By Lansana Fofana
FREETOWN, Mar 28 2003 (IPS)

Rebels of the Liberians United For Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) are closing in on the capital Monrovia, engaging government forces in battles some ten kilometres outside the city, aid workers told IPS this week.

"The battles have been fiercely fought and this is causing huge civilian populations to move away from the scenes of conflict," an official of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) told IPS.

An estimated 60,000 civilians are reported to have fled the central town of Gbarnga, which fell to the rebels last week. Heavy fighting is now reported in and round Gbarnga, which was formally a stronghold of current President Charles Taylor when he led the then National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) rebel movement before ascending in 1997.

For weeks running, the rebels have been scoring major victories in the country’s north and northwestern regions. They are very much active in the Lofa, Grand Cape Mount and Bomi counties and are heading for the capital Monrovia.

"Our objective is to remove Mr Taylor and put our country back on the course of Reconciliation and Democracy," remarked LURD Commander in Bo Waterside in Cape Mount County, self-styled Captain Jungle Justice.

The escalation of conflict has also forced several thousand civilians across the border into Sierra Leone. There are more than 60,000 already sheltered in camps inside Sierra Leone.

UNHCR Field Officer in Zimmi on the Sierra Leonean side of the border Enoch Ochalla has told IPS that thousands more of civilian refugees are expected to cross over, if the conflict drags on.

"We are closely monitoring the situation in northwestern Liberia and are doing all in our capacity to prepare for future influx of refugees," Ochalla said.

With the war in Iraq assuming front seat in global conflicts, it seems the United States is paying little heed to the bloody civil war in Liberia. The West African state was colonised by America but Washington and Monrovia have had a frosty relationship since Taylor’s government took over the reins of power in 1997. The Americans and British pushed for UN-imposed military and economic sanctions against Liberia, during the civil war in neighbouring Sierra Leone, 1991 to 2001 for Liberia’s alleged backing of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF).

The country is poised to hold elections in October with about a dozen political parties gearing up to challenge Taylor. The road to the elections is rocky with daily reports of intimidation of opposition supporters by Taylor’s forces, especially the elite Anti-Terrorist Unit.

Most opposition leaders are out of the country fearing they may be harmed or even killed if they venture to campaign within the country. One such politician, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of the Unity Party, spoke to IPS in the Sierra Leonean capital of Freetown recently.

"Our party wants the October elections postponed until a level playing field is created for all Liberians to participate in the elections," Johnson-Sirleaf said.

But the greatest threat to Taylor’s regime as well as the upcoming elections perhaps is the military campaign by the LURD rebels. With instability in many parts of the country and the exit of refugees to the neighbouring states of Sierra Leone and Guinea, there is concern that many voters would be disenfranchised, if there is a rush into elections under these circumstances.

And the lukewarm attitude of West African leaders as well as the international community in helping to resolve the crisis as quickly as possible is in no way helping the situation.

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