wfn.org | Episcopalians: Thousands flee as rebels increase attacks in Liberia

[dmack@episcopalchurch.org]

May 15, 2002

2002-121

Episcopalians: Thousands flee as rebels increase attacks in 
Liberia

by James Solheim

(ENS) Rebels in Liberia have escalated their attacks and are 
near the capital of Monrovia, sending thousands of people 
fleeing into camps outside the city, already crowded with people 
fleeing fighting in the countryside, according to news reports.  
Cuttington University College, operated by the Episcopal Diocese 
of Liberia, was evacuated but other schools are operating and 
churches have remained open.

Reuters reported May 15 that an "uneasy calm" had settled 
over the capital, replacing the earlier panic, as government 
troops held the rebels at bay on the outskirts of the city.

The rebels have formed a loose coalition comprised of those 
who were defeated in the country's ruinous seven-year civil war 
that ended in 1996 with the election a year later of a former 
rebel, Charles Taylor, as president. The United Nations 
initiated an arms embargo a year ago, charging that Taylor has 
been supporting rebels in Sierra Leone and other central African 
countries.

Reliable reports indicate that the rebels, who have been 
operating from bases in neighboring Guinea, have taken the city 
of Gbarnga, 110 miles north of Monrovia and near Cuttington. The 
city served as Taylor's base during the civil war. United 
Nations officials said that, if the situation gets any worse, it 
could create 40-50,000 displaced people.

Mr. Gyude Bryant, chair of the diocesan council, reported in 
a phone call with Margaret Larom of the Anglican and Global 
Relations Office, that everyone on the staff of the churches and 
schools in Monrovia is safe but that the situation has been 
"quite nerve-wracking." Like other residents of the capital, 
church members felt a "serious scare" as the rebels were 
reported within 20 miles of the city. Bishop Edward Neufville 
was monitoring the situation from his offices in downtown 
Monrovia.

Reports from Cuttington and Phebe Hospital, across the road, 
are not good. Diplomatic sources indicate that the hospital has 
been looted and perhaps the college, too, Bryant said. The 
government sent buses to evacuate the students from the campus 
on Tuesday, May 8, preventing them from taking their final 
exams. The first class to graduate since the campus was 
abandoned and heavily damaged during the civil war in the 1990s 
was set to graduate this summer but those plans might have to be 
postponed until church leaders can assess the damage. With help 
from international aid agencies, including Episcopal Relief and 
Development, the college has been reconstructing much of its 
campus (See article at 
http://www.ecusa.anglican.org/ens/2000-001.html.) 

While the situation remains unpredictable, Bryant said in the 
interview that St. Augustine's School in Kakata and B.W. Harris 
High School in Monrovia were still open and renovations to 
schools in Cape Mount and Bromley continue despite fighting in 
the area. He also confirmed reports that the rebels had taken 
the city of Gbarnga but added that the government forces were 
attempting to retake the city. He did not know how soon it would 
be possible to determine the damage at the college.

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