A good reason to set off early when travelling to Monrovia…

Someone stood up after devotions the other day with an announcement – a warning not to travel through Red Light district of Monrovia after dark (the area is named after the one – out of order cos there’s no electricity in the city - traffic light in the whole of Liberia, not after the dubious morals of its citizens…), because of the high probability that you will be a victim to organ-harvesting gangs collecting body parts for ritual sacrifices. Great. Certainly an incentive to abide by the programme policies about arriving in Monrovia from the field after dark…

The Cause of the 14-year Liberia Conflict

Just reading through a very detailed report prepared by one of our Nimba staff about the impact of Tearfund projects over the last 3 years, and came to the following in the Background to Intervention section:

“The population [of Nimba County] were forcefully migrated to either refugee or displace people’s camps; lives and properties were destroyed; agricultural production inputs and facilities were either destroyed or lost. Animals were incriminated. It was apparent that population of Gbee/ Doru district of over 15,000 person were displaced and lost every thing they had. Presently there is no shelter intervention in both Kparblee and Gbee/ and Doru neither food security intervention. They are destitute. Through discussion held with Government and Local Officers, Tearfund was mandated to intervene Tappita Statutory District especially in Gbee/ Doru, Gboe and Doe administrative districts”

Hee heee heee, ‘the animals were incriminated’ – I now have a mental image of a band of pigs, supported by a dog or two, and a battalion of chickens with an evil glint in their eye, on the rampage through Nimba County…