allAfrica.com: Liberia: Saboteurs in Trouble (Page 1 of 2)

Liberians may be proud of their sovereignty and its position as the oldest on the Continent of Africa and may want to keep it inviolate. But they, however, are unanimous that the assistance and political and economic guidance of the United States are pivotal to their country's recovery from years of warfare and dysfunctional economy.

The existence of such mindset seems not lost on the understanding of top notches of the U.S. Foreign Service and, not the least, Ambassador-designate for Liberia Linda Thomas-Greenfield.

Ambassador-designate Thomas-Greenfield testifying before the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations this week did not mince words on exactly what she intends to do in Liberia if confirmed.

The Analyst Managing Editor, Stanley Seakor, reports.

U.S. Ambassador-designate for Liberia, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, says though Liberia chose a future over stagnation in 2005, its peace remains fragile having resisted government's recovery efforts, and that therefore she is prepared to confront those who will threaten the nation's recovery.

Ambassador Greenfield, who is currently a principal deputy assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of State, made the observation, Wednesday this week, when she testified before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations that is vetting her to take over the U.S. diplomatic mission in Liberia.

"If confirmed, I would also use my position to confront those who threaten Liberia's recovery. I would not hesitate to publicly attack corruption, human rights abuses, and the 'old ways of doing business' in Liberia that contributed so much to its breakdown and civil conflict," said the ambassador-designate who U.S. Embassy sources in Monrovia say is due to arrive in the country shortly to take over from Amb. Donald Booth.

She described Liberians as "proud and strong people" and noted that they deserve a government that will serve the public interest, not private agendas, and that will protect the people, not prey on them.

She praised the Liberian government for committing itself to serving the public interest of Liberia, noting that as the representative of the President of the United States of America, she will stand by President Sirleaf in that endeavor.

The US envoy said Liberia, which had been bogged down in a vicious civil war for 14 years was now well along the road to recovery, revealing that she was one of the observers of the United States for the first round of Liberia's national elections in 2005 that eventually led to the inauguration of Africa's first woman president, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

She did not say what her observer role contributed to the elections or prevented from happening to the freeness and fairness of the presidential elections, but she noted that Liberians used that election to choose peace over war; a future over stagnation; and a return to the community of nations.

"Now we are five years past Liberia's civil war, and the government of President Sirleaf is making major strides, reforming its institutions, attracting investment, and setting Liberia on the right path to stability and economic growth," said the ambassador-designate who said she has spent a better part of her career working in Africa and on African issues.

But Ambassador-designate Greenfield was not about mincing words and risk sending confusing signals about achievements and extent of challenges to recovery in Liberia.

The next U.S. envoy to Liberia, who disclosed that she spent part of her intern tour in Liberia in the 1970s as graduate student from the University of Wisconsin in the US, emphasized that whatever is said about achievement after two years of civil rule, Liberia still faces formidable challenges despite the commitment of the government to serving public interest.

According to her the nation's economy was still essentially weak, the justice system still broken, the civil service needed training and development, and the security services needed to be built in order to keep the peace.

Also, she said, notable benchmarks for Liberia's full recovery must include economy growth that shows landmark improvements, a marked reduction of the nation's current 85% unemployment, and a significant revival of the agricultural sector that guarantees food sufficient.

"[Liberia] must develop its civil society, independent media, and community organizations to reverse the social and cultural damage done by years of conflict," she said.

In her view, these must be in place in order for Liberia to continue on the path of democracy and to face the next major test of conducting free, fair, and democratic presidential and legislative elections in 2011.

But she agreed with most Liberians that a nation smarting from the sting of 14 years of devastating warfare cannot achieve these benchmarks in six year, acting alone. "Throughout this period, U. S. engagement will remain critical to Liberia's success," she said.

web allafrica.com	Enter your search terms	Submit search form
OR subscribers use AllAfrica's premium search engine


Use our pull-down menus to find more stories