THE BUREAU OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Monrovia, Liberia

NEWS SUMMARY FOR THURSDAY, AUGUST 21, 2014

Today’s dominant stories include the Government’s clarification regarding the imposition of national curfew, the violence in Westpoint and World Lebanese Cultural Union’s donations to fight Ebola in Liberia among others.

DOMINANT STORIES 

Curfew Is Nationwide – Government Clarifies

The Government of Liberia has clarified that the curfew imposed by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to combat the Ebola virus is nationwide. The Liberian Leader had earlier announced the curfew for Montserrado County and certain communities especially West Point and Dolo Town that are infested with the virus. Speaking to journalists Wednesday, August 20, 2014 at the Ministry of Information, Deputy Information Minister for Public Affairs, Atty. Isaac w. Jackson indicated that the curfew is not only meant for the areas mentioned by the President, but for the entire country, The New Republic reports.

Related Caption: Govt. Imposes Curfew Throughout The Country – From 9:00P.M. To 6:00A.M., and Additional Measures(The Analyst), and Government Imposes Curfew In Liberia(FOCUS)

WLCU Donates Vehicles, Others To Fight Ebola

The World Lebanese Cultural Union of Liberia (WLCU) has donated a huge consignment of food and assorted items, including two pickups to the National Task Force on Ebola to help fight the deadly virus in Liberia.  Other food and assorted items donated by the WLCU included; 2000 bags of rice, 60,000 packs of biscuit, 4000 packs of juice, 40 pieces of bed, 2400 bottles of oil, 24,000 bottles of water and 4,800 bottles of chloride. The donation was made on Wednesday, August 20, 2014 at the compound of the General Services Agency (GSA) on the United Nations (UN) drive in Monrovia. Speaking during the donation, the acting President of he Union, Mr. Aballah Chahni, put the cost of the food and assorted items donated at over UsS$175, 000. Receiving the  donated items, the Director-General of the GSA, Madam Mary T. Broh, described the donation made by the WLCU as “generous”, Heritage reports.

Related Caption: Lebanese Union Donates To Ebola Fight(The NEWS), and 2 Trucks, $175,000 To Ebola Task Force – Lebanese Culture Union Makes Intervention(The Analyst)

Gunshots Fired In West Point As Govt. Quarantines Township

Gunshots were fired in the air as security forces (members of the armed forces and riot police) clashed with angry protesters on Wednesday as government quarantined the densely populated West Point Community as part of efforts to stop the further spread of Ebola. Angry residents of the slum community over the weekend stormed the Ebola isolation center and looted materials and food items, as many of the suspected patients flew the center. The patients, the government said have been found and relocated at the John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Sinkor, Monrovia. The clash between the security forces and angry youth from the slum community come as a curfew imposed by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf took effect at 9pm Wednesday night. As part of the measure the central market district, that is the Waterside  General Market situated between the Bushrod Island and the heavily congested slum community has been shut down by the government to ensure full compliance of  the curfew (9:00 pm to 6:00 am),   New Dawn reports.

  Related Caption: ‘Soldiers Have No Order To Shoot And Kill’(Daily Observer),Shooting In W/Point(New Democrat),Monrovia on Lock - Riots in W. Point; Protesters, Army, Police, Clash (FrontPage Africa), and West Point In Pains-Over Ebola Measures(The New Republic)

'No Shoot To Kill Order': Defense Chief On West Point Riots

All hell broke loose Wednesday when Police tried to rescue the commissioner of West Point and family from her home. Residents of the district besieged the house, trapping Aisha Flowers inside along with her sick and frightened mother.  As the Police backed by the army tried to get Flowers out, one angry resident said: “So y’all taking her and leaving us here? She must not come back here in West Point again, FrontPage Africa reports.

Related Caption: Defense Denies Shoot-And-Kill Order(IN PROFILE DAILY), No Shoot And Kill Order – Says Defense Ministry(The New Republic), No Shoot & Kill Order – Defense Ministry clarifies Report (The Analyst), Defense Clarifies (Inquirer)

Other stories

UN Ebola Czar Heads To West Africa

Reports say the UN’s new point man on Ebola said Tuesday he will travel to West Africa this week to shore up health services in the four countries hit by the worst-ever outbreak of the virus. British physician and public health expert David Nabarro also told reporters that he will be holding talks with the UN mission in Liberia on ways peacekeepers could help deal with the impact of the disease, New Dawn reports.

 123 Media Houses Receive Fuel Supplement

Press Union of Liberia (PUL) has distributed 3, 900 gallons of fuel to 132 media institutions across the country to enhance their capacity in creating public awareness, carrying out education and reporting on the deadly Ebola outbreak. The PUL said in the face of high economic realities and huge indebtedness to the media, the donation provided minimum production and broadcast support for media entities, the PUL said in a release issued in Monrovia on Wednesday. The LPRC, through its Managing Director T. Nelson Williams, contributed 2, 500 gallons for newspapers, televisions and urban radio stations, while the Coalition of Professional Organizations, through its head Maxwell Kemayan donated 1, 400 gallons for community radio stations throughout the country, IN PROFILE DAILY reports.

Related Caption: Media Houses Receive Fuel Supplement From LPRC(The Analyst)

Waterside Deserted, West Point Quarantined

The Waterside General Market located on U.N. Drive in Monrovia has been deserted as Liberian Government quarantined the Township of West Point. The market is just a stone-throw to the township. Armed security officers including the military and Liberia National Police were seen posted Wednesday at the entrance of the Township to ensure that nobody leaves or enters the area. The Liberian government has identified West Point as a hot spot for the deadly Ebola virus for which President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf ordered state security to quarantine the densely populated township.  Our reporter who visited the area said stores and other business centers were closed apparently afraid that their stores would be looted,FrontPage Africa reports.

Related Caption: Waterside Deserted, West Point Quarantined(The NEWS)

Red Cross Wants Another Crematorium For Ebola Bodies

The Liberia National Red Cross Society (LNRCS) says there is a need for the erection of another cremation center in order to fast track the collection of dead bodies in Montserrado and other counties. The Liberian Red Cross is heading the Ebola dead bodies’ management and collection as part of government’s Task Force on Ebola. The Secretary General of the Red Cross, Fayiah Tamba told a news conference that the side of the Lebanese Cremation Center, which is being used by the Task Force, is too small and can’t any longer host the number of dead bodies being collected daily by the Red Cross. Mr. Tamba said as a result, there is a serious delay in the collection of dead bodies, thus creating Public outcry that the Red Cross is too slow in collecting the bodies. The Liberian Red Cross Secretary General disclosed that the team collected 48 bodies on Saturday and 27 bodies on Sunday, but noted that all could not be cremated and as such the team could not go out in the field to collect new bodies. He said the situation is causing much delay for his team and stressed that here is a need for the government to build another cremation center in order to quickly react to the alarming death rate. Mr. Tamba also said the delay in the collection of dead bodies is also due to lack of cooperation from the communities’ members as some demand laboratory report the bodies before the team collects the bodies, according to the INSIGHT Newspaper.

Supt. Bans Canoes, Boats Entry In Cape Mount

The Insight Newspaper reports that the administration of Grand Cape Mount County has placed a temporary ban on all canoes and boats from Monrovia and other places entering the county. County Superintendent Imam Mohammed A.Paasewe disclosed the ban in an interview with the Liberia News Agency (LINA) Monday in Sinje Town, Garwula District. Paasewe said he has ordered the joint security in the county to arrest and prosecute canoe and boat owners who travel to Cape Mount in violation of the ban imposed by the administration. He said the action is advised by a recent media report that some unknown criminals broke into and looted the Ebola Holding Center established by the Ministry of Health for suspected Ebola patients in the Township of West Point in Montserrado County. He said the reported escape of patients at the center to unknown destinations has created fear and serious concern among citizens of Cape Mount County. Superintendent Paasewe explained that mutual understanding and cordial relationship has existed between Cape Mount and West Point over the years due to both communities' involvement in fishing. Meanwhile, according to Superintendent Paasewe, the administration and the County Health Team (CHT) have put in place measures to contain the spread of the deadly Ebola virus, and that he does not want the process to be interrupted by anyone. He appealed to citizens of the county to assist the joint security by reporting the movement of strange canoes and boats on the Atlantic Ocean and Lake Piso to avoid infiltration into the county.  

LNBA Aid GOL, Judiciary In The Fight Against Ebola

The Liberia National Bar Association-LNBA has donated a four-seated pick-up to the Liberian Judiciary to assist lawyers and legal practitioners in the carrying pro-bono services. During the commissioning ceremony, LNBA Boss Cllr. Theophilus C. Gould said the vehicle will assist the Liberian Judiciary especially when the need for efficiency and beefing up the strength of the National Judiciary. According to Cllr. Theophilus C. Gould, the vehicle will also be used also to transport lawyers and pro-bono services. Cllr. Gould also said that the vehicle will be used to carry on sensitization of citizens on the danger of the Ebola virus. The program which was attended by a host of LNBA Executive brought smiles on the faces of several officials of the Liberian National Bar Association, including LNBA Secretary General Cllr. Boakai Kanneh, Cllr. Moses G. Paegar who expressed smiles as the LNBA concluded. In another development, the LNBA recently commended the Supreme Court of Liberia for the massive awareness made during this epidemic of the Ebola outbreak in the country. The wake of the LNBA’s commendation comes when the country was facing a severe crisis which has caused the death of several persons, including Doctors and medical practitioners, reports the INSIGHT Newspaper.

YAI Steps Up Operations To Support Anti Ebola Efforts

The Executive Director of Youth Action International (YAI) Dr. Kimmie Weeks has announced that his organization has increased funding allocations and operations in Liberia in support of efforts to curb the spread of the Ebola virus in Liberia.     Weeks says that his organization in collaboration with key international partners including Spryte Loriano Global, Waves4Water, The Messengers Network, the Burt Family Foundation, Kellogg Innovation Network (KIN) and a host of others will work on a series of new initiatives, which are expected to have a significant impact on efforts to eradicate new cases of the deadly virus. Dr. Weeks outlined that at the grassroots level, the organization will begin training close to 400 of its teachers to form part of community awareness efforts.  The organization is an international organization based in the United States and has implemented projected in Burundi, Liberia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, and Uganda, pens the INSIGHT Newspaper.

Security Tightened At Entry Points….In Southeastern Liberia

According to The News Newspaper, in an effort to keep the southeastern counties safe from the deadly Ebola virus, security officers at every entry point are vigorously enforcing the recently announced measures by the Liberian government.    Recently, the government ordered the mounting of checkpoints at the borders between Nimba and Bong counties on one hand and Nimba and Grand Gedeh Counties on the other hand.  The exercise, according to security officers and health workers at these checkpoints, is intended to prepare for what needs to happen when contact tracing becomes necessary.   A News Newspaper reporter who visited River Gee, Maryland and Grand Kru counties said all motorcyclists and their passengers are asked to wear long sleeves shirts and long trousers or skirts to avoid skin contacts.

Man Admits To Murder

Defendant Momo Musa stunned his audience in court Wednesday when he admitted to killing his neighbor in a fistfight in Brewerville last year. The victim, Aaron Kollie was allegedly chopped with a cutlass on the left rib bone, resulting to his death. However, after the defendant pleaded guilty to the crime of murder, Judge Johannes Zhlain entered a plea of guilty on behalf of the defendant. Taking the stand as first state witness, Abu Daramy told the court that his office received a call on November 14, 2010 that a homicide had occurred in Brewerville.  Witness Daramy, who described his job description as Chief of the Crime Unit at the Liberia National Police, testified that upon arrival on the crime scene, Kollie’s body was lying at the Brewerville Hall Town. The state witness said during police preliminary investigation conducted with the defendant, it was established that a quarrel broke out between the defendant and victim after entertaining themselves with alcoholic beverages. Witness Daramy informed the court that when the defendant knew that he had killed Kollie, he (defendant) fled the crime scene but was later arrested at Duala, reports the News Newspaper.

Ebola Outbreak Delays Mercy Ships

The Focus Newspaper reports that the collateral hardship from the Ebola epidemic now includes a delay for Mercy Ships, which operates the world's largest civilian hospital ship in ports on the West Coast of Africa. Already with one canceled deployment to Guinea, where Ebola first broke out last December, the Mercy Ship now waits in the water with crew and staff, pending an end-of-August decision on field service in Benin. The Mercy Ship was due to sail for the port of Cotonou, Benin, for its 10-month field service last week but has delayed that sail pending further assessment due to the virulence of the outbreak in neighboring Nigeria. Earlier, in April, Mercy Ships made the difficult decision to cancel the hospital ship's planned deployment to Guinea, where the Ebola outbreak began last December. Currently docked in the Canary Islands, following the vessel's annual maintenance phase, the 16,500-ton Mercy Ship is designed to deploy specialized surgical expertise and educational support. It is unequipped to treat viral epidemics, according to the charity's president and founder Don Stephens. In the meantime, our prayers go out to all those affected by this terrible epidemic, especially those in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Nigeria. Docking in an African port, the ship brings high-tech equipment, state-of-the-art facilities, highly skilled doctors, free specialized surgeries, healthcare training including instrument sterilization and disease prevention, agricultural training and more.

Ellen  Opens Ebola Information, Sanitation Station

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Wednesday, August 20, dedicated an Ebola information and Sanitation Station that is designed to disseminate Ebola related information as well as provide community members with sanitary tips and services. The information station is an initiative of Coalition of Liberian Professionals, the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Monrovia City Corporation (MCC) and other entities.  Mayor Clara Doe Mvogo, welcoming the Liberian President to the site, said that the initiative is meant to buttress government’s efforts in the fight against the deadly Ebola virus, Daily Observer reports.