Some of My Favourite Recent Shots

Highlights of the Past....Two Weeks, well, actually Three Weeks

The 'L'-Party - on May 19

Theme parties are so much fun, aren't they? Well, I have to admit, I am not the greatest fan of them but from time to time I can handle them. Monrovia is a challenging environment in this way, as some people here are obsessed with theme parties. And believe me, here are some high level costume investors...not easy to catch up with. One recent theme party had the theme "L" - as it was the first letter of the birthday guy's first name. So we were supposed to dress as something starting with an "L". We did our best and as you can see, my roomies and myself got a little creative - there was 'Luxury' (final items were purchased during a quick stop-over at the second-hand and anything-else market - check the real diamonds attached to the shirt), then a very pretty 'Lighthouse' - again, check the jewelry; all unique, all handmade, and - as you can clearly see - a 'Learner' in a driving school. With real pen-pen rider glasses in red. Sweet-o!

LEITI Inter-High School Debate - on May 25
I have talked about the Liberian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) at least once before, when LEITI in cooperation with GIZ openend the first Resource Centre with plenty of literuature on Natural Resource Management and Governance. By then, I was already a big fan of the LEITI staff and enjoyed a lot working with them. And now, I am even a bigger fan.
In order to promote the resource centre among members of the target group (students, civil society, local media, general public) and also to raise awareness on extractive industries issues, LEITI decided to organise a high-school debate; inviting the debate teams (don't forget, you will  find a lot of US American ideas also implemented in Liberia - ties are strong) of four different high schools including their classes and have them debating about issues of transparency and accountability in the natural resource sector. I have to admit I was a bit sceptical in the beginning, if this will work out as planned, but it was legendary and so much fun. Eventually, all the students stayed for 7 hours more or less non-stop in a gym without proper windows, it was extremely hot and humid and a rat started running around and climbing up people's legs at some point - but everyone was happy.

The morning started with two short lectures from the National Investment Commission and CENTAL, the Liberian chapter of Transparency International on the governance challenges in the resource sector and what needs to be done to turn the recent discovery of oil in a success for the country.
After a typical Liberian lunch - fried fish with rice - the debate club entered the arena and for the next more than 3 hours, the students enthusiastically discussed questions such as "Is the current set-up of the LEITI steering group (the Multistakeholder Group, comprised of Government, Civil Society and Private Sector) advantageous?"; certainly always following the very strict debating rules. I was sitting in the jury for a while and it was very impressive. And by the end, when everyone was pretty much exhausted - there was a winner: The B. W. Harris Episcopal High-School from Monrovia. One of their team members was also found as being the "Most Valuable Player" and won a three-month-internship with LEITI.
Congratulations to LEITI - that was awesome!

Getting "fished out" - on May 30
While most of the experiences I have in Liberia are of positive nature, there are some things which are not that nice - and bulglary is one of them. Going to bed around midnight on Tuesday night, I woke up on Wednesday morning and found myself "fished out" - meaning that during the night, thieves came and fetched valuables through my window - including my cellphone with all my German numbers (please email your numbers!!!), my Suisse knive, some cash money and...my keys. They then used the keys to open our iron back door but luckily there were not able to open the following wooden door as I don't have these keys on my key chain and the door is also locked with additional iron bolts. The thieves gave up and disappeared with what they got. However, it is worth to mention that they were somehow considerate as they left the keys (also my office keys) behind when they could not use it, my emptied wallet (credit card and business cards still in) and my small Lappa bags where I had other stuff in. 
Our landlord reacted instantly (it was the third break-in into this building within 10 months...) and got people over to fix the windows with even more iron bars (living in Fort Knox now) and the security guys came to apologize. They did not hear anything as heavy rain was pouring down.
The police came later the day and "investigated" the case of criminal activity and afterwards made me pay 40 USD for "facilitating" the police report - I had to beg for a receipt, so draw you own conclusions on the legality of this money request...
Personally, I learned that I do not have such a light sleep as I always believed - I did not hear a single noise when the guys pulled the bags to the window and emptied them although my bed is only 50cm away. Well, but at least we know that our doors what doors are supposed to do - and I will never ever leave my keys on the desk.

Charles Taylor Trial is eventually over: 50 years in prison - on May 30
Also, on the more serious side, Liberia just experienced a historical moment:
Already on April 26, 2012 Charles Taylor, former Liberian president and dictator, was found guilty for 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity by the Special Court for Sierra Leone and on May 30, the final sentence of 50 years was announced.
Charley Taylor, who took over power in Liberia in 1990 by torturing and killing his predecessor Samuel Doe after six months of rebel war, used to country's vaste natural resources to lead the country into a 14years long civil war and is also responsible for fuelling the civil war which broke in Sierra Leone a bit later. He was eventually arrested in 2006 and has been waiting in the Hague for his trial to begin since then. For a very good overview of the events which led to his verdict can be downloaded here.
I will seize the opportunity to write on the reactions to the outcome of the trial in a different post - it would get too long here.


Liberian Basketball - on June 2

Last Saturday a friend of mine and I went to a basketball match which another friend had organised. He is a member of an organisation founded by Liberians who are aiming at supporting the development in their country. The basketball game was a charity event with all entrance fees etc. being used for the projects. It was great fun to see Liberians playing basketball as usually soccer is the dominant team sport here and you will find soccer fields (or places used as) just everywhere in the city, but barely a basketball court.


Ok, that's it for now. Germany - Portugal will be on in about 1.5 hours and it is time get ready. Thanks once again for reading and take good care of yourself.

PS: I will arrive in Germany in five weeks from today! :)

Random Impressions

Variety of sun glasses at Waterside Market. Pen-pen riders prefer the ones with the coloured frames in pink, red, green and turquoise. I got myself one with a red frame and figured that the glasses are so dark, you cannot really see anything anymore. So I set a new rule for myself: Don't let your pen-pen rider wear his sun-glasses when you are on his bike.







Below: My roomies and I. Yes, we look silly. But that is only because we went to a theme party. The theme was "L". So I turned into a Learner in a Driving School, next to me is a light house, and Lady Luxury is on the very left. We had loads of fun!








Below: Second hand market on Bushroad Island. Very close to water side market, just across the bridge (decide which one you want to use - the new or the new new one) there is the second hand market where you can find clothes you have even dreamt of. As well as the H&M collection of the past two years.


























To the right: Children at the Community Hall in a village in Bomi County. I joined our implementing partner, a Liberian NGO, for a meeting on local development planning in one of the communities we are working with. It was a really good day and helped me to better understand how the concepts, workplan and implementation strategies I discuss with our partner actually turn into practice.

I also gave my first radio / newspaper interview in Liberia, however, so far I could not find anything reported in the news. Maybe also because Bomi county radio cannot really count as a nation wide broadcasting station.

Maggie's beach, somewhere off Monrovia. We seized the opprotunity of a beautiful Sunday and escaped to the beach. When I got bored of just laying down, I took my camera and strolled around. And soon enough I found a swamp. And an egret.

Waterside market. I still wonder if there are more vendors or more buyers. It is a great organised chaos. If you know the market, you will easily find your way through as each part is selling some particular things. If you don't know the system you may search for hourse without finding what you are looking for. But believe me, by the end of the day, whatever you need, waterside has it. Sooner or later. Here or somewhere else.

Running Liberia

When I was a kid, I did not really like running over a longer distance. Unfortunately though this was the only discipline in lights athletics I had kind of potential, so I went along with that. And when I became older I learned to enjoy running and today, I feel stressed if I cannot run at least once in a couple of days. It is not that I like the idea of running so much, it is rather a great way to clear your mind and to get rid of pressure, anger and feelings of annoyment.

This is why I also run in Liberia. And to avoid to gain too much weight as the Liberian / Lebanese diet is not necessarily the most healthiest one you could ask for.

Running in Liberia though is extremely different from running at home. It starts with the climate. The only chance to run and not risking to experience a stroke, is to run early in the morning - like 6am-ish, when the sun just starts rising - or after 6pm, when the sun gets down. During the day, the heat and humidity are just too much to cope with at least for my spoiled German system. 

Running after 6pm so is also pretty challenging as  I usually won't come home from work before 6.45pm and soon after most parts of the town are pitchblack. And so are Liberians (no offense at all - it's a fact). You barely see them when running along the road and you also barely see the numerous potholes. As I prefer not to break my leg, I usually run early in the morning before work. 

It is the nicest time of the day. When I leave the house around 6.15am, the shanty town next to our building slowly wakes up and I greet my neighbours before I put on my music on high volume and start running.

Only few cars and pen-pens (motorbike) are on the roads and I have plenty of space. The guards at the several UN offices which I pass know me already and friendly wave when I run along.
In general, running is perfect to get to see a bit of daily life in Libera. The early morning hours are slow though: The first people get up to fetch water, others already find their way to work, dogs are stretching their legs and from time to time you hear a child cry.
I have one route where I pass the same neighborhood twice and when I come by for the second time, it is already around 6.45am and people are up. Then I usually get some applause (yeah, no kidding) and people congratulate me - "Good job, missy!" - or show their gratitude - "Thank you, missy!". I still wonder what they thank me for and at some point I will stop my run just to figure that out.

At Benson Hill, I always meet the same group of young Liberians. They climb the hill from the other side as I do and their side is much worse and way more exhausting. However, they don't only do it once (something I am only barely able to do); no, they do it ten times. Up and down, up and down....I always feel a little embarassed in particular as they always look fine while the color of my face had already turned into an intensive red. When I am lucky though, I reach the peak of the hill just in time to see a beautiful sunrise and then I forget about any embarassement and just enjoy the view.

This is running in the morning. At weekends though, I like to seize the opportunity to run around 6pm when the sun starts setting but there is still enough daylight for an hour. At this time of the day, the streets are crowded and it is almost an adventure to find your way through the people. Again, I hear a lot of "Thank you!" and "Good exercise!" when I pass street vendors and pen-pen riders. And I can smell Monrovia then. Almost every meter, there is a different smell in my nose - freshly fried plantain (banana) chips, roasted meet, exhaust fumes, human sweat, sea water breeze, fresh fish, garbage and certainly also human excrements. A functioning sanitation system is still missing and this smell is best indicator that the situation urgently needs to be changed.
Generally, I like this mix of smells as it brings Monrovia and the Liberians closer to me and it creates memories: By now, I actually now when on my route I should better lock my nose and only breath through my mouth to avoid unpleasant surprises.

The best thing on these early evening runs are the kids. They spend their weekend on the street, keeping themselves busy whatever they can find. For example, a white missy with a red face, who is just passing by. What else could be more fun than following her. In a group on five. Or ten. So sometimes when I turn around I just see this bunch of small kids running just behind me with big smiles on their faces. I always have to smile then as well and just hope, that they laugh with me and not at me. When I am in the mood, I slow down a little and we shake hands and give each other high fives. This only applied for very young children though. In general, Liberians are in great shape and older children can at least for a while keep up with my pace and are even faster than me. About a week ago, I ran along the beach and I passed a group of maybe 15years old girls. One of them challenged me and so we got into a race. She certainly beat me by far and I was completely exhausted afterwards, but it was just great fun.

Running in Liberia is a challenge - in particular for my system which is sometimes struggling hard not to collapse - but it is a great way to recharge the batteries and a very interesting way to discover the city. So I will keep running. I wished I would have some pictures which show what I am talking about but unfortunately running and takinga camera along is no good match. So this time words have to be enough. But next time there will be pictures. I promise.

Cheers for now and take good care!

Highly irritating perspectivce on Gay practice and rights...

....however, it is a call for applying only non-violent measures. This is certainly a good thing.

An Open Letter to Gays in Liberia (Gay-marriage will not hold!) – Part I 

Frontpage Africa Online, April 27

(http://frontpageafricaonline.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3022&catid=48&Itemid=121)

Dear Gays,

I am only greeting you with the hope that you will leave Liberia alone and go to a country where your rights as gays are guaranteed and protected. You will do the good people of Liberia Justice if you suspend and totally abandon your current gay-rights campaign. It is often said that the voice of the people is the voice of God. No one needs to tell you that the preference of the Liberian people is heterosexuality, and not homosexuality. I would appreciate if you respect the general view of market women, petit traders, taxi-drivers, pen-pen riders, students and all well meaning Liberians who have refuted this insane social order (homosexuality). I know it is not easy to accept the choice of the people, especially when it is not in your favor, but you have to, because this is what our society dictates. If gays are objective and honest enough to themselves, they will agree with me that our setting does not support this unpleasant misdeed. Our custom completely frowns on same-sex marriage. It is an open secret that man getting married to man in Liberia will not hold! I certainly don’t think that this is the kind of generational change we are hoping to achieve.

I find it very necessary to once again remind all gays and their advocates that Liberians are not ready and willing to accept any form of offer that will compromise the national culture and social dignity of the State for an act that is counter productive to the true existence of mankind. Be warned not to underestimate the commitment and determination of the people to publicly trash any bill that tends to make homosexuality legal. I wonder sometimes whether you (Gays) have critically reviewed the track records of Liberia on this matter. If you haven’t, it would be in your best interest to do so. Quickly, let me bring to your attention that since 1847, gay-marriage has not survived on this soil and will never. No number of tactics or persuasion from the quarters of so-called gays can twist our focus from the path of national development, reconciliation, and societal transformation.

It is unthinkable and ridiculous to have seen such an issue surfaced in the Liberian Republic. What baffles me the most is that majority of those who we have entrusted with public offices, including the President has not taken a definite stand on this matter. We are proud of the few public servants who have committed themselves to championing the cause of the anti-gay struggle. History will judge all public trustees who are still mute on this issue because they want to be decorated with international favor. I am confident that this is not the type of national vision our government is envisaging for the youthful generation before 2030.

One thing I can assure all gays is that our society will never fall prey to any kind of intimidation and coercion from the West. I know you still hold strongly to the conviction that one day you will have freedom to practice such a harmful transgression in Liberia. My appeal is that you drop that belief now, because there is no space in the moral closet and social bank of our common patrimony for such grave wickedness and unnatural phenomenon to take precedence. What difference does it make for another man to be used as a sex-machine for his male counterpart? The biggest question that currently exists in my mind is, who will we call our mothers and sisters? Will there be any distinction between a man and a woman? God forbid, this thing will never hold in Liberia!

I know you may want to argue that your right to choose who you want to marry is violated, but let me swiftly disabuse your minds that since the formation of this State, there has been no legal instrument that authorizes same-sex marriage. Why I find it most significant to protect and respect the rights of others, I have also pledged my unrestricted allegiance never to undermine the decency of the State. This is why my voice on this matter will remain sturdy. I will only stay quiet a bit if you denounce your current status and keep silent. If you have nothing to offer during this critical interval of national renewal and reconstruction, I beg your indulgence to refrain from distorting our destiny. Don’t take advantage of our leniency and economic condition by contaminating our moral fabric with abnormal attributes. We are proud to be who we are. We are comfortable with the culture we have. We are not prepared to photocopy any absurd lifestyle that will usher our nation’s pride and self-respect into total disgrace and degradation.

I am quite aware that some of you (gays) in Liberia have accepted to be used as sexual toy for others because of social, political and economic reasons. Some of you feel that it is the only means of climbing the social ladder, achieving political prominence, and maximizing wealth. Unfortunately, you have missed the mark by ignoring the demerits of this dreadful disease. I pity your condition sometimes for the horrible mistakes you have made. I know you had no other option at the time when poverty, ignorance, and peer-pressure kept knocking at your doorpost. Notwithstanding, it is not too late to make a U-turn.  The choice is yours to either stay as deviant sexualists or to find another positive way of survival. Wake up from your slumber, and stand up against gay activities. Is it rational to you for a man to become the wife of another man or for a woman to become the husband of another woman? Even animals know that this act is wrong. Do you need a rocket scientist to tell you that men were not created for men and women were not created for women? If so, you will continue to exist in the world of fantasy and stay long inside.

My foremost responsibility at this time is to defend the interest and aspiration of the Masses and all those who want to give up in our present struggle against homosexuality. The Masses Against Gay Activities in Liberia (MAGAL) is ready to spend sufficient time, effort, and resources to ambush any initiation of gay-rights bill in Liberia.  Our goal is definite. Our priority is plain. Until you can have regard for the many voices that have recognized how dangerous and detrimental gay-marriage is to the future existence of our common denominator, you will continue to receive unending lashes and condemnation from all sectors of the society. Have you (gays) taken into consideration the future of our children and the unanticipated masses? Do you hope for Liberia to become a country of gays and lesbians twenty (20) years from now? Are you envisioning to get wedded to your own brother one day? Is it your plan to see a man kissing another man at homes, high schools, universities, churches, mosques, workplaces, and public areas? Interestingly, you got to stop day dreaming, because neither Montserrado nor Maryland will accept the horrendous face of homosexuality. Beware to withstand the wrath of the people! Don’t overlook their disenchantments!

I wonder most often whether you really have conscience.  Is it normal to really alter your sexual orientation? What does being a gay add to your life? What kind of parenting will you provide? Are you true patriots and nationalists of Liberia? What legacy do you intend to leave? I suggest that you don’t allow cash violence and insensitivity to keep you where you are. You can become great without reducing your dreams to gayism and lesbianism.

The Masses Against Gay Activities in Liberia (MAGAL) uses this medium to reaffirm its devotion and diligence to the Liberian people and the anti-gay movement. We encourage all of our supporters, sympathizers, and well-wishers to always tread the path of non-violence in this matter. We promise to use the power of the pen at all times to defeat their unsubstantiated arguments. One thing I know for sure is that victory over homosexuality in Liberia is certain. As we remain on the corridor of national unity, economic expansion, social civility, and political development, we are cognizant of your plot to keep us down as a people. It would be prudent enough for you (gays) to disregard your fruitless campaign and help rebuild the nation. Nevertheless, if you have nothing to contribute at this crucial stage, just remain taciturn!

MAGAL encourages all gays to make reference to its recent fourteen page (14) article that was published in the FrontPage Africa Newspaper. The very next time I hear the voice of any gay, I am going to make public the first anti-gay book comprising of one hundred and fifty (150) pages to expose the inner agenda of all so-called gays in Liberia and discourage this distasteful deed (gay-marriage). A hint to a wise is quite sufficient. I will do a great disservice to the youthful generation of this country without making clear to them that ‘GAYS’ are Gangsters Against Youth Success!

Long live the anti-gay movement…Long live the Liberian People….Long live Lberia!! This thing will not hold!!

Martin K. N. Kollie, III.

National Chairman

Masses Against Gay Activities in Liberia (MAGAL)