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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs |
LIBERIA: Disarmed fighters riot to demand cash payment
MONROVIA, 17 May 2004 (IRIN) - Ex-combatants loyal to former Liberian president Charles Taylor rioted for five hours in the capital Monrovia on Monday to demand the full payment of their US$300 resettlement grant.
Eyewitnesses said two persons were critically wounded as the former militiamen, armed with sticks, set up road blocks, smashed car windscreens and attempted to loot shops in the eastern Paynesville Red Light district.
This lies on the main road from the city centre to Liberia's international airport.
Armed Jordanian police officers attached to the UN peacekeeping force in Liberia fired tear gas and tried unsuccessfully to disperse the protestors.
The violent demonstration was finally broken up when reinforcements of UN peacekeeping troops arrived on the scene.
This was the second riot staged by pro-Taylor fighters in Monrovia in six months. Last December, nine people were killed when Taylor loyalists went on the rampage in Paynesville demanding cash up front for handing in their guns.
The United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) agreed then, as a temporary measure, to give them a US$75 advance on their $300 resettlement grant as they handed their weapons in, but the disarmament exercise was discontinued a few days later and was not resumed until mid-April.
UNMIL now pays former fighters $150 in cash following a week-long stay in a disarmament camp for screening, with the promise of a further $150 in three months time once they have returned to their home communities.
Those rioting on Monday demanded the immediate payment of the remainder of their resettlement allowance, complaining they had been waiting six months for the money to arrive.
"We want our money from UN now, since we disarmed in December, they only gave US$75 out of the US$ 300 they promised to give us," said Robert Saye, a former operational commander of the Jungle Fire militia unit.
"They have not even given our remaining $175 dollars making the part payment of US$150... We are angry and that is why we will cause stir for the UN to settle us", he added.
Andrew Mehnpaye, a former member of Taylor's elite Anti-Terrorist Unit, complained that the UN disarmament team was concentrating on settling the disarmament benefits of disarmed fighters belonging to the LURD and MODEL rebel groups.
"They are not better than we government forces. We should all be treated equally", he told IRIN.
A UN spokeswoman in Monrovia said she had no immediate comment on the disturbances, but was preparing a statement which would be released later.
Eyewitnesses told IRIN that the rioters in Paynesville closed down commercial activity in the eastern suburbs of Monrovia and caused passers by to run helter-skelter for safety.
The former soldiers were mobbed by angry crowd as they attempted to loot a wholesale store and two people were critically wounded in the incident, they added. One was a former combatant and one was a civilian.
"From what I saw, I do not think one of them- a boy would survive", one eyewitness disclosed.
General Roland Duo, a former senior military commander in Taylor's armed forces, tried to calm the rioting ex-combatants. But they reacted by stoning his vehicle, shattering its rear windshield.
Duo told IRIN that everything was being done to try and pay these men the money owed to them.
"Discussion is still going on with the authorities as to commence payment for those of our former fighters. We want them to remain calm. In the next few days all will be settled", Duo said.
[ENDS]
This material comes to you via IRIN, a UN humanitarian information unit, but may not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies. If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post this item, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Quotations or extracts should include attribution to the original sources. All materials copyright © UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2004
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