– Liberian returnees face hardship
By Jerromie S. Walters
Hundreds of Liberian returnees who were repatriated from Ghana and resettled in Johnsonville are facing distressing conditions, branding themselves as refugees at home.
The Buduburam Camp belonging to the Gomoa Fetteh Traditional Chiefs was demolished two months ago, leaving over 2000 Liberian nationals affected. The situation forced many, especially women and children, to roam and sleep in empty school buildings in Ghana, prompting the attention of the Government of Liberia and other partners.
Despite the launch of a voluntary repatriation program by the government of Liberia and the LRRRC, the process has been plagued with challenges. Liberian returnees currently residing at the LRRRC Transit Center in Johnsonville are sharing life-threatening stories as they battle health complications.
The returnees are facing issues with shelter, as many are forced to sleep in open spaces that were once used to host animals. Women are particularly affected, facing poor sanitary conditions and overcrowding at the center.
Returnees have complained about the poor preparation of food, deplorable facility conditions, and the failure of the LRRRC to pay their resettlement fees. The lack of access to proper sanitation has led to serious health complications for the returnees.
Despite efforts to resettle the returnees into their respective counties of origin, challenges persist. Efforts to contact Madam Sim-one Witherspoon, the Director of communication of the LRRRC didn’t yield fruit as she did not pick our call.
However, in previous response to these concerns, the LRRRC Executive Director has described some returnees as illegal occupants and has faced criticism for not allowing media access to the facility.
The resettlement
Earlier this month, the Liberia Refugee Repatriation and Resettlement Commission began the resettlement of the first batch of returnees from Ghana into five counties to their respective counties of origin.
The first batch of over 500 returnees who identified Grand Gedeh, Grand Bassa, Margibi, Bong, Nimba, and Montserrado as their counties of origin was dispatched to their families. Those taken at the Johnsonville Site were unable to locate their relatives.
“Majority of us have skills”
On Friday, May 24th, the first batch of Liberian refugees who resided in Ghana arrived in Liberia. They form part of a total of 4,300 Liberian refugees scheduled to return home between May and June this year.
Upon their arrival, they were whelmedly welcomed until Tuesday, May 28, 2024, when Patrick Worzie, the Executive Director of the Liberia Refugee Repatriation and Resettlement Commission (LRRRC), said more than half of the first batch of approximately 648 Liberian returnees from the Buduburam Refugee Camp in Ghana are drug addicts.
This made many Liberians curious about the consequences drug addiction has, and how the addicted returnees will relate to their new environment. Moreover, there were more concerns about the possible threats it poses to the people of Bong County [Their first residential stop] and Liberia in general especially when the country is already struggling with the proliferation of Kush, and other harmful substances.
Meanwhile, even though it has been confirmed that some of the Liberian returnees are on substances, WomenVoices established that there are still a lot more of them who are academically, technically, and vocationally inclined to make life for themselves if empowered and contribute to the Liberian economy. This was also acknowledged when they informed us that the majority of them have valuable skills.
