Liberia: Democracy in Focus

Welcome to this special edition of Democracy in Focus, a collaboration between New Narratives and Front Page Africa. I’m Anthony Stephens.In this exclusive interview, I speak with Jallah Barbu, newly appointed executive director of the Office of War and Economic Crimes Courts. Dr. Barbu will lead Liberia’s long overdue effort to hold those who upended the country and left 250,000 dead, accountable at last. Just a month into the job Dr. Barbu has already faced a host of challenges, chief among them, a lack of funds. But he says he is honored to have the role and understands the weight of expectation he carries for the millions of Liberians still suffering the aftermath of the war. Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

In this interview, Anthony Stephens speaks with Seidu Swaray, a leading mental health counsellor and executive director of the Liberia Association of Psychosocial Services. Swaray’s group provides psychosocial services to Liberians, including victims of the civil wars.  He describes the profound mental health challenges facing the country after the civil wars and advises people how to deal with trauma that the upcoming court may trigger.Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Welcome to this special edition of Democracy in Focus, a collaboration between New Narratives and Front Page Africa. I’m Anthony Stephens.As plans for Liberia’s war and economic crimes courts get underway, we’re running a series of special interviews with Liberian and international experts and stakeholders about how the courts could work.In this interview, I speak with Peterson Sonyah, head of Liberia’s largest victims and survivors’ organization, Liberia Massacre Survivors and Association. Peterson is a survivor himself having narrowly escaped his own death at the St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in 1990 in one of the bloodiest massacres of Liberia’s civil wars. While he escaped witnessed the murder of his father and six other members of his family by troops with the Armed Forces of Liberia. Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

In this episode:The dreams of young rural Liberians die early because of a lack of high schools.  Half of all stroke and heart disease deaths in Liberia are caused by air pollution. Liberia’s environmental protection agency takes its first steps to clean up our air. Liberia's mpox cases rise as the government confirms the deadly strain that has killed one thousand people in the DRC has not arrived.Welcome to our program looking at the state of Liberian democracy. It’s a collaboration with frontpage Africa with reporting from journalists in the new narratives program. Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Coming up in this episode ..  As plans for Liberia’s war and economic crimes courts’ get underway, we speak to experts on the major issues court designers will have to consider. Who will be tried? How much international involvement is needed? And what are the security challenges? One thing is already clear - funding will be limited. And some worry the courts are already losing momentum.And… as mpox is declared a global health emergency, is Liberia ready? Welcome to our program looking at the state of Liberian democracy. It’s a collaboration with Front Page Africa with reporting from journalists in the New Narratives program. Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Coming up in this episode ..  As plans for Liberia’s war and economic crimes courts’ get underway, we speak to experts on the major issues court designers will have to consider. Who will be tried? How much international involvement is needed? And what are the security challenges? One thing is already clear - funding will be limited. And some worry the courts are already losing momentum.And… as mpox is declared a global health emergency, is Liberia ready? Welcome to our program looking at the state of Liberian democracy. It’s a collaboration with Front Page Africa with reporting from journalists in the New Narratives program. Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Thanks to host: Korpo Kollie of Radio Kintoma in Lofa CountyComing up in this episode …New data shows nearly 370,000 Liberian children are living on the streets. Many live a hellish existence of sex work and drugs. Access to toilets is still a big problem for rural Liberians. Leading to sickness and death of thousands of citizens. The Boakai administration charges five former government officials after independent audits found they had engaged corruption. Political payback? Or is it finally the end of impunity for corrupt officials?And Liberia’s religious leaders join a continent-wide movement to call on Africans to address the climate crisisYou’re listing to Democracy in FocusFunding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Welcome to this special edition of Democracy in Focus, a collaboration between New Narratives and Front Page Africa. I’m Anthony Stephens.As plans for Liberia’s war and economic crimes courts get underway, we are running a series of special interviews with Liberian and international justice experts and stakeholders about how the courts could work.In this interview, I speak with veteran Liberian human rights lawyer Taiwan Gongloe. A long time defenders of human rights in Liberia, Gongloe headed the Bar Association and played a key role in drafting the bill that went to the Legislature to establish the courts. He also ran for president in last year’s election.  Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Welcome to this special edition of Democracy in Focus, a collaboration between New Narratives and Front Page Africa. I’m Anthony Stephens.As plans for Liberia’s war and economic crimes courts get underway, we’re running a series of special interviews with Liberian and international justice experts and stakeholders about how the courts could work.In this interview, I speak with prominent Liberian human rights advocate, Hassan Bility. The Director of Global Justice and Research Project, Bility’s role in Liberia’s transitional justice process has been immense. His organization has partnered with Swiss justice activists, Civitas Maxima to investigate and bring evidence to prosecutors in Europe and the US that has been used to prosecute more than a dozen individuals accused of war-related crimes in Liberia.  Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Coming up in this episode ..  As plans for Liberia’s war and economic crimes courts’ get underway, we speak to experts on the major issues court designers will have to consider. Who will be tried? How much international involvement is needed? And what are the security challenges? One thing is already clear - funding will be limited. And some worry the courts are already losing momentum.And… as mpox is declared a global health emergency, is Liberia ready? Welcome to our program looking at the state of Liberian democracy. It’s a collaboration with Front Page Africa with reporting from journalists in the New Narratives program. Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Welcome to this special edition of Democracy in Focus, a collaboration between New Narratives and Front Page Africa. I’m Anthony Stephens.As plans for Liberia’s war and economic crimes courts get underway, we are running a series of special interviews with Liberian and international justice experts and stakeholders about how the courts could work.In this interview I speak by zoom with Reed Brody, a leading international human rights lawyer who represented victims in the landmark trial and conviction of Chadian dictator Hissen Habre. Brody has played a key role in the quest by Gambians for a court to try perpetrators of the Jammeh regime and led United Nations teams to investigate massacres in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Welcome to this special edition of Democracy in Focus, a collaboration between New Narratives and Front Page Africa. I’m Anthony Stephens. As plans for Liberia’s war and economic crimes courts get underway, we are running a series of special interviews with Liberian and international transitional justice experts and stakeholders about how the courts could work. In this interview I speak by zoom with Alain Werner, a prosecutor with the Special Court for Sierra Leone and head of Civitas Maxima, which has had a key role in the cases against accused warlords in Europe and the United States over the last decade.Werner also represented victims in the historic trial of former Chadian president, Hissène Habré, who was prosecuted in an extraordinary chamber in Senegal set up by the African Union…..Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Welcome to this special edition of Democracy in Focus, a collaboration between New Narratives and Front Page Africa. I’m Anthony Stephens.As plans for Liberia’s war and economic crimes courts get underway, we are running a series of special interviews with Liberian and international justice experts and stakeholders about how the courts could work.In this interview I speak by zoom with Liberian transitional justice expert Tenneh Dalieh Tehoungue. She’s is undertaking a PHD in transitional justice, peacebuilding, and reconciliation at Dublin City University in Ireland. Tehoungue has some novel ideas for a court. One idea is for the Boakai administration to forgo international funding for the courts and ask the country’s diplomatic partners to, instead, return funds frozen from alleged Liberian criminals to support the court…. Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

DEH NEWS WE COMIN TUHK TODAY………TWO BEE GROUP DAH WEHKIN ON  CHAYREN MATTERS IN LIBERIA DEH CALL MINISTRY OF GENDER AND UNICEF SAY, LIBERIA GEH ALMOST  370 THOUSAND CHAYREN ON DEH STREETS. DEH SAY SUMMAH DEH CHAYREN DEM DOIN HO-PO-JOE WEHK WHILE SUM CAN BE TAKIN DRUGS. PLENTAY PEEPOH IN DEH INTEERUH STAY GEH BEE PROBLEM WITH  TOILET HUS BAYNAY… DEH CAN STAY BE PUPUING OUTSIDE AND IT CAUSING PLENTAY SICKNESSES AND MAKING PEEPOH DIE  THE JOSEPH BOAKAI GOHMEN NAH OPEN CASE ON FIVE BEE  PEOPLE WHO USE TO BE IN DEH GOHMEN FOR KRO-KRO-GEE – STEALIN’  PLENTAY MONEY FROM DEH COUNTRAY BEE BANK, AND SOME BEE…BEE GOD PEEPOH IN LIBERIA JOIN DEH FRIEND DEM FROM ALL OVER AFRICA IN  ONE BIG MEETING TO TALK ABOUT HOW DEG WEATHER NAH CORRECK AGAIN AND WHAT AFRICA MON  TO DO TO FIX THIS OLLOR PROBLEMTHE PROGRAM YOUR LISTENIN TO REH NAH WE CALL IT A DEMOCRACY IN FOCUSFunding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Coming up in this episode …New data shows nearly 370,000 Liberian children are living on the streets. Many live a hellish existence of sex work and drugs. Access to toilets is still a big problem for rural Liberians. Leading to sickness and death of thousands of citizens. The Boakai administration charges five former government officials after independent audits found they had engaged corruption. Political payback? Or is it finally the end of impunity for corrupt officials?And Liberia’s religious leaders join a continent-wide movement to call on Africans to address the climate crisisYou’re listing to Democracy in FocusFunding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Welcome to this special edition of Democracy in Focus, a collaboration between New Narratives and Front Page Africa. I’m Anthony Stephens.In June President Joseph Boakai, appointed Liberian lawyer Jonathan Massaquoi as Executive Director of the newly established Office of War and Economic Crimes Courts. Ever since, a chorus of key stakeholders including leading human rights advocates, and the umbrella body of lawyers in the country - the Bar Association – has condemned the appointment and the lack of transparency around it.Massaquoi has represented accused perpetrators from convicted warlord Charles Taylor’s rebel faction in legal cases against human rights actors and advocates say that will undermine public trust in the courts. Massaquoi has yet to recuse himself from those cases. Most worrying for backers of the court, diplomats from major international donor countries that would be called upon to foot the multi-million dollar cost of the court, have also told New Narratives they are concerned about the process for the appointment.  To learn more about advocates’ concerns I spoke with veteran Liberian human rights lawyer Taiwan Gongloe. Gongloe has long been a champion of human rights in Liberia, representing many human rights activists. He’s a former head of the Bar Association and helped draft the bills that have gone to the Legislature to establish the court. He also ran for president in last year’s election. Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Welcome to this special bonus edition of Democracy in Focus, a collaboration between New Narratives and Front Page Africa. I’m Anthony Stephens. In recent years, Liberia has made big gains in tackling human trafficking, convicting several traffickers including an agent of the National Security Agency and bringing hundreds of victims home from the Middle East. Those wins saw the county move up on the U.S. government’s Trafficking In Persons ranking. But things took a turn for the worse in 2023 when the Weah administration slashed the budget for anti-trafficking efforts by ninety per cent. Prosecutions stalled. Victims remain stranded overseas. This year Liberia was downgraded to the tier two watchlist. In this special interview, I speak with two antihuman trafficking experts in the U.S. embassy - Juan Martinez and Drew Engel - to find out what that means for Liberia. Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Liberia's War Crimes Court Office is off to a rocky start as outcries from key stakeholders continue over President Boakai’s appointment of Jonathan Massaquoi to head the  office.A 90 percent cut in funding to anti-trafficking actions has seen Liberia returned to the US government’s trafficking Tier 2 Watchlist. There are repercussions, and the implication is, under the operation of us federal law, the us government has to seize all non-humanitarian and non-trade aid.  Poverty robs Liberian children of their childhood and jeopardizes their safety as they are forced to work in dangerous occupations to make a living. And……….climate change continues to have devastating consequences on Liberian farmers. In River cess, it is robbing their children of their education. But climate justice activists say carbon trade is not the remedy for the climate crisis. You’re listening to Democracy in FocusFunding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org

Hello listeners and welcome. This is Evelyn Kpadeh Seagbeh with an extended interview with Norwu Harris. Norwu is a climate justice activist with the civil society organization the Liberia Feminist Forum. We will explore a wide range of issues to do with the climate crisis and the devastation it is causing farmers across our 15 counties.Our interview follows from a New Narratives survey conducted across five counties which found that 100 per cent of farmers we interviewed were struggling to make farming sustainable because of the changing climate. And nine in every ten farmers wanted to migrate. Experts say this makes them highly vulnerable to traffickers and other scammers.Funding for this podcast comes from the Swedish embassy in Liberia and the American Jewish World Service. See more of our collaborations with media in West Africa at www.newnarratives.org