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29 October 2001 By Marko Kokic at TV Tower Camp, Liberia The Liberian Red Cross has managed to harness the power of humanity to help displaced people on the road back to both dignity and independence. Red Cross-run 'TV Tower camp' was set up after virtually the entire population of Lofa province fled renewed civil conflict earlier this year. "When the fighting started around our village, my daughter Nyapu and I decided it was time to leave," Kedeh recalled. Her eyes wander, betraying nervousness as she speaks. "We carried what little food we had with us," she adds. Wrapped in a cloth she conceals the two stumps which are all that remain of her arms. Her daughter later explained that her father had attempted to murder Kedeh by cutting off her arms with a machete before killing himself. No one ever found out why. Nyapu went on: "We walked for a whole week but needed to rest often. You see, I was pregnant at the time. Then the LRRRC [Liberian Repatriation, Reintegration and Resettlement Commission] found us and transported us along with other IDPs here to TV Tower Camp." Kedeh and Nyapu's story is typical of those who fled their homes in the wake of renewed fighting in northern Liberia's Lofa county last April. Up to 400,000 of the county's people have become internally displaced as a consequence - fully 85% of the total. TV Tower camp is in neighbouring Bong county. Its name comes from the television antenna jutting up from the peak on which the camp stands. Home to over 5,500 people, it's run by the Liberian Red Cross. With initial International Federation support, the camp was established in April for the influx of IDPs from Lofa County. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has since taken the leading role, and together with the local Bong Red Cross chapter they provide humanitarian relief. Other partners include the World Food Programme and the International Rescue Committee, which runs the camp's schools. The local chapter has over 40 volunteers working at TV Tower camp. The camp has an ambulance service and a clinic, staffed by two nurses, as well as a midwife and a doctor's assistant who provide free treatment. There are also 10 youth volunteers responsible for HIV/AIDS awareness who regularly talk to residents about safe sex and distribute free condoms. Family tracing, community-based first aid, health education, water and sanitation and building maintenance are among the other activities of the Red Cross volunteers at the camp. "When I started here it was very difficult to see so many people arriving in such a poor state, half naked, all of them malnourished," explains Red Cross volunteer Korto Sumo, who is 21. "That is when we got no rest. But things are much better now for the IDPs - I go from house to house speaking to people about cleanliness and ways to guard against sicknesses like malaria. I also discuss early diagnosis and treatment of things like diarrhoea, and personal hygiene and health." Korto's Red Cross experience has taught her some valuable lessons. "Through my work I've learned something about IDPs and about being a volunteer," she says. "If IDPs' basic needs are provided for, they retain their dignity, and with that they can deal with the past and move on. I have seen this happen. I also learned about the satisfaction one can get from being a Red Cross volunteer. It feels good to help othersand it is nice to be needed." Along with permanent cement structures, the camp contains over 500 mud-walled huts for IDPs. "The ICRC provides them with the materials and training to build their own mud homes with tarpaulin roofs," explains camp manager Tito Gartor, a national Red Cross staff member employed by the ICRC. "Red Cross volunteers then supervise the construction to make sure they fit the agreed design." Tito runs the camp in collaboration with leaders chosen by the IDPs themselves. George Paywala, an IDP, is camp chairman. He explains: "I am something like a village chief. Along with the other elders I settle disputes and give advice. This is my role. The Red Cross has done a great job for us and we have worked hand-in-hand to make this camp a decent place for us to live. We will not soon forget what the Red Cross has done." But the situation in Lofa is still unstable and people in the camp are reluctant to go home. "Over the next few months, the ICRC will be helping the National Society develop its capacity to assume responsibility for TV Tower camp," says Liberian Red Cross Secretary General Daniel Clarke. "We in turn are training IDPs to run certain camp facilities. Over time, we hope to see the camp increasingly run by the IDPs themselves." The Bong Red Cross chapter - active throughout the worst periods of the civil war in Liberia during the 1990s - has much to be proud of. Fahiah Tamba, one of the chapters field officers, says: "Our biggest impact by far been in the area of health and relief to IDPs. This means running six clinics - including TV Tower's, providing safe drinking water by constructing wells, and building and maintaining the camp's latrines. Health awareness volunteers reinforce the message. These activities have greatly improved the health and quality of life of IDPs in TV Tower camp." |
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