Monrovia – Hundreds of Liberians residing in the Scandinavian region of Europe under the banner the Consortium of Concerned Group of Liberians in Western Europe, which consists of Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland, are appealing to the Government of Liberia to come to their rescue by opening a central consulate in the region that will help ease travel difficulties.
The concerned Liberians said they were consistently faced with the difficulties of passports renewal and obtaining of visas to travel back home due to the risks of sending their travel documents by mail to Bonn, Germany or incurring additional travel and hotel costs by making the journey to the German city to avoid the risk of losing their passports through the mailing system and subsequently losing their residency and other statuses.
The group said there were over 5,000 natural born Liberians and their offspring residing in these four Scandinavian countries, majority of which were resettled by the United Nations from 2000 – 2005.
The concerned Liberians said they did understand the economic burden faced by the government of Liberia that is they are only asking for a consulate for now, instead of a full mission to help facilitate and expedite the travel needs and mitigate the constant hassles of passports renewal and obtaining travel documents.
The group appeals to the Government of Liberia to fulfill its promised to them in the Scandinavian countries to open a Consulate Office in the region before its mandate is over.
They appealed to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to give them a listening ear to their appeal as most of them have businesses and homes in Liberia and make regular visits to the country.
The group praised President Sirleaf for the level of development that she has initiated under the UP led government for the past years, and hope that others will use those lofty examples to continue with the development trajectory.