Liberia to build civil war memorial on Bali Island in 2027
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on The Liberian Investigator
Liberian President Joseph Boakai unveiled the prototype of the first national memorial for victims of the 1989-2003 civil wars, to be built on Bali Island in Monrovia from mid-2027. The project fulfils a 2009 recommendation by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission that remained dormant for nearly 20 years, according to the Liberian presidency.
Liberia will begin construction of its first national memorial dedicated to victims of the civil wars in mid-2027, on Bali Island in Monrovia, President Joseph Nyuma Boakai announced while presenting a prototype of the memorial wall at the Executive Mansion. The memorial will honour people killed during the conflicts from 1989 to 2003, according to a statement from the Executive Mansion.
Estimates of the number of people killed during Liberia’s civil wars range from tens of thousands to 250,000, according to Human Rights Watch. Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommended in 2009 the creation of memorials at massacre sites in every county capital, as well as a national day of remembrance and a special court to try those chiefly responsible for war crimes.
Boakai also said remembrance must be accompanied by justice. His government submitted a bill to Parliament on 20 May establishing a War and Economic Crimes Court, according to Human Rights Watch. The Senate subsequently approved in June a roadmap providing for a final review of the bill by a committee by mid-December, while Cllr. Jallah A. Barbu, executive director of the office responsible for establishing the court, said last month that lawmakers would not consider it until January 2027.
The announcement comes as war victims call for the creation of the special court, after years of waiting for the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. War victims call for a court in Liberia
