Monrovia – President George Manneh Weah has said that the political, culture and economic division still remains a hindrance to total reconciliation and peace in Liberia.
Report by Willie N. Tokpah – [email protected]
According to the President, Liberians are not going to be totally reconciled, once the vices responsible for conflict are not address.
He told participants at the close of a two-day National Peace and Reconciliation Conference that true reconciliation is far from being achieved and that division continues to exist in all sectors of the Liberian society.
“True reconciliation is still illusive. Throughout this time, there has been numerous reconciliation conferences producing so many roadmaps to peace and so many policy documents and programs but the problem of political, economic and culture divisions still exist,” the President disclosed.
President Weah expressed regrets over ‘wasted efforts’ made by him in December 2012 on the Liberia peace initiative, which introduced the peace match and the Nimba-Grand Gedeh peace talk, which he said did not yield a result.
He noted that some folks, who reconciled their differences during the meetings after these occasions, went back to their old resentments and divisions.
The Liberian leader wants his fellow citizens take the lead to reconciliation by living in a peaceful atmosphere with one another.
President Weah stressed that post-conflict reconciliation is a necessary component required to attain the stability for economic growth, development and prosperity for Liberians.
He further emphasized that Liberia and Liberians will not be able to attain reconciliation if the root causes of Liberia’s conflict are not properly addressed.
The President noted that land disputes, political disparity, marginalization of tribes and religious issues are factors responsible for Liberia’s lasting conflict, which must be resolved if Liberia is ought for peace.
“The theme of the conference depicts that peace can be sustained successfully when the voices of ordinary Liberians are taken into consideration.
“These voices are those of the ordinary people, who became frontline soldiers during our wars, whose communities were destroyed, their children raped or used as instruments of death.
“It will come from people who are living with post-war trauma, from people who were wounded or crippled both mentally and physically. These are the real victims of our conflict,” President Weah noted.
According to him, conclusive reconciliation in Liberia cannot be achieved if the voices of locals are not heard.
At the same time, Weah believed sustainable reconciliation would be achieved if Liberians see themselves as one family.
Unfortunately, the President did not provide any way forward for all of the things he stated above.
Also speaking at the occasion, the United Nations Deputy Secretary General, Ms. Amina J. Mohammed, said despite some personal differences, Liberia continues to show determination in preserving peace.
“Peace has been achieved; but if it is to be sustained, you must engage in confidence building measures that establish solid foundation to long lasting peace and this can be assured through reconciliation,” Madam Mohammed claimed.
The UN DSG maintained that social cohesion and reconciliation index for Liberia show that more needs to be done in increasing reconciliation across Liberia.
Ms. Mohammed noted that it is difficult to implement the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s recommendations. She further stated that the need exists for the Legislature to pass key bills that will support local education and reconciliation.
Meanwhile, Madam Mohammed stated that Liberia’s peace will remain fragile, once the people feel excluded from the economic and political life of their country and as long as corruption continues to undermine confidence in various sectors.