publicagendanews.com

WHEN THE FIRST rounds of Liberia’s hostility ended with the ushering of Charles Taylor at the polls as president, Liberians gave his government their candid advice, directly or through dissenting opinions, pointing out the road map to genuine national reconciliation, reunification, reconstruction and  post war development.
Two unfamiliar, but important, commissions sprouted out, one on reconciliation, the other on human rights.
But Liberians remained so jarring and divided that not even the strong man’s leadership could deter violent arson attacks on places of worship and private properties. Ritualistic killings and ethnic strife among others, made casualties while the commissions sat like nuts on the wall.
That served as precursor to the violence which was dubbed by ‘masterminds’ of guerrilla politics as Taylor’s end game. Indeed, end game it was; for it made that regime short lived!
THE REGIME CRUMBLED under the weight of its cosmetic approach to reconciliation, as it did not accord the pillars of reconciliation any respect. The ideal of human rights was mere lip service. Restorative justice that can help rehabilitate those lost to violence was not respected. Freedom from molestation and the security of individuals and communities was hardly guaranteed.
RECONCILIATION MUST REST AND ROTATE ON: Truth, Justice and Peace as its pillars. It rests on these by making them the criteria and ideological foundations without which efforts aimed at reconciliation are mere cosmetic or gimmick. Liberia desires lasting peace through genuine reconciliation.
TRUTH IN RECONCILIATION is the honest disclosure of what transpired, including its cause(s), its escalation and factors leading to escalation of the violence, the continuum pursued by the violence, the role of the actors or contending parties in the episode.  Honesty or total disclosure gives peace brokers insights or clues to the problem which is one half of the objective of peace mediation.
WE, THEREFORE, URGE the people of Lofa, including the local authorities, religious and opinion leaders to do Liberia a service by divulging the truth of what transpired. Only the truth can free Liberia from bondage to bloody and destructive strife.
WE ALSO URGE the local and international mediators to analyze the information collected, ascertain its veracity and recommend measures to ensure that justice is done to those who deserve it.
IF ANYTHING THE LOFA INCIDENT has signaled is that Liberia remains violence prone and largely fragile. It needs the muscles of truth, justice and peace for genuine national reconciliation to hold. It has taught us the lesson that peace is not just the absence of gun.
Restorative and retributive justice, done according to laws, not partiality, whims or caprice is worth trying.
WE MAY MORN OVER LOFA, but the writings left on the wall by the imprints of the decade long senseless war suggest latent or structural conflicts in other parts of Liberia, Nimba and other places being no exceptions.
SHEDDING OF CROCODILE’S TEAR as fig leaf for inaction is a disservice. It shows the other side of our commitment to justice, human rights and democracy.
We must change the fate of this country to a better one, now, not later!