Owning Your Own

To be a refugee is not an easy experience for anybody. I almost went crazy in 1990 when I realized that my flight from JFK in New York via Amsterdam to Liberia on June 5 had been canceled. RIA (Roberts Intertional Airport) was unavailable to all flights going to Monrovia, I was told.

I came to America on May 8, 1990 with a Visitor's Visa, a BSC in Forestry, and 12 years of work experience with Firestone, an American company. With such a resume, I felt solace in the fact that even though I could not go home, the new system in which I found myself would not hesitate to welcome me with glee and open arms. O how wrong I was! O how naive my idea of America had kept me in complete darkness! O how many, I realized, had been fooled by such exuberant naivete!

What I have been hearing for the past few days is that the government of Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf should stop telling governments around the world that Liberia is not ready to accept its refugee-citizens. It is much more easier for citizens to resettle in their own country than it is for them to keep being refugees in countries that will not allow them to be part of their society. There are no refugee camps of Liberians in America or in Australia, where my aunty in-law and her family live. Refugees that went to these places were immediately given the opportunity to find work and to assimilate into society. Apparently, many of our African brothers and sisters are not fond of such gesture and generosity. If that is not the case with the refugee situation in Ghana or Guinea, then let someone come up with the hard truth.

It is time for Liberia to welcome back home its citizens. The government can reshuffle the financial cards and make room for the return of its citizens, educated or uneducated.

If I can remember well, eight of my wife's family members who came to America as refugees were all put into a two-room apartment, given food stamps, and a small amount of money each to buy other things.This was done for a year after which time it was expected that these refugees would have found work to do and become independent. It worked for many. Liberia can do the same thing. All those coming back should be resettled in their county of origin with a monthly stipend taken from the GOL Treasury and with some help from the UN.

Like I said earlier, what I am hearing is that the government of Liberia should stop telling countries around the world that it is not ready to accept its refugee-citizens. I think those who are saying this are right. Organizations around the world will surely want to help if it becomes clear that Liberia is being overwhelmed by the influx of its own citizens.