Jurors in Liberia’s largest human trafficking trial visited the compound in Margibi County where 57 alleged victims say they were held, abused, and forced to recruit relatives and friends into the trafficking network. Prosecutors argue the site was the base of an organization that lured people with false promises of jobs abroad before subjecting them…
By Anthony Stephens, senior justice correspondent with New Narratives Summary: · The judge rejected a defense request to disregard a jury inspection report on the alleged crime scene. · Prosecutors opened their rebuttal case with seven witnesses, including victims, as senior police investigator Enoch Dunbar denied taking defendants’ property. · Additional rebuttal witnesses disputed testimony from defendants as the…
By Anthony Stephens, senior justice correspondent with New Narratives Summary: · Jurors, defendants and alleged victims in Liberia’s biggest human trafficking trial visited the compound where all 57 victims said they were held, marking a pivotal moment as the trial enters its final stages. · The inspection revealed the layout of the compound, which defendants insist was a…
Alexander Saye Plato, one of the defendants in Liberia’s largest human trafficking trial, denied charges of trafficking, conspiracy, and theft, while corroborating earlier testimony that members of Vice President Jeremiah Koung’s security detail visited the compound at the center of the case. He testified that the officers came to inspect the facility after the Vice…
By Anthony Stephens, senior justice correspondent with New Narratives Summary: Liberia’s Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights, Claims and Petitions this week began consultations on six competing bills to establish a war and economic crimes court and a national anti-corruption court, the first step in an effort to harmonize the legislation before public hearings expected to…
Liberia’s Inter-Religious Council, the umbrella body representing the country’s major Christian and Muslim institutions, is urging lawmakers to pass a stalled health bill that would expand access to abortion in certain cases, breaking with years of opposition to the measure by religious leaders. Supporters say the bill is needed to reduce deaths and injuries from…
By Anthony Stephens, senior justice correspondent with New Narratives Summary: • A third defendant in Liberia’s largest human trafficking trial corroborated testimony from two co-defendants that members of Vice President Jeremiah Koung’s security detail visited the compound at the center of the case. The defendants said the officers inspected the facility after Koung moved into the…
By Tetee Gebro and Joyclyn Wea, gender and health correspondents with New Narratives Summary KIANGIA TOWN, Todee District — The measles came to this town in January. Nobody announced it. Nobody warned families here. It moved quietly from home to home, the way measles does — through the air, between children playing; spreading before anyone understood…
Liberia is gradually adopting the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), a proven farming method that experts say could help the country grow more food and reduce its dependence on imports. Farmers using the system report yields rising from just one to two tons per hectare to as much as five or even seven, according to…
Stanley Wonlebaye, one of the defendants in Liberia’s largest human trafficking trial, testified that four members of Vice President Jeremiah Koung’s security detail visited the compound at the center of the case, corroborating earlier testimony from another defendant. He claimed the officers entered, were briefed on the organization’s activities, and then left without interfering, saying…
By Joyclyn Wea, gender correspondent with New Narratives Summary: In a major boost to efforts to pass a health bill that would expand access to abortion in Liberia, the Inter-Religious Council, the umbrella body representing the country’s major Christian and Muslim institutions, has called on lawmakers to pass the legislation, breaking with years of religious…
The defendant in Liberia’s largest human trafficking trial denied all charges, insisting that his compound was legitimate and even claimed that members of Vice President Jeremiah Koung’s security detail had inspected the premises. He argued that this inspection demonstrated transparency, while the court ordered a site visit to the compound at the center of the…
By Nemenlah Cyrus Harmon, New Narratives climate and environment correspondent Summary Liberia is slowly adopting what experts say is a proven rice farming method that could help the country grow more food and reduce its dependence on imports. The program known as “System of Rice Intensification” has been used successfully in other countries to increase…
By Anthony Stephens, senior justice correspondent with New Narratives Summary: • A second defendant in Liberia’s largest human trafficking trial corroborated earlier testimony that four members of Vice President Jeremiah Koung’s security detail visited the compound at the center of the case and went further by claiming they “accepted” the operation after being briefed on their…
By Anthony Stephens, senior justice correspondent with New Narratives Summary: • A defendant in Liberia’s largest human trafficking trial testified Monday that four members of Vice President Jeremiah Koung’s security detail inspected the compound where victims were allegedly held before the vice president moved into a house nearby and found no evidence of the crimes. •…
By Anthony Stephens, senior justice correspondent with New Narratives Summary: On day seven of Liberia’s largest human-trafficking trial, an accused perpetrator testified that he was an “independent representative” of QNet, the Malaysian e-commerce company, that has become synonymous with human trafficking throughout West Africa, undertaking legal activities recruiting people to be representatives and sellers for the…
In Liberia, many women in labor face life-threatening delays because hospitals demand upfront payments for emergency procedures. Families are often forced to leave the hospital mid-delivery to raise funds, a desperate situation that has led to mothers dying or suffering severe complications while waiting for care. The practice underscores the devastating impact of poverty and…
By Fatu Kamara with New Narratives Summary: KAKATA, Margibi County — By the time Kolubah Kollie scraped together the last of the money, his daughter was already gravely ill. Zoe Kollie, 29, had been in labor for eighteen hours, some of it endured as she traveled over unpaved roads, when her family finally got her…
Thousands of Liberian women suffer silently from obstetric fistula, a preventable childbirth injury that leaves them leaking urine or feces for years, often in isolation, because maternal health care in Liberia lags decades behind. Despite the fact that 80% of cases could be prevented with timely medical care, limited facilities, poor referral systems, and lack…
In Liberia, many schoolgirls are forced to cut baby diapers in half or use cloth during their periods because sanitary pads are taxed at 30 percent, making them unaffordable. While Ghana has already taken bold steps to provide free pads to schoolgirls, Liberia’s proposed bill to remove taxes on menstrual products remains stalled in committee,…
By Anthony Stephens, senior justice correspondent with New Narratives Liberia’s government said on Tuesday that it will investigate bribery allegations connected to the country’s largest human trafficking trial, which is now in its second week. Sumo C. Kutu Akoi, a senior human trafficking prosecutor, when asked about the prospect of a probe, told FrontPage Africa/New Narratives that…
