Teenage Pregnancy: Poverty and Desperation

PHOTO: Bonnie Allen (IPS AFRICA)
In Liberia, poverty means many teenage girls are forced to drop out of school and provide for their families. Too often, sex with an older man is part of the struggle to survive.
Bonnie Allen reports for IPS Africa.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO IPS AFRICA RADIO PIECE

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Universal Education an Empty Promise

Teenage girls whose education was interrupted by war are now enrolling in free government schools, but quickly dropping out due to poverty, family pressures, and pregnancy.
PHOTO: Bonnie Allen

Universal Education an Empty Promise for Liberia's Girls
MONROVIA, May 26, 2010 (IPS) - In a small office tucked behind the stairwell in Liberia’s Ministry of Education, the once-proud staff of the Girls’ Education Unit appear defeated.

The workers in this fourth floor office, entrusted with charting a new course for the education of the country's girls and women, have no salaries, no budget, and few projects under way. FOR MORE -- SEE IPS AFRICA

PHOTO: A teenage girl who dropped out of Grade Six to have a baby.

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Male Midwives in Liberia

PHOTO: Bonnie Allen/World Vision Report
A recent radio documentary that I produced for World Vision Report:

According to UNICEF, women in Liberia have a 1 in 12 risk of dying from giving birth over their lifetimes. Access to midwives could prevent most of these deaths, but there's a dire shortage of trained midwives in Liberia, especially in rural areas.

Recently, a midwifery school in a remote corner of the country decided to start admitting male students. Going against tradition, these new students have to deal with more than just homework.

Bonnie Allen brings us the story from southeastern Liberia

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Hockey Night in Liberia

PHOTO: Bonnie Allen/National Post
CLICK HERE TO SEE PHOTO GALLERY

NATIONAL POST: Hockey night in Liberia
NHL jerseys everywhere in war-torn nation
by Bonnie Allen

Under the shade of a lush green palm tree, a hefty Liberian man sells pineapples and tries to escape the muggy tropical heat. All the while, he proudly sports a long-sleeved heavy-knit Toronto Maple Leafs hockey sweater.

"We don't know the game," Joe Peters admits, wiping sweat off his cheek. "But the jerseys are very fine. Very high quality."

READ MORE

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Liberian Town Crier

You hear Joseph Barley long before you see him.

At first, it’s the distant buzz of a distorted loudspeaker interrupting the early morning rooster calls and bird chirps. Then, it gets louder. And louder. Finally, a 69-year old man in a straw hat and navy blazer emerges on the dusty horizon. He uses a cracked plastic megaphone to blast information into the eager faces of street vendors, school children, and women washing clothes on their front step.

This is Fish Town. The ‘capital city’ of River Gee County in southeastern Liberia. And like many small, remote communities in rural Liberia, the people here are desperate for local information. Especially now, when the community radio station has shut down indefinitely because its transmitter “blew up” (as it was described to me).

“If the radio is not working, has mistake and trouble, what they do while waiting for the mechanic from Monrovia is the people appeal to me to make public announcement,” says Mr. Barley (as everyone in town calls him). “People start knocking on my door. They say, ‘We got information. Serious information!’”

The retired schoolteacher and father of 11 children takes great pride in his role as the Liberian “town crier."

FOR MORE, CLICK HERE

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Tackling the Taboo: A Liberian Journalist's Story

Female Genital Cutting (FGC) is widely practiced in rural Liberia among secret societies. Local newspapers and radio stations shun the story because they consider it taboo.

NOTE: Much of my time in Liberia is spent training local journalists, particularly community radio reporters. Recently, 22-year old Radio Kergheamahn reporter Chester Dolo approached me and requested help on a story about Female Genital Cutting (FGC) - also known as circumcision or mutilation (FGM). I was surprised that he was tackling such a taboo subject. In the end, he produced a 10-minute documentary and won a Human Rights Reporting Award from Journalists for Human Rights and the Liberia Media Center.

Chester became the first reporter at his radio station in northcentral Liberia to talk on-air about FGC. Other reporters warned him against it. He was nervous, and even a bit scared. Most women refused to speak with him. It took courage and determination because this traditional practice is deeply-entrenched in the ‘secret societies’ of this West African country.

In Liberia, girls are usually taken into the bush to learn local customs and skills for womanhood. At these so-called bush schools, run by bush societies or the Sande society, the girls also undergo FGC. In Liberia, it is not the most severe form, but it consists of removing some or all of the clitoris. According to Liberia’s 2007 Demographic and Health Survey, 58 % of Liberian women have undergone this procedure.

To report on this sensitive and secretive practice, Chester had to grapple with his own beliefs in witchcraft.

To hear about Chester's courage, listen to this audio feature.
Or read more here.

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Backlash vs. Fanfare: Vice Guide to Liberia

A recent film about Liberia -- The Vice Guide to Liberia - (promoted on CNN.com) has gained a lot of international attention and prompted more than one friend to send me a concerned email about my ‘safety in this hellhole.’ I can only shake my head. This film gives a sensational snapshot of the worst of the worst.

Much of it is entertaining, but the Vice film crew creates its own precarious situations then sensationalizes the reaction that it gets - i.e. a bunch of white westerners waving expensive equipment in the poorest areas of one of the poorest countries in the world, then portraying their escape from danger like an action film. What disturbs me is that they focus more on the attention they, the filmmakers, get than the real issues. Not to mention the use of archival video out of context. Based on this film, one would think Liberians dine on human flesh for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!

Others are far more outraged by this film - calling it ‘conflict porn’ or an ‘irresponsible, exploitative...parachute hack-job.’ Others take an academic stance and exam why this kind of documentary garners so much popular attention [Ethan Zuckerman]. Some viewers commend it as “citizen journalism at its best.” The mixed reaction raises questions about the state of journalism today. Are the rest of us journalists too boring?

After all -- to be fair -- much of Vice’s eight-part travel guide is compelling (excellent production: great pictures, good music, creative editing) and will get much-deserved attention for some of the real problems that plague this country. There are ritual killings. Sexual violence and rape are rampant. The justice system is dysfunctional and corrupt. Poor sanitation, leading to diarrhea and malaria, is killing children and babies. Liberia has one of the highest rates of teenage pregnancy and maternal mortality in the world. The President has described the unemployed ex-combatants as a major risk factor for future instability in the country. Peace is precarious when there are poor, war-affected people with no jobs and access to guns. This film casts light on some of this - but without context. I don’t think viewers gain any real understanding by watching this.

Is it good, ethical journalism? I’d say no.

Perhaps it’s because Shane Smith makes several false statements. In a recent Huffington Post interview, he said “If you have 80 percent unemployment, you can do the math: 80 percent of the population is doing something criminal then just to survive.”

This just isn’t true. Most Liberians don’t have formal jobs with dependable pay cheques and benefits, but they are working. Very hard. Morning until night. Pushing wheelbarrows with used clothing. Selling coal. Selling water. Selling vegetables. Farming cassava. Fixing shoes. Fixing tires. You name it. So to suggest that only 20 percent of people are working is ridiculous, and to go even further and say the other 80 percent are criminals is outrageous.

I commend certain parts of the film - particularly some segments with Joshua Blahyi, formerly General Butt Naked -- but much of it caters to every extreme stereotype that exists today in Liberia, and mixes it together with the ugliest parts of its history. Shane Smith is a charismatic and likable on-air personality. His adventurous search for “hardcore shit” and commentary peppered with “f#$$‘in crazy” and “this is f%#% up” will appeal to Generation X and Y. But if he wants to cover a war, he should have the balls to actually go to a war zone while the war is happening! Don’t visit a country SIX years later, then dredge up archival video and use it in such a way to seem as though you’re a brave war correspondent breaking news about cannibalism.

Every time I think about the many intelligent, motivated Liberians who are making real changes in this country, I wonder - Where are they in this film?? I guess they’re not sexy or edgy enough.

I agree with Shelby Grossman’s conclusion that, “The harm done by the series far offsets any of the gains made by bringing attention to Liberia.”

I’m worried when I see headlines in the local paper that say "Foreign Journalists Destroying Liberia’s Image." In my own reporting, I’ve tried to provide context on why problems exist, what is happening, or what people say needs to happen in the future. It’s only fair.

As a journalist, I’ve crisscrossed northern Liberia on the back of a motorcycle, slept in villages, and hiked through the bush to interview some of the most vulnerable or ignored citizens. Is there the chance of danger? Always. But it's far more likely that Liberians will be friendly, welcoming, and protective of strangers. Most are desperate to keep the peace. And most of the problems they face (civil, political, economic, social, and cultural) are complicated, and deserve a bit more than they got in this documentary.

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IPS AFRICA: Paper Rights Flimsy Protection

PHOTO: Liberian woman sells water outside courthouse, instead of claiming legal rights inside.
A recent article published by IPS AFRICA....
LIBERIA: Paper Rights Flimsy Protection
By Bonnie Allen
SANNIQUELLIE, Liberia, Jan 13, 2010 (IPS) - Just a few metres outside the front door of a large white-washed courthouse in north central Liberia, Tete Garwo sells small plastic bags of cold water and passes time by pleading her case to thirsty customers. The 40-year old woman describes how she was forced out of her house by an abusive husband, then deprived of her half of the property.
CLICK ON LINK TO READ MORE

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A Child Burned

Imagine a nine-year old boy living in one of the poorest countries in the world. He is so hungry that he steals a piece of fish from his mother. She punishes him by burning his hands with hot coals. It’s an extreme case of child abuse that has garnered a lot of attention in north central Liberia.
But that attention is unusual. Corporal punishment has been widely accepted in this West African country. Is that changing?
To listen to my AUDIO feature - CLICK HERE
To read my article - CLICK HERE

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Taking Center Stage in the Fight for Change

Note: When I first started reporting from Liberia, a friend of mine said "Please report Good News too!" So, this is part of a feature that I've called "On the Rise" and highlights Liberia's recovery or Liberians who are making a difference. In this story, you will meet three impressive young women who use drama to educate illiterate Liberians about the rule of law...

As the sun sits low in the sky over Palala, a village in central Liberia, a man uses a megaphone to call community members together. Three young women direct the growing audience into a circle, forming a dirt stage with a backdrop of mud-huts and laundry lines.
Precious Howard, Beatrice Flomo, and Felicia Vesee are members of a Carter Center-sponsored drama group, called the Modia Drama Club, which uses skits to sensitize rural and illiterate Liberians about the rule of law and human rights issues.
To read more, CLICK HERE

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Women Be Heard radio project...

Some of the Liberian women featured on-air during the rural radio project titled "Women Be Heard." Thirty audio vignettes were produced by rural radio reporters from five radio stations in Nimba County.
To Listen to female student Hawah Kpandewah CLICK HERE
To Listen to single mother Lydia Kondeh CLICK HERE
To Listen to rural women group leader Rebecca K. Messahn CLICK HERE

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WVR: Wheels of Justice

PHOTO: A Liberia National Police officer watches a motorcycle taxi pass him by. Police have no vehicles or resources to investigate rapes in remote villages.

A radio documentary that I produced for WORLD VISION REPORT:

The West African country of Liberia is still struggling to deal with the violent aftermath of its prolonged civil war. Rape was used as a weapon of war, and now, though the war has ended, Liberian women and girls are still suffering from rape at alarming rates. Most victims, however, are too poor to travel long distances for a medical exam or criminal trial, and police officers have no vehicles to investigate the crimes. And so many of these rapes go unreported and are never taken to court.
For the past year, a non-profit has been providing transport for taking these crimes to court — but funding is running out.
Listen to story on World Vision Report...

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Mob Justice...

An angry mob torches a government land-cruiser in Ganta, Liberia after it killed a motorcycle ‘taxi’ rider in a head-on collision.
The Toyota land-cruiser belonged to the Liberia Ministry of Health, and was reportedly transporting pharmaceutical drugs to the southeast region. The driver and occupants fled the scene, just minutes before a group of vigilantes lit it on fire. A police investigation concluded that the motorcyclist, Kingston Gborlay, known as "Sunday Boy," was driving recklessly. Six young men have been arrested for allegedly leading the mob.
For more information on Mob Justice, and its prevalence in Liberia, see this article by my friend and fellow journalist Rebecca Murray: When the Mob Prevails (IPS Africa)

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Women Be Heard...

WOMEN BE HEARD: Five radio stations in Nimba County, Liberia hosted a special all-day event on Dec. 3rd called "Women Be Heard." As a media trainer in northcentral Liberia, I spearheaded a project to include women in almost every radio program on-air for 15 hours, at five different radio sations. This is a huge breakthrough when one considers that women and girls rarely participate in community radio in rural Liberia.

Highlights of "Women Be Heard" included:
-- At Radio Kergheamahn, the host of the most-listened to morning program, "Breakfast Show," invited a woman to host it in his place.
-- At Radio Saclepea, five young women crammed into a sweltering studio to debate Inheritance laws, marital rape, and other hot topics.
-- At Radio Ylamba, school girls participated in a talkshow and call-in show about sexual exploitation in the classroom. It's common for male teachers to demand sex or cash for grades from female students.
-- At Voice of Tappita, the station tackled the controversial topic of whether 'women empowerment' is a good thing or breaks down traditional Liberian values.
-- At Radio Nimba, a female Human Rights Monitor was invited on-air to discuss some difficult topics, such as Female Genital Mutilation.

And, finally, through out the day, five radio stations aired 30 interviews with 30 women/girls to recognize 30 years of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.

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Prison Breakthrough

PHOTO: From inside Sanniquellie Prison, a pre-trial detainee pleads with Liberia's Minister of Justice and the head of the UN's Mission to Liberia as they toured the prison on Friday. The prisoner consented to this photo.
The overcrowded and disease-ridden detention facility in northcentral Liberia will finally be replaced with a new 72-bed prison, to be paid for by the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund. Currently, prisoners are crammed into a makeshift prison that was intended for 25 inmates but regularly houses 80 - 150 men and women. For a detailed account of the deplorable prison conditions, see my story Pre-Trial Punishment at Sanniquellie Prison. The new prison is scheduled for completion by February 2010, along with the training of 20 correctional officers. For photos of the "ground-breaking" ceremony, click here.

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On the rise... More students, New schools

New School for Liberia...
In a country where almost every school was destroyed or looted during a prolonged civil war, and schoolchildren today must sit on the floors of overcrowded classrooms, the nearly-finished construction of a modern institution is, undeniably, a beautiful sight.

On November 12, the UN Special Representative for the Secretary General, Ellen Margrethe Løj, toured the UNICEF-funded public school in Ganta, Liberia. Once completed, this nine-classroom government-run school will feature a science lab, health clinic, playground, football pitch, and school radio station, along with internet connection, solar panel energy, running water and latrines.

“We all agree children are the future,” said Margrethe Løj, head of the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) “There has been so much devastation.”

FOR MORE ON THIS, and a reality check on education in Liberia, click here.

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Women Be Heard...

This month I'm launching an exciting project to increase the participation of women and girls on community radio in north-central Liberia. I'm also going to post some of the content on-line and produce a report on the level of participation and barriers for women in community radio in rural Liberia. Stay tuned... (and see the first feature below on radio broadcaster Eleane Keamue)

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In her own words...and over the airwaves

PHOTO: 49-year old Eleane Keamue appeals to other Liberian women to speak out and share their opinion over the airwaves.

Liberian women are not shy when it comes to talking in the market, on the street, or around the cookstove. After all, this is a country where storytelling is deeply ingrained in the culture and debating issues is considered a national past-time. They are not as willing to speak out in public forums, and for that reason, women are scarcely heard over the airwaves of community radio in rural Liberia.

Eleane Keamue is one of only two women who regularly speak on-air at Radio Kergheamahn, the major radio station in Liberia’s second most populated city, Ganta. She’s a tireless volunteer and human rights advocate, and isn't shy in telling women and girls that their voices must be heard.

READ MORE ABOUT ELEANE KEAMUE AND WOMEN IN COMMUNITY RADIO...

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Riding Out Rainy Season in Liberia...

It's true that rainy season can mean mud and misery, but it can also be beautiful and invigorating. When I made the trip from Ganta to Sanniquellie to conduct a workshop for community radio reporters, several heavy rainstorms had turned the road into a red muddy soup. A simple trip became a long trek that required more hiking than riding, but with stunning scenery and a sense of adventure, it was a fantastic day nonetheless. TO SEE PHOTOS OF THE JOURNEY...

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Investigating Sex Scandals and Rape in Liberia

PHOTO: 61-yeard old Yenpul Paye maintains she was raped by an Associate Magistrate while in his custody.

When an Associate Magistrate in northern Liberia was accused of raping a 61-year old woman in his custody, high-powered officials got involved in the case. Now, a month later, the County Prosecutor says there is no rape case. Instead, he claims the impoverished farm woman Yenpul Paye has recanted her story and admits she negotiated “consensual sex” with the judge in exchange for freedom. In a country where the justice system is frequently tainted by corruption, bribery, and tampering - something doesn’t seem quite right. So, it’s onto a motorcycle and into the bush...to find Yenpul Paye.

READ MORE...

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