A House with Two Rooms - The Advocates for Human Rights

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Chapter One. Executive Summary
All my family started to flee to different places. One brother fled to
neighboring Guinea…My brother who stayed in Bomi County saw people
in my brother’s house and told them to leave and they just shot him. I had
nine siblings. One brother was a diplomat in Sierra Leone. Another brother
lived in New York. Another brother fled to Guinea – I think he is still there.
My oldest brother has not been heard from up to today. He just disappeared
from the face of the earth. We believe he is most likely dead. One brother
fled to Ghana. He is still there today. My sister came here too…I have two
siblings still in Liberia. 1
The West African nation of Liberia is recovering from years of conflict characterized by egregious
violations of human rights that dramatically increased the Liberian diaspora. From 1979 until 2003,
the Liberian people survived a bloody coup d’état, years of military rule, and two violent civil wars.
The atrocities were the result of complex historical and geopolitical factors. The slave trade, U.S.
efforts to return slaves and free African Americans to Africa, the abuse of the indigenous population
by a ruling oligarchy, the looting of the country’s natural resources by its own corrupt government
and by foreign interests, and the political ambitions of other African leaders all contributed to the
conflict. Using inhuman tactics, key individuals and their supporters seized upon the chaos and strife
in Liberia to gain power and to amass wealth. The international community, including the United
States, failed to take effective action to limit the bloodshed.
Out of a pre-war population of three million, an estimated 250,000 people were killed, and as many
as 1.5 million people were displaced. A mass exodus fleeing the fighting created Liberian diaspora
communities in many countries around the world, including the United States. Tens of thousands of
Liberians live in the United States (reportedly more than 30,000 in Minnesota alone), in the United
Kingdom, and in refugee settlements in the West African sub-region.
The violence finally ended in 2003, but the peace remains fragile. The conflict’s impact is evident in the
streets of Monrovia, the homes of villagers in the Liberian countryside, and Liberian gathering places
in London, Philadelphia, Staten Island, and elsewhere. Many Liberians were forced from their homes
and deprived of their education and livelihood. They are suffering from physical and psychological
trauma and are separated from their families by death or distance. Deeply felt conflicts continue to
divide the Liberian people at home and abroad. Corruption, both real and perceived, continues to
pervade the society. Liberia’s infrastructure was destroyed and remains badly damaged; security is a
very real concern. The many Liberians who lack the most basic means of subsistence seek food, work,
health care, education, and a future. Increasingly, Liberians also are calling for justice. These demands
are made to a government that struggles with few resources and an unstable security situation.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Liberia (TRC) was originally agreed upon in the