Taylor urged to expel RUF

A coalition of Liberian civic, religious and political groups have again asked Liberian President Charles Taylor to expel members of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), which has been waging war against successive governments in Sierra Leone for the past nine years, PANA reported.

Thursday’s appeal reiterated a similar request, made in a letter on 20
November, for the government to “completely and unconditionally disassociate itself” from the RUF.
Taylor admits his close historic links with the RUF but denies his administration has been supplying the rebels with arms to overthrow the elected government in Freetown. The president of Liberia’s Interfaith Council, Sheik Kafumba Konneh, said at a news conference in Monrovia on Thursday that Taylor’s government had still not replied to the council’s letter. The body is also calling on the government to repatriate all foreign combatants in Liberia’s security forces whose presence has not been sanctioned by their governments and international protocols.

The council said that unless reversed, the government’s actions would lead to Liberia’s isolation and bring “disrepute to our sacred heritage and all that the government and our forbearers have assiduously laboured to preserve”.

One political analyst in Monrovia told IRIN on Monday that the council was highly respected locally and had been involved in reconciliation efforts.

“Today, it said it would visit the borders of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea to see if it could bring about genuine reconciliation” of their peoples, the analyst said.