TAMPERE, Finland – The trial of Gibril Massaquoi, a Sierra Leonean former rebel commander accused of committing war crimes in Liberia, began on Wednesday in the Finnish city of Tampere. By Saila Huusko, with New Narratives Massaquoi, 51, entered the Pirkanmaa District Court shortly after 10 am local time, wearing a gray pinstripe suit and a face…
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Liberian War Criminal Kosiah Rejects Swiss Court Conviction; Claims Plaintiffs Lied
MONROVIA – Alieu Kosiah, sentenced last week to 20 years in prison for atrocities committed when he was a commander of the rebel group Ulimo during the Liberian civil war, has lashed out at the justice activists who helped bring the case against him. By New Narratives staff and Anthony Stephens, Power TV/FM In a WhatsApp…
Prosecutor Pushes Court to Convict, Jail and Sanction Kosiah
BELLINZONA, Switzerland – Alieu Kosiah should be convicted of all the war crimes charges he faces, jailed for a maximum 20 years and then barred from entering Switzerland for 15 years, prosecutors said on Monday in their final argument four days to the end of the historic trial. Chief prosecutor Andreas Müller told the Swiss…
Court Hears Kosiah’s Defense Against ‘Liars’ and ‘Manipulators’
BELLINZONA, Switzerland – War crimes suspect Alieu Kosiah delivered a forceful rebuke to six plaintiffs who brought the war crimes case against him here in the Swiss Federal Criminal Court on Monday. He slammed the plaintiffs and their lawyers for “staging their testimonies” and “lying on him”. Kosiah’s anger at being on trial here was focused…
Kosiah Sat Near a Bucket with Human Hearts, Court Hears
BELLINZONA, Switzerland – Alieu Kosiah sat near a bucket filled with human hearts in Foya, Lofa County in the mid-1990s, a man told the Swiss Federal Criminal Court prosecuting the former rebel commander on Friday. According to the man, the fifth of seven plaintiffs who have brought the war crimes case against Kosiah, another rebel named…
Kosiah Killed People “for Common” Plaintiff Tells War Crimes Trial
BELLINZONA, Switzerland – Alieu Kosiah killed a man for refusing his order to carry looted goods in the Kolahun region of Lofa County in 1993, a witness told the Swiss Federal Criminal Court prosecuting the former rebel commander on Thursday. Kosiah killed a man named Musa Kpandeh because he refused to transport looted generator parts, cocoa,…
NPFL General on TRC “Most Notorious” List Dies; Angry Victims Say He Escaped Justice
***CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story carried an image of a family member of Melvin Sogbandi. FrontPage Africa and New Narratives regret the error *** By Eric Opa Doue, Senior New Narratives Justice Reporter JUAH TOWN, Grand Bassa – James Diggs broke down in tears when he heard the news of the death of Melvin Sogbandi….
Govt Freezes Assets of Royal Gold CEO
Monrovia – The government, through the Ministry of Justice and the Financial Intelligence Unit of Liberia, has secured a freezing order on accounts of the Chief Executive Officer at Royal Gold Trading Company INC. and his two Managers at 10 Liberian Banks. According to a court document in the possession of FrontPageAfrica, the government sought the…
Grand Bassa Officials Sign Bogus Logging Agreement with ‘Serbian’ Company
Editor’s Note: This story is the first of a two-part series on an illegal logging agreement between Vambo and Marloi townships in Grand Bassa County, and African Trades Entrepreneur Enterprises Incorporated. VAMBO – Officials of Grand Bassa County have signed an illegal deal with a company to pave a dusty road through two townships in…
Victims Angry as Another Accused Liberian Warlord – Melvin Sogbandi – Dies Without Facing Justice
Death has taken another of the 100 alleged perpetrators that Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommended face trial for their crimes during the Civil war.Melvin Sogbandi died in a Monrovia hospital in January at age 53. Sogbandi led “Strike Force Marine,” one of the deadliest divisions of Charles Taylor’s National Patriotic Front of Liberia ….
Thomas Dismisses Ruling Against Him
It was one of the most shocking events of the Liberian civil war. In April 1900 troops with then-President Samuel Doe’s Special Anti-Terrorist Unit shot and hacked to death 600 people including babies taking refuge in Monrovia’s St Peters Lutheran Church. Images of the carnage were broadcast around the world. The massacre kicked off a…
Is Climate Change the Biggest Crisis Facing Liberia?
The changing climate is grabbing headlines across the globe. Bushfires in California and Australia, floods in Asia, heatwaves in Europe.The same forces are ravaging Africa – including Liberia – threatening food security and collapse of our agriculture industry and the displacement of millions of people as sea levels rise. After the global COP 26 Climate…
Poor enforcement of Forestry Laws Paralyzes Forestry Industry
Across Liberia forestry operations are at a standstill as logging companies and small scale loggers square off over their right to operate.At the heart of the problem is poor implementation of regulations governing the industry. The logging companies are licensed by the national authorities, but local authorities are issuing permits to small scale loggers.Eric Opa…
Forestry Industry Paralysed by Poor Regulation
NEEZWEIN, River Cess — A power struggle is playing out here deep in the forest and the stakes for the local people are high. Logging companies with concession agreements that include thousands of dollars of benefits for local communities say their work is being hamstrung by informal loggers who disrupt their operations. Informal loggers say they…
Barconnie and Harmonville Community Forest Struggles with Conservation
When the Forest Reform law was passed in 2006, Liberia’s 51 community forests were offered a chance to conserve or commercialize their forests in logging and other deals with companies.44 chose the money. But conservation groups persuaded seven to pursue conservation – protecting their forest resources and promoting biodiversity.It’s not been an easy road. Varney…
Conserving With Pride, Living With Scarcity
(Last Updated On: January 6, 2022) PHOTO: Harmonville Village credit: William Selmah By William Selmah,[email protected] with New Narratives Barconnie and Harmonville Community Forest, Grand Bassa County – Powerful forces push the people of the 21 towns that make up this community forest area to abandon their efforts at conservation every day. Big money offered by foreign and local…
Monrovia and Paynesville are Drowning in Plastic; One Company Tries to Help
MONROVIA – Waste plastic is becoming a scourge around the world but it is especially true here in Liberia’s capital city and its satellite sister, Paynesville. Discarded plastic is choking waterways, blocking drains, killing fish, and leaching harmful chemicals into the water and soil. By Tina S. Mehnpaine, with New Narratives With poor or limited waste management…
Liberia Drowning in Plastic Pollution
This story was a collaboration with New Narratives as part of its Land Rights and Climate Reporting project. Funding was provided by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office and the American Jewish World Service….
Liberia’s Fragile Wetlands are in Crisis
Across the world people are experiencing different impacts from rising global temperatures. Governments are racing to protect natural environments that will help stop the worst changes.But with Liberia’s fast growing population, more and more people are moving to coastal cities, especially Monrovia, looking for means of survival.That is putting a pressure on one of Liberia’s…
Buchanan Seaside Communities Beg for Rock Wall to Protect Them from the Sea
Coastal erosion caused by climate-induced rises in sea levels and intense tropical storms have already destroyed the homes of hundreds of Liberian families and put critical fisheries at risk. Nine of the country’s fifteen counties sit along the sea coast putting 60 per cent of the population at threat and causing tens of millions of…
New Farming Approach is Luring Farmers Out of the Forest
As the changing climate impacts more and more people worldwide, there are renewed efforts to protect the planet’s forests. Trees soak up the carbon that is the worst factor in causing climate change. Liberia’s forest is one of the largest remaining. But millions of Liberians rely on the forest’s bounty for their survival. As the…