Seventeen years after the establishment of the Liberia Massacre Survivors Association (LIMASA), survivors and families of victims of Liberia’s civil wars are renewing calls for justice, reparations, historical remembrance and stronger institutional guarantees that the atrocities of the past will never be repeated.
The appeal came during LIMASA’s 17th anniversary celebration held under the theme, “Restoring Hope and Seeking Justice for Victims and Survivors of the Liberian Civil War.”
The anniversary brought together LIMASA Executive Director Peterson Sonyah, members of the organization’s leadership, survivors and relatives of victims, representatives of government, civil society, the diplomatic community, religious and traditional leaders, journalists and other stakeholders, including Dr. Jallah A. Barbu, Executive Director of the Office for the Establishment of the War and Economic Crimes Court for Liberia (OWECC-L), and prominent Liberian statesman Cllr. TiawanSayeGongloe.
The keynote address delivered by the Vice President of the Association of Female Lawyers of Liberia Cllr. Bowoulo Taylor Kelley placed the experiences of survivors at the center of Liberia’s continuing national debate over accountability and reconciliation.
Cllr. Kelley described LIMASA’s 17-year journey as more than an organizational anniversary, calling it “seventeen years of courage” by survivors who have refused to allow the memory of Liberia’s dead and wounded to disappear.
“Seventeen years of turning tears into testimony, grief into advocacy, and pain into a national call for truth, healing, and justice,” she said.
Liberia endured two civil wars between 1989 and 2003 that lasted approximately 14 years and claimed the lives of almost 250,000 people, predominantly civilians, according to the United Nations.
The conflicts left widespread destruction, displacement and deep psychological trauma across the country.
The AFELL’s Vice President emphasized that although the guns eventually fell silent, the consequences of the war continue to affect survivors and families decades later.
“For many survivors, the war did not truly end when the guns fell silent,” she stated pointing to nightmares, physical scars, bereavement, poverty, broken families and the long-term consequences of growing up without parents.
Madam Kelley called for national remembrance of those killed during the conflicts, including victims whose names remain unknown.
“Mothers and fathers never came home.
Children waited at doorsteps for voices they would never hear again.
Communities where laughter was silenced, homes were burned, families were scattered, and the soil of our beloved Liberia absorbed the blood of innocent people,” the Keynote Speaker added.
She further argued that the suffering of survivors should not be treated as a marginal chapter of Liberia’s history.
“Their pain is not a footnote in our history.
It is part of the soul and conscience of this nation,” Cllr. Kelley declared.
The anniversary also called for a moment of silence in honor of those killed during Liberia’s civil conflicts and survivors who died while waiting for justice.
Under the anniversary theme, LIMASA stressed that restoring hope must involve concrete policies rather than ceremonial declarations.
Cllr. Kelley in her Keynote address identified healthcare, trauma-informed counseling, education, livelihood assistance, support for widows and orphans, assistance to persons living with war-related disabilities, support for elderly survivors, dignified memorials, preservation of testimonies and reparations as critical components of a survivor-centered recovery process.
“Hope is not a slogan,” she said. “Hope is the hand that lifts a survivor from loneliness.
Hope is a clinic that treats an old wound with compassion. Hope is a counselor who listens without judgment.”
The call comes amid continuing concerns over the absence of a comprehensive national reparations program.
A United Nations human rights review noted that Liberia had not established such a scheme and that victims had not received comprehensive reparations since the end of the conflict in 2003.
A major focus of Cllr. Kelley’s address was the relationship between justice and national reconciliation.
She rejected the notion that accountability would necessarily undermine peace, arguing instead that reconciliation without justice could leave victims carrying another burden.
“Reconciliation without justice can feel like another burden placed on the backs of victims,” the AFELL’s Vice President said.
Cllr. Kelley in her Keynote address maintained that justice, when pursued fairly and according to law, should not be viewed as revenge but as a reaffirmation of the value of human life and the principle that no individual should be beyond accountability.
Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, established following the 2003 peace agreement, issued more than 200 recommendations in its final report released in 2009.
Among its most significant recommendations was the creation of a special criminal court to prosecute individuals bearing the greatest responsibility for serious violations committed during the conflict.
That recommendation remained largely unimplemented for years.
The keynote address comes at a significant moment in Liberia’s long-running debate over war crimes accountability.
In 2024, President Joseph Nyuma Boakai established OWECC-L through Executive Order No. 131 to lead preparations for the establishment of a War and Economic Crimes Court and a National Anti-Corruption Court.
The mandate was renewed in May 2026 through Executive Order No. 164.
In May, President Boakai received draft legislation for both courts and subsequently transmitted the proposed bills to the National Legislature for consideration and enactment.
The proposed War and Economic Crimes Court is intended to address serious crimes associated with Liberia’s conflicts, while the National Anti-Corruption Court would focus on corruption and economic crimes.
The government has also allocated US$2 million annually to the office responsible for establishing the courts, with the funding structured as a grant line within the Ministry of Justice budget.
But as of August 2026, the proposed legislation had yet to be enacted, with OWECC-L publicly urging the Legislature to move forward with the bills.
Cllr. Kelley cautioned, however, that establishing a court alone would not heal Liberia’s wounds.
“Healing requires more than judgments and documents,” she said, emphasizing the need for survivors to feel safe enough to speak, communities to mourn with dignity and children to learn Liberia’s history without inheriting hatred.
She called for survivor participation throughout the justice process, stressing the importance of privacy, informed consent, safety and psychological well-being.
“Justice done without survivors is justice only half done,” she declared.
The anniversary address issued a four-point national call to action.
Cllr. Kelley urged authorities and stakeholders to listen to survivors through regular consultations across counties, ensuring meaningful participation by women, young people, persons with disabilities, rural communities and families of victims.
At the same time, she called for reparations and comprehensive care, including healthcare, psychosocial services, education, livelihood assistance and community rehabilitation.
Moreover, the Anniversary speaker demanded greater efforts to preserve truth and memory, including protection of massacre sites, dignified memorials and ethical documentation of survivor testimonies.
She also called for a national culture of non-recurrence, including institutional reform, stronger civic education, accountability and measures to prevent political differences from once again becoming a justification for violence.
Cllr. Kelley urged President Boakai’s administration and the National Legislature to make survivor-centered justice a national priority supported by legislation, funding and measurable implementation.
The Legislature was specifically urged to enact the bills establishing the War and Economic Crimes Court and National Anti-Corruption Court.
The government was also encouraged to provide adequate and timely financial support to OWECC-L as it continues preparations for the proposed institutions.
International partners, meanwhile, were urged to provide long-term technical and financial assistance, including support for witness protection, trauma care and institutional development, while respecting Liberian ownership of the accountability process.
Civil society organizations and the media were encouraged to document the conflict responsibly, challenge misinformation and amplify survivor voices without exploiting their suffering.
The keynote speaker praised LIMASA for sustaining advocacy for 17 years despite the enormous emotional and social burden carried by survivors.
The organization was described as a platform that has helped keep alive the memories of victims while reminding Liberia that survivors should not be viewed solely through the lens of victimhood.
“Survivors are not symbolling of weakness; survivors are witnesses, teachers, guardians of memory, and builders of peace,” the she said.
LIMASA was encouraged to expand survivor networks across Liberia, strengthen partnerships, preserve testimonies ethically, promote healing and build bridges between survivors, communities and state institutions.
Its leadership was also urged to ensure that the organization remains nonpartisan, inclusive and transparent, with its work firmly rooted in the dignity and rights of survivors.
Cllr. Kelley address concluded with a powerful appeal for Liberia to confront its past rather than bury it.
“Liberia’s future will not be secured by forgetting its past,” she said.
“A nation does not heal by covering its wounds; it heals by cleaning them, treating them, and refusing to let them become infected by silence.”
The speaker acknowledged that no justice process could return loved ones lost during the war or restore every childhood destroyed by violence, but argued that the country could honor the dead by protecting survivors and strengthening institutions capable of preventing future atrocities.
“Let this anniversary be more than a date on the calendar. Let it be a turning point,” the she added.
The address ended with a renewed pledge to victims and survivors: “We will remember you; we will listen to you; we will stand beside you; we will seek the truth; we will pursue justice; and together, with God’s help, we will restore hope
