[allAfrica.com] [ITWeb,_Johannesburg] Churches, Mosques in Flames! The Analyst (Monrovia) NEWS November 1, 2004 Posted to the web November 1, 2004 -Thugs Take Over Gardnersville, Paynesville -The Analyst's Reporters Escape Death From Marauding Mob -What is Afoot? By nightfall Thursday, October 29, 2004, the Paynesville suburb of Monrovia was a no go zone with the northern entry route to the city cut off effectively by marauding bands of angry youths brandishing sticks and other crude weapons and vowing to kill anyone believed to be supporting their enemies. The exact nature of the mob's action is not known, but as The Analyst has discovered too late, they armed and dangerous. Gibson W. Jerue traveled to the trouble area from where he presents the Paynesville saga as he saw it up to 1:09 a.m. this morning. There was a chaotic scene in the northern suburbs of Monrovia up to this morning as gangs of irate crowd marched along the main highways vowing to burn down mosques and churches. Upon hearing the news, senior staff members of The Analyst drove to the area to try to feret out the main cause or causes of the violence that was said to spark up spontaneously amongst youths in the Paynesville and Gardnersville areas. The first encounter with the irate youths, en route to the troubled areas, took place at CEMENCO where they set up roadblocks to prevent motorists from passing through. A heavily armed unit of Nigerian contingent of UNMIL arrived at the scene, disbanded the roadblocks, and chased away the marauding stick brandishing youths. Some arrests were made. Thence, the UNMIL soldiers continued their advance, dismantling more roadblocks set up by angry youths at the Iron Factory area and Gardnersville Estate Junction. As tension mounted, frightened residents could be seen dashing for safety under the cover of darkness. Perhaps for fear of surprised attacks, not many civilians were seen carrying personal belongings on their heads as is usually the case when there is fighting. Along the road, especially at the New Georgia, Gardnersville, Barnesville, Chicken Soup Factory, and Steven Tolbert Estate junctions the vandals were mixed with Jordanians, Bangladeshi and Ghanaian contingents of UNMIL. As the Nigerian convoy passed the Steven Tolbert Estate Junction, they met a large group of the thugs believed to be Muslim youths chanting, "Allah Akbar" meaning God is Great. They chanted the same slogans at UNMIL, saying "Y'all think we are stupid? We will die tonight. Eh they burnt our mosque? We will burn all the churches too". By then the irate youths had surrounded The Analyst's vehicle, threatening to kill the staffs that had gone to find out what was happening. The thugs, armed with machetes, sticks, rocks and other deadly objects, banged repeatedly on the vehicle and ordered the occupants to disembark. In the process, one assailant dealt a crushing blow on the back windshield and reduced it into tiny, dangerous flying pieces. After pleading with the attackers to realize the neutrality of The Analyst, they capitulated and allow the vehicle to leave without further harm. Besides The Analyst's vehicle, eight other vehicles were burnt in the Jacob Town area along. As The Analyst crew sped away for dear life, dwelling buildings along the route could be seen in flames. The work of thugs and agent provocateurs yet to be identified notwithstanding the several arrests made by UNMIL late last night. Unconfirmed reports say three mosques were razed to the ground in flames earlier which apparently provoked the widespread violence in the Gardnersville area. The reports did not say what led to the burning down of the Mosques but noted that in response to the arson attack on the mosques, two churches were also burnt, one said to belong to the Jehovah Witnesses. It was difficult to verify these reports as the situation remained volatile. Sources said there seemed to be two groups of thugs that were involved in the violence. The group from Jacob Town Gas Station towards Paynesville is reported to be of mixed tribes. The group from the CEMENCO to Lone Star Gas Station was predominantly Muslim youths speaking the Mandingo dialect. Campaign To Stamp Out Corruption Intensifies By Mensiegar Karnga As corruption becomes an incurable disease that has entered both public and private sectors, others are not taken the spread of the disease likely. One of such institutions is the Liberia National Law Enforcement Association. It ended a two-day seminar recently on effective mechanism for curtailing corruption and enhancing accountability in government. The workshop, which brought together more than 200 participants from different professional groupings around the country, focused on designing programs where corrupt officials of government will not go with impunity. Certain measures are being put into place to eliminate the spread of the disease for the coming generation. At the end of the workshop, participants called on the government and other concerned individuals and institutions to consider corruption as their archenemies that must be fought in all directions. The participant highlighted that corrupt government official operating in the corridor of power not only be dismissed but must face the full weight of the law, properties confiscated and must be denied positions in government. The participants also recommended to National Government that civil servant salaries be increased to commensurate with their qualification and experience. They also recommended that government institutions should make monthly their public expenditure report so that trust and confidence can be built. The participants also proposed that Liberia as member of the international community must be signatory to the United Nations and the African Union Conventions on Corruption. The recommendation also pointed out that future government should regulate the prices of goods on Liberian market in order to protect the consumers. The participants advised that future national government should strengthen educational programs throughout the country so that bribery and other negative vices can be stamped out for the benefit of all Liberians. Also speaking at the program was the President of LINLEA, Mr. Cecil Griffith who called for total participation in the fight against corruption and other disease that were responsible for the 14 years conflict. Mr. Griffith added that corruption as a way of life were hindering t he positive progress of the country, there by creating conflict of interest for people of good will and humanitarian agencies to meaningfully contribute to the re-building of the country.   =============================================================================   Copyright © 2004 The Analyst. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). =============================================================================