Liberia - Are things turning around in this country at last?

Garpet's Groans

If you have a look at the article that is partially reproduced below you will note several things.

This war has been going on for 'decades'.

A female leader has taken over and within 15 months has demonstrated that she can make a difference. At least pumped water and electricity have made a reappearance.

There is a long way to go but this is the first time I have heard some good news from this area for a long time

I guess some of the questions I have are:

Where have the UN been while this country went through the decades of war and the killing of innocent civilians?

Why have we heard so little from our media and apparently cared so little in the past?

Why is it possible to get things working again in such a short time here and NOT possible in other locations like Iraq?

Why is it that good news like this tends to come from countries that have elected female leaders?

I wonder what the situation would be like if Israel once again had a female leader, and the Lebanese (who are NOT all fundamentalists Moslems in spite of what you may hear to the contrary) also dumped their male dominated leadership and did the unthinkable and elected women to their highest offices.

It could be that testosterone has a lot to answer for! See also my article (NOW WE KNOW)

From the BBC
"Liberia switches on street lights

By Jonathan Paye-Layleh BBC News, Monrovia

The street lamps will be powered by generators

Liberian leader Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf has switched on generator-powered street lights in the capital, which has been without electricity for 15 years.

She had promised to bring electricity to the whole of Monrovia within six months of assuming office in January.

"When I made this commitment... I was an outsider looking in," she said.

As Liberia celebrates 159 years of independence, every
effort is being made to ensure visible signs that life in the capital is improving.

On Tuesday, tapped water became available in the war-torn capital.

But after decades of misrule, Liberia's road network is
still in ruins, an there is no national telephone network and no
national electricity grid.

'Proud'

Mrs Johnson-Sirleaf won presidential elections last year
that ended a brutal 14-year civil war and promised to rebuild the
resource-rich country."