According to the South African Police, Clayton Sizwe Sithole was found hanging by a belt and shoelaces from a water pipe in the shower soon after he had been heard joking with a policeman who had locked him in his cell. It remains unexplained where he got the shoelaces.
Source: Sunday Times Heritage Project
Tuesday, January 30, 1990
Saturday, January 27, 1990
Masses of Liberian Refugees Flee Rebellion and Reprisal Killings
In hospital wards here, a bedraggled and stunned group of refugees from Liberia are struggling to sort out the reasons behind the outburst of violence that has led to hundreds of deaths there. "I heard gunshots, and I thought they were still celebrating Christmas," recalled Peter L. Zayzay, a 36-year old shop owner from Butuo, Liberia. "Then the next thing I knew, several men were running after me, trying to cut off my head." The men, wielding machetes, struck him repeatedly on the head and neck. Trying to fend off their blows, Mr. Zayzay lost three fingers on his right hand. "I don't know why this happened," he said. "They didn't even know me."
The killings began late in December when guerrillas opposed to Liberia's leader, Gen. Samuel K. Doe, entered the Liberian border town of Butuo in Nimba County. The Liberian Government then sent troops and provincial policemen to oust them. "The army started shooting and hacking at anyone they thought was a rebel," a Western diplomat said. "They didn't care if they were civilians or not. From all accounts, they were committing real atrocities." Two American military officers were sent to the Nimba region as observers this week after reports of the attacks on civilians. It was not clear whether they were there at the request of the Liberian Government.
A few miles from here, in Selleu, anguished and grisly reports were given by families huddled in a cluster in the cluttered courtyard of a village near the Liberian frontier. Some had been beaten and allowed to escape with only the clothes on their backs. They talked in frightened whispers of seeing friends and relatives clubbed or hacked to death by mobs. Mindo Paye said she, her husband and four children were asleep last Monday when the shooting began. Her oldest son ran to the door and was shot to death, as was her husband. Her 11-year-old daughter was badly wounded in the leg. "They just shot us like animals," she kept saying, hugging herself and shaking from side to side.
Another Liberian refugee, Samuel Paye, 22 years old, was hit with a hand grenade, which tore a wound in his thigh. He said his father, mother and grandfather were among at least 40 people killed during an attack in the border town of Loguato. In interviews on the Ivory Coast side of the border, many refugees reported that the border villages from which they fled - notably Kahnplay, Butuo and Lepulah - had been destroyed in the fighting. Soldiers were said to have burned and looted the dwellings.
The refugees said the shooting had been carried out by men dressed in Liberian Army uniforms. None of the victims was able to explain why he was being targeted for persecution. But human rights observers, among them people from Amnesty International and Africa Watch, based in London and Washington respectively, said they had received reports of an indiscrimate shoot-to-kill policy ordered by General Doe against anyone "engaged in suspicious activities."
The rebels, according to some reports, then went on an avenging rampage south into Krahn territory, General Doe's tribal and political base, attacking soldiers and slaughtering unarmed civilians there. The guerrillas, mostly members of the Gio tribe, were said to be led by Charles Taylor, a former Doe Cabinet minister who fell into disfavor and fled the country after being charged with corruption.
The dimensions of the violence by both sides may never be known, in part because Liberia has sought to sever contacts with reporters and with outside groups that are not likely to favor the Government. Diplomats and international relief workers, however, estimate that at least 500 civilians have been killed. More ominously, African and Western diplomats say, the Liberian Government has yet to clamp down hard on soldiers involved in the campaign of killing and terror. Reports of continued fighting along the border have touched off fears that the region is on the brink of prolonged civil strife.
So far, at least 70,000 Liberians have fled across the eastern frontier to escape the bloodshed and most of them have settled in the heavily forested hills of this remote corner of the Ivory Coast. The thinly populated ridges of green bush are lush with coconut palms, bamboo and wild banana trees, and the mist that settles in the valleys makes the mornings serene and idyllic. For now, however, the region's tranquillity has been vanquished by the grim influx of Liberian refugees, many of whom need food and immediate medical help. Relief workers say that some of the small villages near the border, like Binta and Selleu, have increased in population more than tenfold since the beginning of the year.
The Liberian nation is, in a sense, the result of an earlier attempt to accommodate ethnic rivalries. Modern Liberia was founded in 1822 by slaves freed in the United States with the aid of President James Monroe and money from Congress to buy land from local chiefs for the settlers. In 1847, the country became Africa's first independent republic. Soon afterward, a glaring gap opened between the former slaves and the original residents of the country they created. The black settlers evolved into colonists who classified the indigenous African majority as "aborigines" and disenfranchised them, making the right to vote contingent on property ownership. Resentment against the American-Liberian elite simmered for decades, and in 1980, it boiled over when Master Sargeant Doe, a member of the Krahn tribe, seized power. A few days later, 13 former Government officials were tied to telephone poles on a beach and executed by a firing squad.
In recent years, sporadic violence has erupted, particularly in the eastern region. In 1985, opposition leaders charged that Government troops, many of them from the Krahn tribe, killed more than 1,000 Liberians mostly from the Gio and Mano tribes, in reprisal for suspected involvement in a coup attempt or for sympathy with rebel forces. The Government denied that there had been any executions. Earlier this week, President Doe warned that soldiers who harmed unarmed civilians would face firing squads. He said, however, that it has been difficult for soldiers to identify rebels because they were dressed in civilian clothes.
For refugees like Mr. Zayzay, who fled with only the clothes on his back and little prospect that he can return soon, there is little consolation in such promises. "I lost everything," he said. "I don't even know where to begin to pick up my life."
Source: New York Times
The killings began late in December when guerrillas opposed to Liberia's leader, Gen. Samuel K. Doe, entered the Liberian border town of Butuo in Nimba County. The Liberian Government then sent troops and provincial policemen to oust them. "The army started shooting and hacking at anyone they thought was a rebel," a Western diplomat said. "They didn't care if they were civilians or not. From all accounts, they were committing real atrocities." Two American military officers were sent to the Nimba region as observers this week after reports of the attacks on civilians. It was not clear whether they were there at the request of the Liberian Government.
A few miles from here, in Selleu, anguished and grisly reports were given by families huddled in a cluster in the cluttered courtyard of a village near the Liberian frontier. Some had been beaten and allowed to escape with only the clothes on their backs. They talked in frightened whispers of seeing friends and relatives clubbed or hacked to death by mobs. Mindo Paye said she, her husband and four children were asleep last Monday when the shooting began. Her oldest son ran to the door and was shot to death, as was her husband. Her 11-year-old daughter was badly wounded in the leg. "They just shot us like animals," she kept saying, hugging herself and shaking from side to side.
Another Liberian refugee, Samuel Paye, 22 years old, was hit with a hand grenade, which tore a wound in his thigh. He said his father, mother and grandfather were among at least 40 people killed during an attack in the border town of Loguato. In interviews on the Ivory Coast side of the border, many refugees reported that the border villages from which they fled - notably Kahnplay, Butuo and Lepulah - had been destroyed in the fighting. Soldiers were said to have burned and looted the dwellings.
The refugees said the shooting had been carried out by men dressed in Liberian Army uniforms. None of the victims was able to explain why he was being targeted for persecution. But human rights observers, among them people from Amnesty International and Africa Watch, based in London and Washington respectively, said they had received reports of an indiscrimate shoot-to-kill policy ordered by General Doe against anyone "engaged in suspicious activities."
The rebels, according to some reports, then went on an avenging rampage south into Krahn territory, General Doe's tribal and political base, attacking soldiers and slaughtering unarmed civilians there. The guerrillas, mostly members of the Gio tribe, were said to be led by Charles Taylor, a former Doe Cabinet minister who fell into disfavor and fled the country after being charged with corruption.
The dimensions of the violence by both sides may never be known, in part because Liberia has sought to sever contacts with reporters and with outside groups that are not likely to favor the Government. Diplomats and international relief workers, however, estimate that at least 500 civilians have been killed. More ominously, African and Western diplomats say, the Liberian Government has yet to clamp down hard on soldiers involved in the campaign of killing and terror. Reports of continued fighting along the border have touched off fears that the region is on the brink of prolonged civil strife.
So far, at least 70,000 Liberians have fled across the eastern frontier to escape the bloodshed and most of them have settled in the heavily forested hills of this remote corner of the Ivory Coast. The thinly populated ridges of green bush are lush with coconut palms, bamboo and wild banana trees, and the mist that settles in the valleys makes the mornings serene and idyllic. For now, however, the region's tranquillity has been vanquished by the grim influx of Liberian refugees, many of whom need food and immediate medical help. Relief workers say that some of the small villages near the border, like Binta and Selleu, have increased in population more than tenfold since the beginning of the year.
The Liberian nation is, in a sense, the result of an earlier attempt to accommodate ethnic rivalries. Modern Liberia was founded in 1822 by slaves freed in the United States with the aid of President James Monroe and money from Congress to buy land from local chiefs for the settlers. In 1847, the country became Africa's first independent republic. Soon afterward, a glaring gap opened between the former slaves and the original residents of the country they created. The black settlers evolved into colonists who classified the indigenous African majority as "aborigines" and disenfranchised them, making the right to vote contingent on property ownership. Resentment against the American-Liberian elite simmered for decades, and in 1980, it boiled over when Master Sargeant Doe, a member of the Krahn tribe, seized power. A few days later, 13 former Government officials were tied to telephone poles on a beach and executed by a firing squad.
In recent years, sporadic violence has erupted, particularly in the eastern region. In 1985, opposition leaders charged that Government troops, many of them from the Krahn tribe, killed more than 1,000 Liberians mostly from the Gio and Mano tribes, in reprisal for suspected involvement in a coup attempt or for sympathy with rebel forces. The Government denied that there had been any executions. Earlier this week, President Doe warned that soldiers who harmed unarmed civilians would face firing squads. He said, however, that it has been difficult for soldiers to identify rebels because they were dressed in civilian clothes.
For refugees like Mr. Zayzay, who fled with only the clothes on his back and little prospect that he can return soon, there is little consolation in such promises. "I lost everything," he said. "I don't even know where to begin to pick up my life."
Source: New York Times
Friday, January 5, 1990
Many Flee Liberia as Clash Destroys Towns, Envoys Say
Fighting between Liberian forces and rebels opposed to the West African country's leader, Gen. Samuel K. Doe, has devastated two towns in northeastern Liberia and sent thousands fleeing across the border, Western diplomats said today. The fighting began in the Nimba region, where according to General Doe, two groups of rebels entered Dec. 24 from the neighboring Ivory Coast.
One of the groups killed a police sergeant at the border town of Butuo before Government forces intervened, General Doe said on Tuesday. The other group reached Liberia's capital, Monrovia, but abandoned their weapons and surrendered, he said. One diplomat said the towns of Kahntle and Butuo were destroyed in the fighting. A Western diplomat in Monrovia, reached by telephone, said today that most of the rebels had reportedly fled or been killed or captured. But other diplomats said it could take time for the Government to dislodge all of the rebels from the sparsely populated region, which is about 100 miles northeast of Monrovia. Nimba was also the scene of abortive uprisings in 1985 and 1988.
Diplomats said it was difficult to determine how many Liberians were fleeing the fighting because the border area is heavily wooded and communications are poor. "People are trying to get out of the contested area," one diplomat said. "The number, however, is anyone's guess."
J. Emmanuel Bowier, Liberia's Information Minister, refused today to comment on the fighting. The official Liberian News Agency reported that General Doe would visit the region, which is under a dusk-to-dawn curfew. General Doe said on Thursday that the situation in the Nimba region was beginning to stabilize. He invited journalists to visit the area, but "at their own risk, as military operations were continuing."
Justice Minister Jenkins Scott said earlier this week that a total of 96 rebels had invaded Liberia from the Ivory Coast. He asserted that they had been trained in Burkina Faso and Libya. The Ivory Coast has repeatedly denied charges by Liberia that it provides a haven for General Doe's opponents. Burkina Faso also denied any role in the invasion.
The rebels, who are calling themselves the National Patriotic Front, are led by Charles Taylor, a former civil servant in General Doe's Government. A diplomat said that the group appeared to have no connection with Liberia's opposition parties. A man identifying himself as Charles Taylor called the British Broadcasting Corporation's African service on Monday to say that he was behind the invasion. Mr. Taylor reportedly lived as a fugitive in the United States in recent years as Liberian officials sought his extradition.
General Doe, formerly a master sergeant in Liberia's army, has withstood several coup attempts. He came to power himself in a 1980 coup in which President William R. Tolbert, a descendant of freed American slaves, and many of his political allies were put to death on a beach near the capital. General Doe has dismissed the Interior Minister, Col. Edward Sackor, for discounting a recent warning that opponents were preparing to attack.
Source: New York Times
One of the groups killed a police sergeant at the border town of Butuo before Government forces intervened, General Doe said on Tuesday. The other group reached Liberia's capital, Monrovia, but abandoned their weapons and surrendered, he said. One diplomat said the towns of Kahntle and Butuo were destroyed in the fighting. A Western diplomat in Monrovia, reached by telephone, said today that most of the rebels had reportedly fled or been killed or captured. But other diplomats said it could take time for the Government to dislodge all of the rebels from the sparsely populated region, which is about 100 miles northeast of Monrovia. Nimba was also the scene of abortive uprisings in 1985 and 1988.
Diplomats said it was difficult to determine how many Liberians were fleeing the fighting because the border area is heavily wooded and communications are poor. "People are trying to get out of the contested area," one diplomat said. "The number, however, is anyone's guess."
J. Emmanuel Bowier, Liberia's Information Minister, refused today to comment on the fighting. The official Liberian News Agency reported that General Doe would visit the region, which is under a dusk-to-dawn curfew. General Doe said on Thursday that the situation in the Nimba region was beginning to stabilize. He invited journalists to visit the area, but "at their own risk, as military operations were continuing."
Justice Minister Jenkins Scott said earlier this week that a total of 96 rebels had invaded Liberia from the Ivory Coast. He asserted that they had been trained in Burkina Faso and Libya. The Ivory Coast has repeatedly denied charges by Liberia that it provides a haven for General Doe's opponents. Burkina Faso also denied any role in the invasion.
The rebels, who are calling themselves the National Patriotic Front, are led by Charles Taylor, a former civil servant in General Doe's Government. A diplomat said that the group appeared to have no connection with Liberia's opposition parties. A man identifying himself as Charles Taylor called the British Broadcasting Corporation's African service on Monday to say that he was behind the invasion. Mr. Taylor reportedly lived as a fugitive in the United States in recent years as Liberian officials sought his extradition.
General Doe, formerly a master sergeant in Liberia's army, has withstood several coup attempts. He came to power himself in a 1980 coup in which President William R. Tolbert, a descendant of freed American slaves, and many of his political allies were put to death on a beach near the capital. General Doe has dismissed the Interior Minister, Col. Edward Sackor, for discounting a recent warning that opponents were preparing to attack.
Source: New York Times
Wednesday, January 3, 1990
Liberia's Leader Ousts Aide For Ignoring Hints of a Coup
The President of Liberia, Gen. Samuel K. Doe, dismissed his Interior Minister today for failing to heed a warning of an uprising by dissidents last week. General Doe also imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew on the Nimba region, where his opponents attacked a customs post in what the Government called an abortive invasion from the neighboring Ivory Coast. An official statement gave few details of the attack in an eastern town, Butuo, on Dec. 24, in which an army sergeant was killed and another soldier wounded.
The Interior Minister, Col. Edward Sackor, was dismissed along with the Nimba region's senior administrator. The two men had discounted a warning by a local chief that opponents were preparing an attack. The Government has sent troop reinforcements to Nimba, scene of abortive uprisings in 1985 and 1988 against General Doe, who took power in a 1980 coup of his own. It said some of the attackers were still at large.
A man who identified himself as Charles Taylor telephoned the British Broadcasting Corporation's African service on Monday to say that he was behind the invasion. He said that more than 100 armed men had mounted attacks in Nimba and that fighting was still going on. The Government has said the situation is under control.
Mr. Taylor, who has been living in the United States, said he had just left Liberia but he would not say from where he was calling. There were no other details of his identity or background. General Doe has survived several coup and assassination attempts, the last by his former right-hand man, Nicholas Podier, who was killed in July 1988 after leading a force of 12 men from the Ivory Coast. When he took power, he was an army master sergeant. Almost immediately after his successful coup, then-Sergeant Doe had a number of leaders of the deposed civilian regime, including two former Presidents, executed on a beach near the capital.
Source: New York Times
The Interior Minister, Col. Edward Sackor, was dismissed along with the Nimba region's senior administrator. The two men had discounted a warning by a local chief that opponents were preparing an attack. The Government has sent troop reinforcements to Nimba, scene of abortive uprisings in 1985 and 1988 against General Doe, who took power in a 1980 coup of his own. It said some of the attackers were still at large.
A man who identified himself as Charles Taylor telephoned the British Broadcasting Corporation's African service on Monday to say that he was behind the invasion. He said that more than 100 armed men had mounted attacks in Nimba and that fighting was still going on. The Government has said the situation is under control.
Mr. Taylor, who has been living in the United States, said he had just left Liberia but he would not say from where he was calling. There were no other details of his identity or background. General Doe has survived several coup and assassination attempts, the last by his former right-hand man, Nicholas Podier, who was killed in July 1988 after leading a force of 12 men from the Ivory Coast. When he took power, he was an army master sergeant. Almost immediately after his successful coup, then-Sergeant Doe had a number of leaders of the deposed civilian regime, including two former Presidents, executed on a beach near the capital.
Source: New York Times
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