The Liberian TRC was flawed from the beginning. Anyone trying to initiate reconciliation after the civil war must begin at the source of the conflict which was the coup that toppled THE FIRST REPUBLIC. I don't think Liberians will ever be able to come to terms with the atrocities of the past until they deal with the Doe Coup of 1980. Was it justified or not. Samuel K. Doe was elected President of THE SECOND REPUBLIC in what many in the international community called a rigged election. Afterward Doe would turn against his own people and commit genocide against them inorder to maintain himself in office. Was Taylor justified in leading a popular uprising against Doe? If it is true that Doe committed genocide against Liberians in Nimba then anyone who collaborated with him should also be blamed. Those who tried to stop the genocide should be exonerated. No one who actively participated in murder and mayhem should be exonerated. Doe and his cohorts who murdered Tolbert and overthrew the government in 80 as well as Taylor and his cohorts who murder Doe and initiated the CIVIL WAR should also pay a price. ELLEN JOHNSON SIRLEAF never raised an army to kill anyone, she was mere a respected member of the elite who advised and help to finance Taylor, until it became clear that Taylor was a self serving meglomaniac at which point she disassociated herself from his movement. Ellen was also one of the few Tolbert cabinet ministers that Doe didn't have murdered and she collaborated with him until she herself could leave the nation safely. There is nothing wrong with Sirleaf collaborating with Doe inorder to save the nation from collaspe soon after the coup by serving as head of the national bank. There is nothing wrong with Sirleaf collaborating with Taylor, by helping to finance and advise the Taylor rebellion in the beginning, inorder to stop the genocide against the people of Nimba county. The TRC has gotten it twisted. Collaborating with the enemies is not the same as leading the enemy. Eversince the 70s Sirleaf has had her pulse on the will of the Liberian people. Radicals and Progressives have respected her since the early days of the PAL which is why Doe didn't have her killed after the coup and later after the rigged election of 85. She even managed to escape the rath of Taylor when he began killing everone that could challenge his leadership. Sirleaf is the ultimate survivor and anyone who claims that she acted unpatriotic during the past 30 years is merely being naive and jeolous of the support that the masses of Liberians have for her. Sirleaf has never commited murder and mayheim she merely survived and advised those who did. She is now the PRESIDENT of the nation and those who would like to convict her for being a concerned citizen all these years is ridiculous. Banning her from elected office would only send Liberia back into self destruction. Stop wishing for her to go away but pray that she seek a second term, because under her leadership Liberia is thriving once again for the first time since 1980 coup.

I see the TRC report as a way forward toward genuine reconciliation. What most people are missing out is that the report is just one step on a long path towards achieving reconciliation in post conflict Liberia. What needs to be done now is for the National Legislature to put into place a mechanism that will move the process on to the next stage so that those responsible for the widescale destruction of human and material resources during the Liberian civil crisis can be brought to justice. For without justice, there can be no genuine reconciliation.

What is obtaining now is that some politicians and their sympathizers using, and will continue to use the TRC's report as a basis for, among other things, denying political rivals from contesting ensuing 2011 polls. Whatever the case is, we Liberians must remain focused on the purpose of the TRC process which is to set the basis for the achievement of national reconciliation and recovery in Liberia following one of the most brutal civils the world had ever seen.

An American, my thoughts are conflicting.

First, perpetrators of violence, genocide, and crimes against humanity MUST be brought to justice (i.e. tried and possibly jailed) in order for there to be lasting peace and reconciliation. As someone else has said, soliders and warlords who have bloodied their hands through mass slaughter, cannibalism, and other atrocities cannot be expected to remain in a peaceful society. They have done these things in the past, yes, but will do them again if the reason presents itself.

Secondly, Ellen has accomplished great things during her term in office, showing nothing but the highest consideration for her country and its people. To expell her from office would result in a loss of progress. Can another as good as her be found in replacement? I think not. Besides, she has said that she will not seek re-election, and we have no reason to believe that she will. To include her name among the 50 war criminals to prosecute would never have occurred if she was not the President. These names should not be determined based on current STATUS of the person but based on their CRIMES. There are many who have done worse than her, and their names are not on the list. This is the definition of BIAS.

I applaud the TRC for their efforts and believe that their work is essential, but believe that they reached the wrong conclusion on the matter of Ellen Sirleaf.

PRESIDENT ELLEN JOHNSON SIRLEAF must now do the "right thing' and STEP DOWN! This will prove that Liberia has truly become a nation of Laws and not of MEN. The evidence linking her to the destruction of our country disqualifies her from serving.

I commend the effort of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission for their recommandations. But I personally beleived that there are more names left out. For this Commission to gets the full backing of the Liberian people,it has to be fair in submitting more names. There are many names left in the open. More need to be done, to have the public support. Those warlords, their generals and all those who financed the war murdered thousands upon thousands. These morans destroyed the lives of many people and exploited the country(Liberia) of its resources. These are the same people running around the city they destroyed. Again, if this Truth and Reconciliation Commission wants to be credited, partiality should not be the ground for which it was created. This generation have to set an example or else, future generation will make the same mistakes we made. Lets justice be served for those who died, the ones living and our beloved country(Liberia) May God bless the Republic of Liberia and Its People. TAVACANO,California.