TQ Harris Jr. writes in his article entitled: ("The End Of Business As Usual" dated May 9, 2008).
"Unless the hideous crimes committed during the war are adjudicated in a court of law and victims receive proper redress, it is impossible to move on. Liberia needs healing. And the healing process must begin by holding accountable those responsible for atrocities perpetrated against the people. This will not only signify a major step toward genuine reconciliation, it also will serve as a deterrent".
While the United Nations watches over Liberia, people who allegedly committed crimes against humanity during the country’s 14 years civil war walk freely, the Rwandan FDLR rebel group has been arrested in France on war crimes charges.
It is estimated that over 250, 000 Liberians including five Americans were killed during the process. The United Nations must address the actual problem in Liberia. People who committed crimes against humanity as well as went against the United Nations human right charter must not be allowed to walk freely. The United Nations should not be working with these kinds of people.
Source: BBC News
A leader of the Rwandan FDLR rebel group has been arrested in France on war crimes charges, the International Criminal Court says.
In a sealed warrant, Callixte Mbarushimana is accused of 11 counts of murder, rape and other crimes committed during the long conflict in DR Congo.
He last year told the BBC he denied any responsibility for war crimes and said FDLR fighters did not attack civilians.
FDLR fighters were recently accused of raping hundreds of people in DR Congo.
Again, the mainly Hutu FDLR (Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda) denied links to the attacks around the eastern Congolese town of Luvungi.
Some FDLR leaders have been accused of taking part in the 1994 genocide of ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus in Rwanda.
After a Tutsi-dominated group took power in Rwanda, they fled into what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo, sparking years of unrest in the region.
'Good news'
The ICC said that as executive secretary of the FDLR, Mr Mbarushimana was criminally responsible for five counts of crimes against humanity and six counts of war crimes committed throughout 2009.
In a statement, the court said Mr Mbarushimana had "personally and intentionally contributed to a common plan of conducting attacks against the civilian population" with the aim of creating a "humanitarian catastrophe".
ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo said Mr Mbarushimana's arrest was "a good day for justice" and marked a "crucial step in efforts to prosecute the massive sexual crimes committed in the DRC".
But he warned there was "still a lot to do to break the cycle of impunity in the DRC" with 15,000 cases of sexual violence reported in 2009.
"Another commander sought by the ICC for massive crimes, Bosco Ntaganda, is still at large in Goma and his forces roam the Kivus killing and raping. He must be next," said Mr Moreno-Ocampo.
The FDLR is one of the most powerful rebel forces operating in eastern DR Congo, where they are believed to make millions of dollars a year by controlling mines rich in gold and other minerals, and extorting money from local people.
Mr Mbarushimana, who has been living in Paris, has described the force as a freedom movement, fighting "to liberate the Rwandan people from the yoke of the fascist regime" of the governing Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF).
He has always said he is innocent but that he is "ready to face justice if they come with allegations".
Lambert Mende, a spokesman for the Congolese government, welcomed Mr Mbarushimana's arrest.
"It's good news for the Democratic Republic of Congo and the whole Great Lakes region as Mbarushimana led from Europe the FDLR's armed bands which spread death and destruction in our country and threatened security in their own country," he told the AFP news agency.
Rwanda has twice sent its troops into DR Congo, saying they are needed to stop Hutu fighters, such as the FDLR, from using Congolese territory to attack Rwanda.
This led to the six-year conflict in DR Congo and the deaths of some five million people.
Monday, October 11, 2010
News Headline
Everyone is a genius
Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. – A Einstein
Drawing the line in Liberia
Crimes sponsored, committed, or masterminded by handful of individuals cannot be blamed upon an entire nationality. In this case, Liberians! The need for post-war justice is a step toward lasting peace, stability and prosperity for Liberia. Liberia needs a war crimes tribunal or some credible legal forum that is capable of dealing with atrocities perpetrated against defenseless men, women and children during the country's brutal war. Without justice, peace shall remain elusive and investment in Liberia will not produce the intended results. - Bernard Gbayee Goah
Men with unhealthy characters should not champion any noble cause
They pretend to advocate the cause of the people when their deeds in the dark mirror nothing else but EVIL!!
When evil and corrupt men try to champion a cause that is so noble … such cause, how noble it may be, becomes meaningless in the eyes of the people - Bernard Gbayee Goah.
When evil and corrupt men try to champion a cause that is so noble … such cause, how noble it may be, becomes meaningless in the eyes of the people - Bernard Gbayee Goah.
If Liberia must move forward ...
If Liberia must move forward in order to claim its place as a civilized nation amongst world community of nations, come 2017 elections, Liberians must critically review the events of the past with honesty and objectivity. They must make a new commitment to seek lasting solutions. The track records of those who are presenting themselves as candidates for the position of "President of the Republic of Liberia" must be well examined. Liberians must be fair to themselves because results from the 2011 elections will determine the future of Liberia’s unborn generations to come - Bernard Gbayee Goah
Liberia's greatest problem!
While it is true that an individual may be held responsible for corruption and mismanagement of funds in government, the lack of proper system to work with may as well impede the process of ethical, managerial, and financial accountability - Bernard Gbayee Goah
What do I think should be done?
The situation in Liberia is Compound Complex and cannot be fixed unless the entire system of government is reinvented.
Liberia needs a workable but uncompromising system that will make the country an asylum free from abuse, and other forms of corruption.
Liberia needs a workable but uncompromising system that will make the country an asylum free from abuse, and other forms of corruption.
Any attempt to institute the system mentioned above in the absence of rule of law is meaningless, and more detrimental to Liberia as a whole - Bernard Gbayee Goah
Liberia's Natural Resources
Besides land water and few other resources, most of Liberia’s dependable natural resources are not infinite, they are finite and therefore can be depleted.
Liberia’s gold, diamond, and other natural resources will not always be an available source of revenue generation for its people and its government. The need to invent a system in government that focuses on an alternative income generation method cannot be over emphasized at this point - Bernard Gbayee Goah
Besides land water and few other resources, most of Liberia’s dependable natural resources are not infinite, they are finite and therefore can be depleted.
Liberia’s gold, diamond, and other natural resources will not always be an available source of revenue generation for its people and its government. The need to invent a system in government that focuses on an alternative income generation method cannot be over emphasized at this point - Bernard Gbayee Goah
Liberia needs a proper system
If Liberians refuse to erect a proper system in place that promotes the minimization of corruption and mismanagement of public funds by government institutions, and individuals, there will come a time when the value of the entire country will be seen as a large valueless land suited on the west coast of Africa with some polluted bodies of waters and nothing else. To have no system in place in any country is to have no respect for rule of law. To have no respect for rule of law is to believe in lawlessness. And where there is lawlessness, there is always corruption - Bernard Gbayee Goah
If Liberians refuse to erect a proper system in place that promotes the minimization of corruption and mismanagement of public funds by government institutions, and individuals, there will come a time when the value of the entire country will be seen as a large valueless land suited on the west coast of Africa with some polluted bodies of waters and nothing else. To have no system in place in any country is to have no respect for rule of law. To have no respect for rule of law is to believe in lawlessness. And where there is lawlessness, there is always corruption - Bernard Gbayee Goah
Solving problems in the absence of war talks
As political instability continues to increase in Africa, it has become abundantly clear that military intervention as a primary remedy to peace is not a durable solution. Such intervention only increases insecurity and massive economic hardship. An existing example which could be a valuable lesson for Liberia is Great Britain, and the US war on terror for the purpose of global security. The use of arms whether in peace keeping, occupation, or invasion as a primary means of solving problem has yield only little results. Military intervention by any country as the only solution to problem solving will result into massive military spending, economic hardship, more fear, and animosity as well as increase insecurity. The alternative is learning how to solve problems in the absence of war talks. The objective of such alternative must be to provide real sustainable human security which cannot be achieved through military arm intervention, or aggression. In order to achieve results that will make the peaceful coexistence of all mankind possible, there must be a common ground for the stories of all sides to be heard. I believe there are always three sides to every story: Their side of the story, Our side of the story, and The truth – Bernard Gbayee Goah