How Can Superintendent Brown Ignore The Plight of Shipwreck Victims?

Between 2008 and 2010, four ships wrecked. Most, if not all, of the passengers and victims are Marylanders. And So Maryland’s grief is justified as far as shipwrecks are concerned.

Amongst the four wrecked ships, the first one wrecked in Greenville, Sinoe County (Liberia) in 2008. In that ship, several persons got wounded and one severely. There was no fatality. A young girl’s toe got chopped off. But for unknown reasons, the young lady who toe got chopped off, disappeared in thin air. In other words, she’s nowhere to be found. All efforts to find her so that claims can be included on the Reparation List by the Shipwreck Victims Action Committee proved futile.

The person that was severely wounded on the Sinoe shipwrecked ship is an elderly woman. Her name is Ma Eliza Dennis. Three (3) of her left hand fingers are chopped off. In the days following the accident, the remnants of her fingers were all hanging on her hand for a protracted period time.

Ma Eliza was taken to the hospital in Sinoe. But because she had no funds to pay her medical bills, she was immediately discharged. The shipowners and the Government were nowhere to be found. So Ma Eliza’s children in Monrovia send for her. If they had waited too long, Ma Eliza would have had serious medical problems. Her hand was getting rotten. One of her daughters, who works at the Catholic Hospital in Monrovia, placed her on her Credit at the Hospital for treatment. She was admitted and treated at the Catholic Hospital. The Bill was underwritten by her daughter at the Catholic Hospital. Shipowners and crew disappeared. None came back to see how to help the victims.

Prior to Ma Eliza being taken to Catholic Hospital, her fingers were rotten and smelling badly. Her children told me they could not remain in the house with their mother due to the foul odor of her fingers. They had to take a walk every time to get away from the bad smell. It was difficult for them. Their mother’s trouble had reached an alarming stage. But with God and the help of the Shipwreck Victims Action Committee, the situation became to improve.

 After the treatment, Ma Eliza Dennis returned to Harper City (capital of Maryland) where she resides. Her daughter bankrolled the cost. Shipowners were nowhere to be found. Ma Eliza’s fingers are gone. Now she has only two fingers on the left hand. The physical sores have healed. But the pain in the heart lingers on without reparation.

Ma Eliza got home in Harper. But the unthinkable happened. Her oldest daughter died. Ma Eliza was forced to deal with her pain. There was shipwreck pain. Now pain in the death of her oldest daughter.

Immediately when Ma Eliza buried her oldest daughter, her youngest son suddenly died a mysterious death in Harper.

Pathologist the kid died from “heart failure.” But the youths of Harper disagreed. The youths claimed the kid was murdered by someone through witchcraft. As a result, the youths took on the streets of Harper on a rampage in the name of their buddy. Violence caused several buildings to be torn apart including the Police Station (newly renovated by an international NGO) and the Harper Maximum Prison Compound.

When the youths were contacted, they claimed the Authorities did not pay attention to their case of witchcraft. So they had to do what they did. Whatever they did did not make Ma Eliza’s case easy to handle; it made it more difficult. The Government imposed Dust to Dawn curfew. It kept Ma Eliza at home grieving. She says her sons’ sudden death hurt her. Worse of all, Government’s investigation was not satisfactory. But she had no other choice but to accept all the misfortunes stemming from the Sinoe shipwreck that severed her fingers making her disabled, the death of her oldest daughter and then the sudden and mysterious death of her youngest son.

All members of the Local authority, including Hon. J. GbleBo Brown knew all about Ma Eliza’s sad story. And he helped to work along with her in his capacity as superintendent.

Ma Eliza met with Hon. Brown.

Elizabeth (the young girl whose 11-year old was crushed under the weight of a sugar mill machine) and legs slammed by a huge container met with Hon. Brown.

Betsy Seebo (her twin baby died in her and her feet were smashed by containers. She also was forced to swallow petrol gas when it poured over her through another container sitting on her chest. Many more of the victims met with Hon. Brown.

Today, Hon. Brown claims he has no record of the victims, after several victims and I hand delivered documentations to his office which receipt he confirmed many times.

In fact, Hon. Brown’s Administrative Assistant, Hon. Daniel Williams and I made series of attempts to complete the documentation. Hon. Williams told me the superintendent’s office had received other documents from other victims. But because of his “busy” schedule, he and I never met to complete the work.

Essentially, Hon. Brown’s office is in possession of the documents.

On March 15, 2011, in a Line Ministries’ meeting, Hon. Brown was asked by the Internal Affairs minister, Hon. Harrison Karnwea if at all there is any information on the three other ships that wrecked before his (Karnwea’s ship – Havea). Surprisingly, Hon. Brown says he has no knowledge about the three shipwrecks, except the one of May 30, 2010.

It is rather a shame that both men (Karnwea & Brown) pretend as if they know nothing about the plight of the victims of the three ships.

I bear solemn witness they are aware! The evidence is well and alive!

I am Thomas G. Bedell working and speaking on the ground in Liberia.