POLITICS-LIBERIA: War-Weary Liberians Celebrate, as Foes Sign Ceasefire

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Abdullah Dukuly

MONROVIA, Jun 17 2003 (IPS) - Thousands of war-weary Liberians Tuesday took to the streets of the capital, Monrovia, to celebrate the signing of the much-awaited ceasefire aimed at ending the long-running civil war that has torn the West African country apart.

There were scenes of jubilation at various homes and the newly created displaced camps in the city centre. Enthusiastic civilians and refugees praise the Almighty for softening the hearts of the warring factions in finally signing the peace accord.

"With the signing of the ceasefire, I hope and pray that we will now be able to sleep and snore in peace and tranquillity, without the sounds of gunfire in our midst," a businessman told IPS on Tuesday.

There was a traffic jam, as children – some as young as five years – most of whom are out of school for years – waive white clothes and dance in the streets, chanting peace slogans.

Vehicles blowing their horns to welcome the news of the ceasefire deal were carrying white handkerchiefs signifying the restoration of lasting peace to war-ravaged Liberia.

"At long last we can now breath a sigh of relief and freedom," an elderly woman told IPS at a school hosting over 2,000 displaced people, including her seven children.

Some people with meagre means of income have taken to drinking shops to "proffer the toast to the peace and tranquillity of Liberia" as they told IPS. They urged the commitment of the belligerent groups to the ceasefire accord signed in Ghana early Tuesday afternoon after fours years of a bloody war.

The formal ceasefire agreement was expected to take effect as of midnight Wednesday, according to media reports. The reports said the terms of the agreement provide for a comprehensive peace agreement, which will include political discussions on the formation of a transitional government within 30 days.

Political observers hope that the truce between President Charles Taylor’s government and the two rebel groups – the Liberian United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) and the Movement for Democracy in Liberia (MODEL) – will pave the way for full-blown political discussions and the deployment of a peacekeeping force.

The rebels and some political groups had thwarted the signing of the ceasefire agreement in demand of the resignation of President Taylor. But Taylor insisted that he leaves only at the end of his term in Jan.

The agreement excludes President Taylor in the transitional government to be set up shortly. This is in keeping with his Jun. 4 declaration in Accra, Ghana. Analysts believe that once the transitional government is formed, Taylor will step down as President of Liberia.

But it remains unclear when the transitional government – when formed – will begin to function. "There are indications that this will be the focus of political negotiations in Ghana," said a source close to the talks.

Monrovia has been tensed over the last few days after the rebels attacked the western suburbs of the capital – forcing tens of thousands of panic-stricken people to run to the city centre to seek refuge in school and other public buildings, worship centres and private homes.

Official reports said over 400 people were killed. The attack followed widespread looting and destruction of property at the flashpoints of the fighting in western districts of the city. The attack came as peace talks started in Ghana.

The intensity of the fighting prompted the evacuation of foreign nationals and aid workers, worsening a humanitarian crisis. The five-day street fighting ended when the government agreed to a truce after the rebels withdrew from the western suburbs of the capital. The government took control of the city and ordered the resumption of normal activities.

Some roadside stores and businesses have since begun trading. But the city was unlikely to return to normal, as nervous civilians afraid to return home for fear of the return of the rebels – who had been thwarting the signing of the peace accord.

The rebels have been dropping and then reinstating their demands that Taylor leaves office before they could sign the ceasefire on grounds that they would not do business with an indicted war crime suspect.

The UN-backed special court in Sierra Leone indicted Taylor as the Liberian peace talks started in Ghana on Jun. 4. Ghanaian authorities failed to arrest Taylor who attended the opening sessions of the talks in Accra.

The signing of the ceasefire document is expected to be followed by the deployment of an international stabilisation force in Liberia, an African diplomat told IPS soon after the breakthrough in the talks.

But he did not give details of the make up of the peacekeeping force. However, a United States expeditionary force – carrying 1,800 marines, 1,200 sailors and attack helicopters – has arrived at the Liberian waters.

Although foreign press reports say the mission is to "evacuate Liberians as rebels reached the edge of the capital", there are speculations that America is now likely to respond to repeated calls by Liberians and peace brokers for Washington to intervene in the Liberian crisis by leading the deployment of a multinational intervention force to secure a fragile ceasefire.

Liberians are urging the United States, which has traditional links with Liberia, to intervene in the crisis of a country that was founded by freed slaves from America in 1847 "just as British led in Sierra Leone and French led in the Cote d’Ivoire".

There are concerns that the Liberian instability risks spiralling to much of West Africa. News reports from Nigeria say there are proposals from the United Sates to draft up to 2,000 Nigerian peacekeepers, with the United States running a headquarters and logistics base.

At the same time, a UN diplomat has raised the possibility of the Security Council backing a temporary deployment of US troops in Liberia.