Topic: Monrovia

Salmonella outbreak spurs peanut butter recall

Salmonella outbreak in 18 states has possible link to Trader Joe's Valencia Salted Peanut Butter. Trader Joe's issues recall as officials investigate 29 cases in salmonella outbreak.

Is Liberia turning into a haven for militant groups - again?

Human Rights Watch issues report saying Liberia is failing to control rebel groups launching raids into neighboring Cote D'Ivoire. Liberia rejects the charges.

Modern Parenthood Charles Taylor sentence welcomed by mom who sheltered Liberians

Charles Taylor's forces were just pushing into Liberia five days before an American journalist's wedding day; a few months later she offered her home as shelter to her servants, but was forced by the US to leave the country. She welcomes the sentence and finds that now – as a mother – the horror of his atrocities are trebled as she thinks about what families went through to protect their children.

Taylor's 50-year sentence draws mixed reactions in Liberia (+video)

Human rights groups welcomed the sentence for Liberia's former president Charles Taylor for his role in Sierra Leone civil war. Some Liberians argued he didn't get fair treatment.

Former Liberian leader Charles Taylor sentenced to 50 years in prison (+video)

An international court proceeding ended Wednesday with the sentencing of Taylor, who was convicted of aiding and abetting numerous war crimes in Sierra Leone.

Difference Maker Mae Azango exposed a secret ritual in Liberia, putting her life in danger

When journalist Mae Azango wrote about a secret women's circumcision ritual in Liberia, she received death threats.

Keep Calm West African bloc prepares to send troops into Mali and Guinea-Bissau

Two separate military coups in Mali and Guinea-Bissau threaten the stability of the region. But will an intervention by ECOWAS actually resolve these conflicts or just complicate them?

Taylor guilty: Liberians have mixed emotions about verdict

Some Liberians voice outrage at the guilty verdict of former Liberian President Charles Taylor at the war crimes court; others, who lost family members, say it's justice.

In Monrovia, Charles Taylor's wife awaits his verdict

Charles Taylor, the former Liberian leader accused of 11 counts of war crimes, will learn his fate tomorrow in what is seen as a milestone moment for international justice.

Africa Monitor 7 stories on Africa this week, other than Kony2012

Did you hear we halved poverty while we were all distracted by Invisible Children, asks guest blogger Jina Moore.

Liberia's Sirleaf takes oath for second term, promises reconciliation

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf stressed national reconciliation at her second inauguration ceremony today in Liberia, a nation still emerging from years of war.

Change Agent A warrior turns peacemaker in Liberia

Former soldier Christian Bethelson’s only job skill was killing – until a meeting on a muddy road in Liberia changed his life, and many others.

Opinion Nobel Peace Prize 2011: Groundbreaking recognition that women get the job done

When the The Nobel Peace Prize 2011 is awarded to three women tomorrow, the committee will recognize what policymakers have long ignored: the work of women in peace building. It's time to move beyond 'peace' that depends on warlords to engage all key stakeholders, especially women.
12/09/2011 11:45 am

Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Gbowee: Liberia is progressing, but still divided

Liberian peace activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Gbowee praises Liberia for how far it has come since the civil war days of a decade ago, but warns that tribalism still divides her country.
10/31/2011 12:22 pm

Prince as kingmaker: Can an ex-warlord deliver Johnson-Sirleaf the Liberian presidency?

Senator Prince Johnson has pledged his support to President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf in the second round of Liberia's presidential elections, despite having accused her of vote-rigging.
10/25/2011 02:21 pm

Sirleaf leads Liberian presidential vote, but a second round looms

Nobel Peace Prizewinner Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has 44.5 percent of the Liberian presidential vote so far: not enough to avoid a second round, where former warlord Prince Johnson may be 'kingmaker.'
10/14/2011 01:03 pm

Liberia election: Voting went smoothly, but how about the results?

Foreign observer missions are praising Liberia's first domestically organized national elections since the end of civil war in 2003, but experts warn that a likely runoff election could still trigger violence.
10/12/2011 12:46 pm

Global News Blog Good Reads: America's longest war, in Afghanistan, and Liberia's Nobel Laureate

On the 10th anniversary of the Afghanistan war, today's papers detail the lessons still to be learned. And in good news, Liberia's first female president, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, wins a Nobel Peace Prize.
10/07/2011 09:38 am

Liberian women pray as the nation heads to the polls

Buffeted by years of civil war, Liberian women – led by newly named Nobel Peace Prize laureate Leymah Gbowee – are praying for a peaceful and successful Oct. 11 election, and hoping that fire-mouthed politicians don't drag their country back to war.
10/06/2011 12:39 pm

Africa Monitor Liberia's referendum goes off peacefully, despite opposition boycott

Referendum items voted on yesterday could give incumbent President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf a boost heading into Liberia's pivotal presidential election in a few weeks.
08/24/2011 10:41 am

With 'Courage, New Hampshire,' tea party movement enters world of entertainment

Shot on a shoestring budget, "Courage, New Hampshire" is intended to depict traditional American values espoused by the tea party movement. But the show is yet to win a TV distribution deal, so it will premier Sunday night in a movie theater then come out on DVD.
06/25/2011 05:07 pm

Africa Monitor West Africa Rising: Liberia aims to tap riches, wean itself off aid by 2021

After guiding Liberia to stability after years of civil war, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf hopes to take advantage of the country's natural resources to transform it into a middle-income nation.
06/14/2011 01:55 pm

In Pictures War photographers killed in Libya

Africa's 'Iron Lady' revitalizes Liberia

UPDATE: On Oct. 7, the Nobel Prize committee announced that Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf was one of three women to win the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize for advancing the role of women in society. In April, the Monitor profiled President Johnson-Sirleaf – who faces voters in Oct. 11 national elections – and her record of erasing her Liberia's crushing debt after years of civil war.
04/12/2011 03:36 pm

Liberian mercenaries detail their rampages in western Ivory Coast

Hundreds of battled-hardened Liberian fighters are adding to a messy ethnic conflict brewing in western Ivory Coast that security experts warn could spread across the region's porous borders.
04/10/2011 05:23 pm