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President declares amnesty for opponents

    ABIDJAN
    Liberian President Charles Taylor announced a general amnesty on Thursday for all treason suspects abroad and anti-government dissidents in the northern county of Lofa, news media reported. “On this day I announce ...(I) wish to grant general amnesty to all Liberians outside of the country that have been charged with treason—from Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf to all,” he declared in a speech marking the country’s 154th independence day. Johnson-Sirleaf, who placed second to Taylor at presidential elections in 1997, and former faction leader Alhaji Kromah were charged with treason in 2000. Kromah’s United Liberation Movement of Liberia for Democracy fought Taylor’s National Patriotic Front of Liberia during the 1989-1997 civil war. In Lofa, the Liberian United Movement for Reconstruction and Development, led by Charles Julu, has been fighting government troops off-and-on since 1998.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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