WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH: An Estimated 500 Liberian Women Refugees, Protesting in Ghana’s Buduburam Refugee Camp Arrested and Thrown on Buses and Trucks- Can Somebody Tell Me What’s Going On Here?

When refugees from one of the world’s bloodiest wars can remain in a refugee camp in the tens of thousands while the world goes on for fourteen to twenty years, and because of a peaceful protest, be thrown into buses and trucks at dawn, with their children, involuntarily taken to a destination not of their choice by military men from their host country, this is a sad day for the world. The last I heard, there was a United Nations and a refugee commission to help ease such a conflict between refugees who have nothing and their host country. But to pack them up while they are supposed to be asleep on buses for repatriation to their homeland is not a good thing to do to any group of people.

But this is women’s History Month. A week ago, there were big celebrations of Women’s History around the world, Women’s achievement, and a group of protesting, angry women, trying to get the world to listen to them get forced on trucks to be forcefully sent back to a country they escaped forcefully years ago? The sad thing is that many of these refugees have lived through other times when they saw many of their country people forcefully taken on trucks and dumped in unmarked graves during the Samuel Doe Charles Taylor wars. Now before I go on, let me say this is the news. I am not making any of this up.

Liberian women sitting out in protest a week ago before the arrest. ( SOURCE : http://www.equalitytrumpet.net)

According to news from Agence de Presse Afraine at this link: http://www.apanews.net/apa.php?article58141

about 200 women and children were forcefully removed at 4 am by military forces and taken to an unknown destination, and that sources indicated that these peaceful demonstrators will be repatriated involuntarily. In another news brief, there are claims that the number of those rounded up with AK-47s and taken away was as high as 500 refugee women. Check out news sources for more news on this grave human rights issue. As a blogger and a Liberian, I thought to respond to the dozens of hits my blog has got every day with readers searching for news on this Liberian -Ghana -world problem.

Liberian women are seen here, sitting peacefully in protest about treatment in the Buduburam Camp in Ghana

I bring this grave news to your attention only as a blogger, knowing that I am not a journalist, and most of the information I react to comes from internet sources. We do not hear any news about Africa or about the rest of the world from our news media; therefore, many of us depend on the Internet for our news. I am now here reacting as a blogger, a writer, a Liberian woman, a poet who believes that there is a need to bring harmony to such situations before they become destructive, as a relative to some of those women who are protesting, who were forcefully removed from what they have known as home for so many years, and as a human being.

There are things we can do to assist others in getting the news and there are people we can call to stop this craziness. I have sent an e-mail to Amnesty International, an e-mail to The Advocates for Human Rights, have signed the petition at this link, where you too, can sign:

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/buduburam/

Now, maybe the Liberian President, Her Excellency Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and her government will pressure the UN and the government of Ghana to return the protesting women to their homes and give them a voice. It is my hope that the Liberian government will move speedily to resolve this problem. The government of Ghana is also in a tight spot, but the use of the military on these refugees does not look too good for both sides.

This is Women’s History Month. Let us allow the voices of the disadvantaged women around the world to be heard. There have been hundreds of hits over this week on my blog where readers are desperately looking for news of this horrible news. Now join in and protest in your corner and in the open so that these women are released by tonight.

Remember, this is Women’s History Month and we are increasingly being called on to support women in power. But around the world, women are still struggling just to be left alone to sit on the bare muddy ground to protest.