Liberia
Date Entered: 2000
Major Ministries: Church Planting, Theological Education, Christian Development, Medical Clinic Evangelism
Country Profile
Liberia’s origins are entangled with America’s. In the 19th century, free and enslaved African Americans faced continued hardship and inequality. Many called for return to the land of their forebears. Liberia, which means “the free land,” was founded in 1822 by an Act of Congress and populated by 20,000 freed slaves from America.
After a coup in 1980, Liberia’s government became increasingly unstable. Massive corruption and repression of the tribal Mano and Gio peoples provoked a 1989 revolution led by Charles Taylor, and the country descended into civil war. During the 1990s, the country became a killing field. In 1996, a peace treaty was brokered when Taylor was elected president in the country’s first free and open elections. However, civil strife reignited when, infuriated by Taylor’s autocratic rule and flagrant human rights abuses, two rebel groups began fighting to remove Taylor from power.
The years of fighting coupled with the flight of most businesses have disrupted formal economic activity and destabilized other countries in West Africa, including Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast.
The social and economic structure of this war-torn country have recently been destroyed again by a new outbreak of civil strife. Since June 2003, the capital, Monrovia, has been plunged into chaos and destruction as rebel factions fight to overthrow President Taylor. Over 500,000 refugees have fled, hundreds of civilians have been killed in the crossfire, and many others are dying from lack of water and food. Cholera threatens to become an epidemic.
To address this humanitarian crisis, we have established a relief fund for Liberians. Contributions can be sent to ABWE, marked “Liberia Relief.”