If I told you at the time when
I came to Liberia as a volunteer to help in the reconstruction effort, after
fourteen years of generalized anarchy of violence that I did not expect to pay
a dear price in my working process, I would be lying to you.
From my training in every
aspect of the struggle thru the school of The Movement for Justice in Africa,
commonly referred to as MOJA, I knew as I know now, every move to liberate and
seek justice in a society as ours, has a price to pay.
In some cases, I expect to be imprisoned,
brutalized by police and have my life threatened. Even though there is a
thinking that the war in Liberia is over, violence is still visible in every
aspect of Liberian life.
When I arrived on the soil
from the US, I had already set in place an NGO to drive home my desires and
assistance to my “Old” country. My NGO was registered both in America and
Liberia. I did not seek any assistance from anyone. My lesson from the
dependency syndrome in my formative days in Liberia drove my thought process.
Dependency Syndrome is
responsible for almost all of our academic institutions dropping into the
oblivion. For example, Dolokeh, Nmanalu and Bishop Ferguson boarding schools. Those
institutions, as I opine, are now monuments of decay.
Unless you stick around for
long in Maryland, there’s no way you can ever trace these boarding schools that
contributed to the growth and development of our country. They’ve all disappeared.
Why did all these intuitions
disappear and perished?
Simple!
International donors pulled the financial plug
that lid the light of hope for these institutions. Since Liberians were not
prepared to take over, those institutions fell apart at the hinges and dropped
to the earth.
That’s why in my mind, if I
rely on donors of this nature, I history will repeat itself. To avoid this, I
decided to bankroll my work with the help of some revolutionary friends I have
known in my formative days including others who seem to understand the cause
for which I stand.
In the face of my work, I have
been mindful of people who envy me. In some cases, individuals in the
Government take a swing at me. Because they fear my popularity could overshadow
theirs and probably threaten their jobs. As wrong as they may be in
antagonizing me, the reality is, I could be attacked by anyone for many reasons
other than my peaceful conduct and respect for law and order.
Such was the case when ERU
police brutalized me.
On June 29, 2012, Magistrate
Wesley Korkor ordered the ERU Police to arrest me in Pleebo City, Maryland
County. The police brutalized me to a point that I began to feel like a
murderer or a thief. I was dragged, boot-kicked in the head, chest, ribs, upper
and lower back and all over my body.
Mind you, this very ERU also
flogged the Lord Mayor of the city of Pleebo, Hon. Anthony Harmon, with
impunity. It beat to death Harrison Geeply in May 2012. It beat student Wah Kla
Neufville, Jnr. Into a coma and dropped him in the streets of Harper to die.
Had an old lady not seen him, the kid would have been dead, as well.
Anthony Wesley was beaten and threatened with death.
He was Taser, tear gas and placed at gunpoint and left him bleeding in Fishtown
(Harper).
Dumu Hne of Pleebo was robbed
at gun point in Pleebo. US$800 was stolen from him.
Gartor Doe was shot at
point-blank range for taking part in a workers peaceful protest demonstration
in Pleebo.
So who protects us from police
brutality?
Besides facing the possibility
of death or imprisonment, we must also behave and learn to keep quiet to
appease these hired guns.
We have to find a solution to
these inhumane and decadent acts of atrocities against the armless, defenseless
and law-abiding people of Liberia.
I am Thomas G. Bedell still on
the ground speaking and working fearlessly in Liberia.
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