through the eyes of 133 female former soldiers. Incorporating their testimonies alongside a series of vivid illustrations by Emmi Nieminen, the book provides an in-depth account of these women's experiences of trauma, stigma, and the challenges of reintegration into post-war society, as well as their hopes and aspirations for the future. Vastapuu argues that these women, too often been perceived merely as passive victims of the conflict, can in fact play an important role in post-war reconciliation and peace-building. Overturning gendered perceptions of warfare and militarism, the book provides a unique take on humanitarian practices and post-conflict societies, making essential reading for policymakers as well as students and scholars across the humanities and social sciences.
On December 24, 1989, a group of Libyan-trained armed dissidents, which styled itself the National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL), attacked Liberian territory from neighboring Ivory Coast. The band of outlaws was led by Charles Taylor, an ex-Liberia government official who escaped from prison in the United States while facing extradition to Liberia for allegedly embezzling nearly one million dollars of public funds. After he fled the U.S. Taylor returned to West Africa, from where he connected with Libya. Sustained by Libyan support, Taylor went to Liberia to spearhead his murderous brand of civil war. Liberia's dictatorial leader Samuel Doe responded to the NPFL invasion by deploying troops in the conflict area, whose senior ranks were dominated by the military strongman's own ethnic group. The government forces carried out collective punishment against local villagers, killing, looting, and raping, while singling out people from certain ethnic groups whom they regarded as supporters of the invasion by reason of their ethnic identity. The NPFL also targeted members of Doe's ethnic group and other ethnic groups that were seen to be supportive of the government, as well as its officials and sympathizers. As the war spread from the interior toward the Liberian capital of Monrovia amid widespread death and destruction, the United States responded to the deteriorating situation by dispatching four warships with 2,300 marines to evacuate Americans and other foreigners who were in the country. The U.S. decided not to intervene to contain the unfolding catastrophe. Officials of the George Bush administration maintained that Liberia, which was then America's closest traditional ally in Africa, was no longer of strategic importance to the U.S. Coincidentally, the Liberian civil war started at the time the Cold War was ending. Located on the West Coast of Africa, Liberia was founded in 1822 by freed black American slaves who were returned to the continent. Their passage was paid by the American Colonization Society, a philanthropic organization, whose members included Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe. The Liberian capital Monrovia is named after Monroe, who was president of the United States at the time Liberia was founded. The country's national flag of red, white and blue stripes with a star, bears close resemblance to the American flag. The systems of government and education, architecture and other aspects of Liberian life reflect American taste. Names of places in the country include Virginia, Maryland, Georgia, Louisiana and Buchanan. More than anywhere in Africa, spoken English in Liberia echoes the rhythms of Black American speech. Liberia served as the regional headquarters of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and hosted a Voice of America relay station that beamed American propaganda, as well as other major U.S. security installations during the Cold War. The Americans also operated the Omega Navigation Tower, which was intended to track the movement of ships and planes in the region and beyond. Once one of Africa's most stable and prosperous countries, Liberia was regarded as a haven for international trade and commerce because of the use of the American dollar as a legal tender. Major U.S. investments in the country included the Firestone Rubber Plantation, the world's largest plantation, which produce rubber for Firestone tires, Chase Manhattan Bank, and Citibank. Pan American Airlines (PAN AM) once operated Liberia's Roberts International Airport, where U.S. fighter jets have landing rights. During part of the 1970s, Liberia's per capita income was equivalent to that of Japan. Independent since 1847 as Africa's first republic, Liberia's plunge into anarchy began after a bloody military coup that ended the rule of descendants of the freed slaves, who monopolized political and economic power for over a century. During the 1980 coup, President William Tolbert, who tried to institute some meaningful po
For seven years, Liberia was involved in a civil war that cost the lives of more than 200,000 people. That war ended on January 31, 1997. Liberia Will Rise Again outlines the causes of the war, interprets the present situation, and offers suggestions for the future. KEY BENEFITS: * Provides a better understanding of the civil war in Liberia * Shows how the Liberians may have contributed to the problem * Helps readers learn about the treatment of refugees * Discusses issues related to the civil war and suggests lessons to be learned from the bitter experience
The Land of My Fathers Birth is a memoir of war, survival, and adventure, spanning continents, from Liberia to the Ivory Coast; from United States to the Middle East and Europe. It is a personal story of surviving ethnic and religious persecution during the Liberian Civil War, as author Nvasekie Konneh, of mixed Mandingo and Mano heritage, fled from the advancing rebel forces of Charles Taylor. It is a story of courage, as Konneh sought refuge in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, where he met and befriended the daughter of the countrys first military leader, Robert Guei. It is a story of reinvention, as Konneh comes to the United States, joined the US Navy, and is stationed on board the USS Detroit during which the ship is deployed in the Middle East and Europe making port visits to Haifa/Jerusalem, Dubai, Paris, and Dakar. It is a celebration of ethnic and religious diversity, a call to embrace differences in times of war and peace from a social activist who has been writing for social cultural enlightenment since the early 1990s. For those to whom the idea of living through a civil war is unimaginable, this book is an eye-opening revelation. For those who lived through or observed it at first hand, Konneh provides an insightful, panoramic view of the experiences he and his countrymen shared. The greatest tales of adventure are those lived by real people in challenging times: The Land of My Fathers Birth is a thrilling and enlightening saga for all readers.
