John McCullough: reflections on Liberia

Rev. John L. McCullough

Photo: T.Abraham/CWS

April 4, 2006

More than 200,000 Liberians were killed and many thousands displaced in the country’s 14 years of conflict. In 2002, Church World Service accepted an invitation from ecumenical groups in the Mano River Basin to support them in peace-building efforts. A year later, CWS hosted religious leaders from the region, enabling them to meet UN and US government officials. The region is a focal point of the CWS Africa Initiative.

As Liberia prepared for elections last year, the Liberian Council of Churches mobilized voter registration and voting among its member churches with the support of Church World Service’s Education and Advocacy Program. Speaking before the elections, the Council’s General Secretary Benjamin Lartey said the accompaniment of churches from around the world was very important. “Peace in Liberia,” he added, “will create an enabling environment for democratic values and human rights and allow transparency to flourish in the region.”

Earlier this year, Church World Service Executive Director John McCullough attended Liberia’s first international conference since the election of President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. Here are Rev. McCullough’s reflections on the visit:

Key outcome

Probably the most important outcome was the strength of the collaboration between the religious community, peace activists and the government as represented by the Vice President. There was a willingness to embrace the consolidation of peace in Liberia, and throughout the Mano River region. There was a real appreciation for the participation and engagement of leaders from various parts of the region itself. There was also a clearly articulated commitment on the part of the government of Liberia to work with the religious community in the interests of securing the peace in Liberia and beyond.

The standout moment for me, and the most poignant, was when I asked the conference what was the vision, if it had one, and whether participants had taken the time to examine the inaugural address of President Johnson-Sirleaf, to ascertain what her vision is. I reminded the body that while the President’s vision is very significant, it’s not her vision alone that can lead to a greater Liberia. It’s imperative for the people to be heard in terms of their vision and for the melding together of the vision of the people with that of the president.

There was a lot of energy around the room around that. It seemed to be a moment of awareness and recognition that democratic participation is more than someone taking part in an electoral process.

Next steps for Liberia

The government must commit itself to the economic empowerment of the people. Liberian people have historically been very industrious and creative. It will be important for the government to find ways of assisting people in reestablishing livelihood. It’s also critically important for the government to take a strong position in favor of public education. One of the struggles of the Liberia, and a critical reason why it persists as an underdeveloped country is the constant interruption of the educational development of the people. Securing the right of people to pursue an education is critical to the development struggle of the country.

It’s also important to deal with the issue of impunity. There are many people who have committed crimes against humanity. However difficult the situation may be, it is critical for the government to demonstrate that Liberia is a country of laws and that people, regardless of their status in society, will be held accountable for their actions. The law must be meted out fairly and equitably. The asylum of Liberia’s former president should not be allowed as an excuse for his not being accountable for whatever atrocities he may be responsible for. Those who were supportive of his administration and who remain in Liberia—if they are responsible for crimes against humanity—need to be held accountable.

Also, even though he has asylum in Nigeria, the international community should support the Liberian government in making sure there is a full investigation and if need be a trial that holds Taylor responsible for decisions he may have made that may have led to the loss of life, property and even violations of Liberia’s borders with neighboring countries.

The role of Church World Service and North American churches

I think CWS should continue to stand as a steady partner with the Liberian Council of Churches and the inter-religious partners of the Mano River countries, especially as they continue to pursue issues of justice. I don’t believe it’s the role of CWS to take a lead position. But it’s important for us to be a steady support, especially in terms of explaining the vision and stature of North American churches, and in terms of financial and material support as needed. We need to make sure that the ecumenical bodies are seen by the political establishment as serious and contributing partners.

With respect to the role of US foreign policy, as North American churches we should be strong and active advocates for an increase in US foreign assistance, particularly at this moment, in supporting the new government of Liberia. President Johnson-Sirleaf can make all kinds of promises for the prosperity of her people, but her ability to deliver on any of them will be contingent on her friends in the international community, not the least of which is the US.

Prospects for peace in the Mano River Union region

First of all, even though Liberia itself has attained peace, we need to recognize it is still tenuous. The region itself remains highly volatile. You have Cote D’Ivoire in the east; Guinea to the west. You can see how tenuous peace is even though Sierra Leone has celebrated more than two years of peace. Even they are aware of how fragile the peace is. There remains much to be done. Peace is often referred to as being elusive. It’s a statement of how hard it is to attain a level of peace that people feel is secure.

Liberia’s significance to the US and vice versa

Liberians view themselves as the 51 st state, which is their way of recognizing a very historical and longstanding relationship between their country and the US, dating back to the Back to Africa movement, Marcus Garvey and others who believed that freed African slaves should have the opportunity to return to their homeland. Even today there is a significant number of Liberians who trace part of their lineage to a specific area of the US. In addition there is a significant number of African Americans as well as other Americans who have moved to that country for various reasons and interests. Then there’s an enormous number of Liberians who themselves have migrated to the US and who maintain very close and intimate ties to Liberia. The relationship is unique. Policies between these two countries must always take those ties into regard. Because of what Liberians see as their unique proximity to, and shared history with, the US, they were by and large perplexed by the reluctance of the US to introduce military personnel during the fledgling days of the Taylor administration.