The Republic
of Liberia is a country located in the west coast of Africa. Its population is
about 5 million and its official language is English. There are about 20 ethnic
groups in Liberia. The 4 main ones are Kpelle, Bassa, Grebo and Gio.
The main
religions in Liberia are Christianity (85.6%) and Islam (12.2%). It is one of
the poorest countries in the world and its economy has been dependant on
foreign aid and investment for a long time.
There have
been 2 main civil wars in Liberia:
– First
Civil war took place from 1989 till 1997 and resulted in the death of about
250,000 people.
– Second
Civil war took place from 1999 till 2003 resulted in the death of about 300,000
people.
Children
have been participants in the second Liberian civil war. A lot of them were
addicted to cocaine as the warlords thought it makes them more effective in
fighting the war. That is absolutely inhumane by any standard.
Liberian
women formed a group called: “Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace”
that consisted of both Christian and Muslim women led by peace activist Leymah
Gbowee. They pushed for a meeting with President Charles Taylor and he promised
to attend Ghana peace talks. They succeeded in applying peace in Liberia after
14 years of civil war.
Gbowee won
the Nobel Peace Prize in 2011.
The shadow
of poverty still covers Liberia as people there are in desperate need for help.
My message
to the people of Liberia:
“You
achieved peace and that shows how a great nation you are. Keep living in peace
so you can move forward and rise up together as one nation”.
