The Republic of Liberia, is a country on the west coast of Africa. The history of Liberia is unique among African nations because of its relationship with the United States. It is one of the few countries in Africa, and the only country in West Africa, without roots in the European Scramble for Africa. It was founded and colonized by freed American slaves with the help of a private organization called the American Colonization Society in 1821-22, it was created on the premise American slaves would have greater freedom and equality there. Like Somalia and most if not all African states on the continent, it fell into civil war.
A military-led coup in 1980 overthrew then-president William R. Tolbert, which marked the beginning of a period of instability that eventually led to a civil war that left hundreds of thousands of people dead and devastated the country’s economy. Today, Liberia is recovering from the lingering effects of the civil war and related economic dislocation.
The link is to a eight part (first 4 are available), short documentary at VBS.TV. After watching this and comparing it with my own personal experiences of back home during and after the wars, I think somalia not that bad.
Read the rest of this entry »
Continue Reading...