Police officers hold rattans at a checkpoint on the Gabriel Tucker Bridge in Monrovia on April 12, 2020Monrovia – State Security forces must stop all violence against people during this state of emergency announced to stem out the deadly Novel Coronavirus disease the National Civil Society Council of Liberia has said. The largest civil society group, a conglomerate of civil society groups, community-based organizations and grassroots institutions across the country, welcomed the decision of the government to defeat the coronavirus pandemic but urged state security actors to ensure the rights of people are respected. Footage and photos of security forces manhandling people on the streets and in markets have emerged on social media. “Media reports alleging violence against citizens in Nimba, Bong and other counties reportedly by elements of the Joint Security Forces are disturbing,” Mrs. Pope-Kai added. She added that youths that make up the majority of these vigilantes were neither uniformed nor identifiable, and appeared to be operating outside of the national COVID-19 and state security response system.

Source: Front Page Africa April 14, 2020 01:07 UTC