Liberia A country struggling from the effects of civil war

Table of Contents Introduction – Facts on Liberia History of the Liberian civil war Literature review Possible solutions Conclusion References Introduction – Facts on Liberia Liberia is a country located on the shores North Atlantic Ocean in West Africa. Covering an area of 43,000 sq. miles and having a population of around 3.49 million people, its capital city is Monrovia, which has a population of 1.01 million. In addition, the country’s annual economic growth rate as at 2008 was 2.1%.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Liberia: A country struggling from the effects of civil war specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Unlike most African countries, Liberia was never officially colonized; it became a republic in 1847, having been established by slaves who had been sent to the country from the US after being set free. Liberia therefore regards the United States of America as its pseudo-col onialist. There are 16 indigenous tribes in Liberia with the most dominant group being the Kpelle accounting for about 20% of the population. There are also â€Å"descendants of freed slaves that arrived in Liberia after 1820, who make up less than 5% of the population† (US Department of State, 2010). The population of Liberia is predominantly Christian (85%) with Muslims forming a sizeable percentage, 12% (US Department of State, 2010). Moreover, the official language of Liberia is English. Liberia’s mainly depends on agriculture, with rubber being its cash crop. For many years, Liberia was among the stable countries in Africa until the onset of the civil war, which ravaged the country and brought it onto its knees. The country is now trying to recover from the devastating war, with political reforms being put in place. Liberia held its first democratic elections in November 2005, with Ellen Johnson Sirleaf emerging victorious to rule the nation and become the pioneer African woman to head country democratically elected. History of the Liberian civil war Since the inception of Liberia as a republic, it has been ruled mainly by the Americo-liberians. This is despite the fact that they account for less than 5% of the population. This group created legislation, which ensured that they remain in power. They ensured that the members of indigenous communities could not be allowed to vote until 1946 when the law was repealed. However, the domination of the americo-liberians continued until â€Å"1980 when a group from the indigenous Krahn tribe, led by Samuel Doe, staged a military coup against the government† that was led by William Tolbert, an Americo-liberians (Insight on Conflict, 2010). In a surprise turn of events, Doe put to death William Tolbert and many other officials of his government who were mainly americo-liberians and aided in the formation of Peoples Redemption Council (PRC), a party of the indigenous Liberians. This party ousted the True Whig Party, which had been in leadership since the inception of the republic (US department of state).Advertising Looking for research paper on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, Doe’s subsequent rule was characterized by very cruel oppression of political opponents and general nepotism towards his ethnic tribe of Krahn. The favoritism of the Krahn tribe created ethnic tensions between them and other ethnic groups. Doe continued to rule the country until its invasion from Ivory Coast by Charles Taylor, former minister in Doe’s government. By early 1990, Taylor controlled much of Liberia but Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) prevented him from seizing Monrovia. In fact, the power struggle between Taylor and Doe created a very bloody civil war (US department of state, 2010). ECOWAS facilitated a peace agreement, which led to the formation of a five-man transition government , leading to disarmament and eventually elections on 19th July 1997 (US department of state, 2010). Charles Taylor’s National Patriotic Party worn the elections by collecting 75%; however, democracy led to increased ethnic tensions in the groups, which were loyal to the opponents of Charles Taylor. At the same time, Taylor’s support for a rebel faction involved in the Sierra Leone civil war, the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), led to regional tensions. This later led to renewed violence in Liberia. The second civil war was ignited by conflict between the Liberians for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) group and the local community; however, the government could do little to quell the situation as a result of sanctions, a situation that accelerated the spread to the strife in the country killing dozens of citizens. This culminated in the eventual resignation of Taylor in 2003 after he had lost control of about two thirds of Liberia leading to the arrival of peacekee pers to quell the heavy fighting in the capital Monrovia. Taylor was thereafter put to trial in Sierra Leone due to his support of the RUF, which was involved in the Sierra Leone civil war (Insight on conflict, 2010). Among the root causes of the first civil war in Liberia was ethnicity between the tribes of Liberia. This problem was first cultivated by the americo-liberians who founded the state of Liberia. They denied the indigenous tribes the right to vote in elections and put in place other legislations, which generally oppressed the indigenous Liberians. This was despite the fact that they were not indigenously Liberians and accounted for a very small percentage of the total Liberian population Literature review Many different scholars have studied the civil war in Liberia and proposed different causes of the conflict. One such explanation of the Liberian civil war is the ethnic theory. The country was divided into the americo-liberians and 16 indigenous groups. The people who controlled the country both politically and economically were the americo-liberians; and each of the groups had its own institutions, cultures, and values, as well as motives.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Liberia: A country struggling from the effects of civil war specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The americo-liberians wanted total political and economic control of the country despite the fact that they formed less than 5% of the total population of the country. In addition, the americo-liberians dominated the political and economic aspects of Liberia from 1847-1980. However, they were succeeded by another ethnic community, the Krahn, which dominated the country from 1980-1999. Moreover, each of the groups that was in power tried to benefit only people from the same ethnic group (Kieh, 2008, p18). Another explanation of the causes of civil war in Liberia is known as the settler state theory. This theo ry classifies the Liberian community into two groups: the settlers and the indigenous group. The settlers, the americo-liberians, came from abroad and their main agenda was to establish domination in the country where they settled. The settlers saw themselves as superior to the indigenous group. They tried to make the indigenous group conform to their cultures and termed the cultures of the indigenous group as backward. After the indigenous groups accepted the cultures of the settlers, they formulated laws to help them acquire land and have general domination over the indigenous group. The settlers also gradually become autonomous from the mother nation, and then established systems to advance their general agenda (Kieh, 2008 p25). Both these theories have been used to explain the causes of Liberian civil war. However, these theories are not correct; one important point to note is that in both cases, the theories explain that the civil war is caused by general inequality in the Libe rian society with some groups of people being superior to others. The levels of inequalities between the americo-liberians and the indigenous communities are very high in Liberia. Indeed, the americo-liberians control a large part of the social, economic, and political spheres of the Liberian society. Possible solutions Many countries in Africa have had civil wars including Angola, Congo-Kinshasa, Congo-Brazzaville, Sierra Leone, and Ivory Coast, with Angola having had the longest civil war in Africa (Handelman, 2010). However, depending on how a country tackles the challenges posed by civil war, it may be the springboard for a nation’s path to prosperity. Many countries have emerged even stronger after being on the brink of total collapse due to civil war. For instance, the American civil war helped America to become even stronger politically and economically. Immediately after the war, measures were taken to ensure equality of blacks who were considered inferior to the whit es. This was through the enactment of various legislations by the state, with the thirteenth amendment to the constitution (1865) abolishing slavery.Advertising Looking for research paper on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The congress then passed legislation to ensure that the blacks had more freedom (the civil Rights Act). This gave the blacks the freedom to enter into contracts, own property and bear witness in court, as well as giving the blacks more economic and political freedom. These and other legislations allowed the states that had left the Union to come back to the union, the result of which was consolidation of peace and prosperity of the United States of America. To reduce the probabilities of occurrence of civil war the government must be able to fully tackle the underlying problems that led to the civil war so that there may be long-term prosperity. In Liberia, the greatest problem has mainly been lack of ethnic equality and fair distribution of resources. These are the main factors that led to the first and second Liberian civil wars. However, the government must first tackle the immediate problems that the country faces due to the prolonged civil war. Disarmament of the youth should b e among the priorities of the government. The government must also devise means of integrating these youths into the community to avoid recurrent violence; for instance, the youth must be taught how to coexist peacefully with other members of the community (Youth in Humanitarian Crises, 2010). The government must also create ways of rebuilding the infrastructure, which was destroyed by the war. These include transport and communication systems, electricity, and improvement in security. However, the most important measure to guarantee prosperity would be the enactment of legislation, which gives economic and political freedom to the population. This would ensure peace and therefore help in attracting foreign investors into the country, thereby helping in job creation and reduction of other problems caused by the war (Radelet, 2007, p 8). The government must also ensure that there is peace and security, in addition to revitalization of the economic activity. Primarily, the majority of Liberians are dependent on agriculture for their income, with rubber being the main cash crop. Therefore, the government should move in quickly to restore the agricultural production in the country through subsidies and other viable agricultural policies. This will not only enhance food supply in the country, but also create jobs for ex-fighters, refugees, and youth. The opening up of the economy through the reduction of barriers to trade will lead attraction of investments in manufacturing and services industries. This will create jobs for both skilled and unskilled people while at the same time enhancing exports, thereby enabling the government get the much-needed foreign exchange. Finally, the government should strengthen the governance and establish the rule of law in the country, strive to create an efficient civil service and eradicate corruption and impunity. The government should also strengthen the judiciary and parliament so that the two may act as foundation for the rule of law (Radelet, 2007, p 9). Conclusion Most third world countries have at one time of their existence either had a civil conflict or are still in a state of civil war. Therefore, civil war presents a major setback for most third world countries in achieving economic and political prosperity. These countries must therefore be able to understand the reasons of civil war in order to avoid them at any cost. Since most third world countries have had the experience of civil war at one time of their existence, how they tackle their post civil war problems determines so much about their future path to prosperity. This will also apply to Liberia, a country that is currently recovering from the pangs of civil war that had significant and adverse effect on its socio-economic and political environments. References Handelman, H. (2009). The challenge of Third World development: NJ: Prentice Hall – Pearson. Insight on conflict. (2010). Conflict Profile: Liberia. Web. Kieh, G. K. (2008). The first Liberian civil war: the crises of underdevelopment. Lang publishing. Web. Radelet, S. (2007). Reviving Economic Growth in Liberia Working Paper 133. Centre for Global Development. Web. US Department of State. (2010). Background Note: Liberia. Web. Youth in humanitarian crises. (2010). Liberian youth and post conflict transition. Web. This research paper on Liberia: A country struggling from the effects of civil war was written and submitted by user Steven M. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

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Critically assess the extent and character of the impact of digital Essay

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How to Get a Good Community Service Letter 4 Steps to Follow

How to Get a Good Community Service Letter 4 Steps to Follow SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Have you done some volunteer work or community service and want to get a letter that shows how many hours you've completed and what jobs you did? Or maybe you need a community service letter to apply for a scholarship, job, or to a particular college? Do you know who you should ask to write the letter and what it should include? Read on to learn what a community service letter is, why it’s useful, and how you can get a great one written for you. What Is a Community Service Letter and Why Would You Need One? A community service letter is a letter that explains where you did your community service, how many hours you worked, and what duties and responsibilities that work included. It may also include additional information, such as the dates you worked, if you had a specific job title, and contact information from the organization. There is no standard format for a community service letter, so what they look like and the amount of information they include can vary widely. Some letters are little more than a form with a few lines that your supervisor signs. Others are more like a standard letter of recommendation and can be several paragraphs long, explaining in detail the work you did and what your personal strengths are. What Is a Community Service Letter Used For? A community service letter provides proof that you completed volunteer work, and it also gives more information on what duties and responsibilities that work included. Having that information can be useful for multiple situations, including the following: College Applications If your community service work was particularly important for you, for example, if you spent a significant amount of time at one location, worked for an organization that is in the same field as your future career, or reference your community service work in other parts of your application, then you may want to attach a community service letter to your college application to provide proof of your volunteer service and give more information about your work. Scholarships There are many community service scholarships available, and some require a letter or proof of your community service as part of the application. Resumes If you include your community service work on your resume (which you should, many jobs count volunteer work as work experience), attaching your community service letter gives the employer more information about your work, as well as a way for them to contact the organization. Graduation Requirements Some high schools require students to complete a certain amount of community service hours before they graduate, as do some extracurricular organizations, such as certain chapters of the National Honor Society. Your community service letter provides proof that you completed those hours. Some high schools require community service in order to graduate, or to graduate with honors Now that you know what a community service letter is and when you may need one, read on to learn about the steps you should take in order to get a great letter. #1: Get Strong Community Service Experiences It may seem obvious, but the better your community service experience, the stronger your community service letter will be. They are multiple ways to get solid community service experience: Volunteer Primarily With One Organization Having a strong community service letter from one place that goes into detail about the work you did is better than having a bunch of letters that show you did a couple of hours of work, then moved on to the next organization. Sticking mostly to one location shows dedication and commitment, and it allows the people writing your letter to go more into detail about you and the work you did. Volunteering often at one place may also lead to increased responsibilities, which will strengthen your letter because it shows that you are gaining more skills and are seen as trustworthy and responsible. Get to Know Your Supervisors and the People You Work With You should make it a point to regularly make small talk with the people you’re around while volunteering. This includes supervisors, other workers, and any people you may be helping. The person writing your community service letter will always be able to write a stronger letter if they actually know you because they will be able to include more details about your personality and skills. Work at a Place You Care About While you may think that some places are â€Å"better† or more impressive to work at, what’s really most impressive to schools and employers is you showing a passion for the organization you volunteer for. Even if you have a volunteer experience that you think is very impressive, if you don’t particularly enjoy it or care about the issue much, this will show when you are asked to speak or write about it for applications or jobs. For example, if you volunteer for, say, a video game conference and put in a lot of time and got a lot of the community involved in participating, this will be more impressive because your community service letter will show that you’ve done more work, and the person writing the letter will be able to discuss your evident passion and dedication to the job. #2: Think About Who You Should Ask to Write Your Letter Who you ask to write your letter will depend on both what the letter should include as well as any restrictions the place you are sending the letter to has. Your first step should be to check with the school, scholarship, or job you’re submitting the letter to in order to see if they have requirements for who can write your letter. Your supervisor is mostly likely the person you'll ask. Many scholarships and colleges require your supervisor or another person working above you to be the person who writes your letter. Your supervisor is a great person to ask because they have a good idea of the work you've done and usually know you pretty well. However, there may be some circumstances when you don't interact with your supervisor much, for example, if they work mostly weekdays, and you volunteer on weekends. This isn't a problem if you only need a short letter that lists your duties and when you volunteered; your supervisor can still write that even if they don't know you well. If you need a more in-depth letter that describes your personality and specific examples of your work, and you don't have a close relationship with your supervisor, you may want to ask someone else to write your letter. Only do this if the person or place you are submitting your letter to allows it! If you are able to submit a letter written by someone other than your supervisor, ask a coworker or someone else you worked closely with and who knows you and the work you did well. It's personal details that separate good community service letters from great ones, so you want someone who can recount specific anecdotes and examples of your work. You may also be able to have a coworker write your letter and your supervisor sign it, verifying that the information is correct. In any case, don't just choose your best friend at community service to write your letter. You want someone who can write professionally about the work you did and explain clearly why you are a strong worker. It will most likely be your supervisor or boss who writes your community service letter #3: Ask Them! Once you have decided who you want to write your community service letter, the next step is to ask. If all you need is a short form filled out, this will not be a big deal, and your supervisor may be able to complete it right then and there. However, if you need a longer, more detailed letter, you will want to give the person writing your letter enough time to complete it, so try to ask them early. At least a month before the letter is due is ideal. You should ask for a letter in person. It's more personal and mature, and it gives you an easy way to set up a follow-up meeting (see the next section). As for what exactly you should say, there are a lot of ways to ask. One example is: "I've really enjoyed doing community service work here and learning new skills and meeting new people. I'm applying to a scholarship/job/college and need to submit a reference letter from my community service, and I'd be flattered if you would be willing to write me a strong letter." After you've asked, make sure you also give the person writing your letter all the information they need to submit a great letter on time. If there are any specific instructions they need to follow, make sure they have them. Also, make sure they know when the letter needs to be completed. If they will be sending the letter themselves, remember to provide them with the proper mailing address or e-mail address. Want to provide a strong recommendation for your employee, but don't have the time to craft the perfect letter? PrepScholar's new recommendation tool, SimpleRec, takes you from good intentions and a blank page to a fully written and formatted letter of recommendation in under 5 minutes. All you need to do is give us some simple pieces of information about your employee and your experience working with them, and we'll do the rest. Try out SimpleRec risk-free today: #4: Discuss What You'd Like to Be Included in Your Letter As mentioned previously, community service letters can vary widely in length, content, and format. After you ask your supervisor or coworker to write you a letter and they agree, ask to set up a time to discuss what information you would like the letter to include. You may only need them to state the number of hours you completed and list what your duties were. However, if you’re using this letter as a way to give an employer or school more details about your personality and strengths, you will want the letter to include more. Talk to the person writing your letter about what you’d like them to write about. Sample ideas include: Details of any major projects you worked on. Specific examples of you going above and beyond expectations. Specific examples of you working well with others. Particular work you did that you’d like to be emphasized (for example if having those skills or experiences will be useful for a future job or class). Final Things to Remember Before you ask for a community service letter, remember to think about what information you’d like the letter to include, and how in-depth you’d like it to be. After you receive your letter, double-check it to make sure all the information is correct, including the number of hours you worked and when you worked them. Many organizations have multiple volunteers working for them, and it can be easy for information to get mixed-up. Send your supervisor or co-worker a thank you note after they complete your letter. Make copies of the letters you receive so that you can use them for multiple college, scholarship, or job applications if you need to. What's Next? Are you applying to a community service scholarship? Many of these scholarships are quite competitive; fortunately, we have a guide that gives you all the tips you need to maximize your chances of winning these scholarships. Do you need other letters of recommendation? Read our complete guide on how to ask for a letter of recommendation to ensure you get the strongest letters possible. Do you need to write an essay about your community service as well, whether for a scholarship or graduation requirement? We have a guide that gives step-by-step instructions on how to write a great community service essay. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points? We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

What is the evidence on Parents or Family role in Childhood Obesity in Literature review

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