By Joyclyn Wea, gender correspondent with New Narratives Summary: SINKOR, Monrovia— Dressed in black, chanting in anger and grief, scores of women marched through Monrovia on Monday to demand justice for Toni Jackson, the wife of Samuel Jackson, a prominent economist and political commentator, and to press the Liberian government to act more forcefully against gender-based…
Young Liberians marched to the Women’s Peace Hub in Monrovia to demand real action on rape, saying that five years after the issue was declared a national emergency, cases are still rising and survivors are still fighting for justice; they delivered a petition calling for faster trials, stronger forensic services, better survivor support and an…
By Joyclyn Wea, gender correspondent with New Narratives Summary: CONGO TOWN, Monrovia – Dozens of young Liberians marched through the streets of the capital to the Women’s Peace Hub here on Thursday for an anti-rape protest. They had planned to march on the nation’s Capitol building but government officials said they did not properly request…
Liberians are raising fresh questions about transparency after human rights lawyer Tiawan Gongloe revealed that police still haven’t released the full DNA and investigative report that cleared former Deputy Minister Bryant McGill in the alleged rape of a 14‑year‑old girl. Police say DNA testing abroad and cellphone data exonerated McGill, but the survivor’s family has…
By Tetee Gebro, gender correspondent with New Narratives Summary: Human rights lawyer Tiawan Saye Gongloe says the Liberia National Police has not released the full DNA and investigative report that cleared former Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Bryant McGill in a rape case involving a 14-year-old girl, more than a month after he requested the…
Young Liberians are preparing to march on the Capitol on Thursday, demanding real action to stop the rise in rape and gender‑based violence. Despite a national emergency declared in 2020, cases continue to climb, and activists say survivors still face intimidation, delays, and unequal justice. Youth organizers want lawmakers to show concrete results—stronger investigations, fairer…
By Joyclyn Wea with New Narratives Summary: Six years ago, former president George Weah won praise for declaring rape a national emergency. He promised a tougher response to sexual and gender-based violence. But little real change was evident, and the numbers kept rising. In 2024, the number of cases of rape, domestic violence, and other…
A former president’s address at the Capitol reignited debate over Liberia’s low number of women in political leadership, highlighting that women hold less than 11 percent of seats in the Legislature despite their historic role in securing peace and democracy. Advocates and women leaders say the problem stems from weak gender‑quota laws, political party practices…
In Liberia, a corruption case involving 25,000 bags of donated Saudi riceis from Saudi Arabia is becoming an early test of President JosephBoakai’s promise to crack down on graft. In 2024 thousands of flood victims in rural counties were left with nogovernment help after flood waters washed away homes. Prosecutorssay half the rice was stolen….
By Joyclyn Wea, gender correspondent with New Narratives Summary: • Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia’s former president, said the country should be ashamed that only 11 women serve in the 103-seat Legislature, a fact that is holding back the country’s development and peacebuilding. Advocates welcomed the president’s words, saying the low number reflects an unwillingness for…
By Tetee Gebro, gender correspondent with New Narratives Summary: Leymah Gbowee, one of Liberia’s two Nobel Peace Prize winners, warned that societal pressure to conform and be subservient is holding Liberia’s women back and robbing the country of the productivity and contributions of half of its citizens. In a candid admission at the latest Feminist Lecture…
Residents of Bethel in River Cess County say more than 100 men from nearby Bah Clan communities stormed their town after rumors falsely accused them of killing a missing hunter, leaving 24 homes and 27 rice kitchens burned and over 150 women and children sleeping under the palaver hut with almost nothing to eat. Survivors…
Flood victims in River Cess and Margibi say they were left hungry and abandoned after the 2024 rains destroyed their homes, even as officials promised help that never came. Their stories now sit at the center of a major corruption case involving 25,000 bags of Saudi‑donated rice that prosecutors say were diverted instead of reaching…
By Joyclyn Wea and Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon with New Narratives Summary: ITI VILLAGE, River Cess County -When the rain came hard in 2024, residents here in this village in the southern part of the county described a disaster: floodwaters swallowed roads, farms, and homes, stranding people and pushing families into makeshift shelters. In the same…
By Eric Opa Doue with New Narratives BETHEL, River Cess County — In the latest example of vigilante violence in Liberia, residents of this northern River Cess town say more than 100 men from neighboring communities in the Bah Clan stormed the village 10 days ago, beating residents and setting fire to homes and food…
A recently released survey has confirmed what child welfare advocates have long feared: The rising number of Liberians living in poverty has led to a huge number of children living on the streets. There were more than three hundred and sixty six thousand children living on their own in 2022. Sadly, experts say, with so…
The number of people waiting for trial in Liberia’s jails has been a major problem for some time.More than three thousand four hundred people – who have not been convicted of any crime –are now in pretrial detention nationwide, according to the Bureau of Corrections. Pretrial detainees account for seven in every 10 prisoners in…
At his inauguration in January this year President Joseph Boakai became the latest Liberian leader to announce bold new initiatives to end corruption at the start of his administration. But Liberians have seen decades of endemic corruption, with few attempts to hold accused officials accountable. So most took a wait and see approach at this…
By: R. Joyclyn Wea with New Narratives Todee, Liberia – Fourteen-year-old Emmanuel Yarsiah would rather be on the football field, playing with his friends. But instead, he’s working long hours as a coal burner with his mother, toting heavy logs in excessive heat. “I suffering to haul water, cut grass, haul the coal, dig it,…
The long‑standing practice of forcing underage children into hazardous labor continues to endanger young lives across Liberia, with little accountability for those responsible. As highlighted in a report by Tetee Gebro in collaboration with Okay FM, the issue persists despite clear data from international partners showing its severity. While the impacts on children are profound…
By Anthony Stephens with New Narratives PAYNESVILLE, Montserrado —A local adoption agency with partners in the United States has been shut down and an arrest warrant issued for its Liberian and American heads and four local staff, according to the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection. The ministry, which supervises adoption agencies and orphanages…
