–Liberia Brutal Civil War Victim Recounts Her Odeal, Rallies Gov’t
By Jerromie S. Walters
MONROVIA – Nearly two decades after surviving the atrocity that left her permanently disabled, 28-year-old Musu Gertee is struggling to care for herself her ailing parents, and her young child— but wondering why the government that once championed her cause has left her to fend for herself. In an interview with this paper, the 28-year-old civil war victim recounted how Liberia’s government transformed her suffering into a publicity opportunity, then abandoned her to poverty.
The chain of events began in 2003, when rebel forces attacked civilians seeking refuge near Grace Stone in Mamba Point. Gertee, then twelve, sustained injuries when a bullet hit her head and right arm. Liberia’s civil wars (1989-2003) resulted in widespread atrocities, including killings, sexual violence, and the use of child soldiers, with perpetrators often acting with impunity.
“I was the one who was really injured among my family members. My little brother just got burned. My mother’s breast nipple got cut off and my father was hit on the back. For me, I was injured on my head. A bullet entered my head.” She recalled that all of that happened next to their home opposite Grace Stone up Mamba Point. They had left their home next to the same place and gone to Grace Stone for refuge. However, it was worse than they expected.
According to Musu, she was rescued by a Japanese journalist Kuni Takahashi who immediately took her to the MSF Hospital but later returned to his country. Upon his return to Japan, he published her story along with photos that were taken on the scene of the incident. As expected, the publication gained attention and the International coverage of Gertee’s injuries led to her 2006 U.S. medical trip, through its Embassy in Monrovia, and former president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.
When the former President contacted her parents, they were informed about the U.S. Government decision to help her and that visits also blended with an interview on the famous Oprah Winfrey show along with Madam Sirleaf. Escorted by her mother, they both went on the few months visit in 2006. As promised, the artificial arm was made available to her and later, she was featured on the show along with the former President.
9-year-old at the time, Musu Gertee returned home in June 2006, following a fitting procedure in Chicago, Illinois in the United States of America (USA). Few days after their return to Liberia, Musu says her father was contacted by the former President (Sirleaf) who informed them (Musu and her father) that funds were generated for her following her appearance on the Oprah Winfrey show but Musu and her parents were entitled to seventy-five percent while twenty five percent was for the government.
“She told my father that the money is here. But she told him that twenty-five percent of the money was going to the government and the seventy-five percent is for me and my family,” Musu narrated. She continued, “When we came back, my father was thinking that he would have gotten a call for the money but there was nothing.” But in that period, Musu said the former President often sent her security with food and other items for her.
Then, abruptly, the deliveries ceased. “After that time, that’s how it left. My father did not receive anything. Everything just stopped like that. My father sent me to school with his own money because he was working at the time,” she said. Currently, she says her parents aren’t working like before so life has gotten more difficult than it was. “This is where my life is now. No help from anywhere.”
Musu: “Anything I want to do unless I beg. My father is sick. He is suffering from a large heart. Even my mother is taking medication. I tried looking for a job but nothing is happening.” Musu can’t remember the last time she heard from the government, insinuating that it might be over eight years. Following her graduation from high school, she said her father visited the former President’s home some years ago but he didn’t interact with her and he was later given LRD3,000 by a security personnel. She thinks it might have been for transportation. “They brought it outside the gate,” she said.
At the moment, she wants help in any way the government can, and whether they can still make the funds they informed her father about available. “My call is that the new government should come in and help me. Its not easy. Attending to my parents, my kid, its not easy. I’m not ungrateful to God but its not easy.” She asked, “If there was no money, why will there be a call for discussion of that?” The office of the former President and the Executive Mansion were not available up to press time for comments.
Upon her graduation from High school, she attended a trade school where she did cosmetology. However, she says it hasn’t been working out. With life now with no job while her parents are ill, she says it is more “stressful”. Sometimes she goes to the Group of 77 for a bag of rice to keep food in their home. Now, she feels abandoned. “I feel abandoned by our own government because my story did not happen in a corner and it didn’t reach the ears of the government. It happened and the government was part of my story. Even photos prove it then at the end of the day I am asking people all over,” she lamented.
On Friday, July 5, 2025, President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr., lit the National Healing, Reconciliation, and Unity Candle at the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Ministerial Complex in Congo Town, Monrovia. This poignant ceremony marked a defining moment in Liberia’s ongoing efforts to confront its painful past and foster national unity. The event was a cornerstone of the National Healing, Reconciliation, and Unity Program, an initiative designed to honor the victims of Liberia’s civil wars, the Ebola and COVID-19 pandemics, and other national tragedies.
In his address, President Boakai framed the candle-lighting as “a solemn national moment—a symbol of our collective journey from pain to purpose, from division to unity, and from grief to healing.” He emphasized that the flame represented not just remembrance but a renewed commitment to truth, justice, and reconciliation. “Today, we ignite a shared resolve to confront our past honestly, to honor those we have lost, and to build a Liberia that is more just, peaceful, and united,” he declared. Despite her status as a prominent war victim, Musu Gertee was not recognized during the event, even after identifying herself to officials.
Liberia’s path to this moment has been fraught with suffering. The country endured two devastating civil wars between 1989 and 2003, which left an estimated 250,000 dead, displaced millions, and crippled the nation’s infrastructure. The first conflict erupted in 1989 when Charles Taylor’s National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) launched an insurrection against Samuel Doe’s repressive regime. Fueled by ethnic tensions, political repression, and factional rivalries, the war spiraled into chaos, drawing in groups like Prince Johnson’s Independent National Patriotic Front of Liberia (INPFL).
By 1997, Taylor emerged victorious in a contentious election, but his presidency failed to bring stability. Instead, renewed violence erupted in 1999, led by rebel groups like LURD and MODEL, plunging Liberia into a second brutal war until the 2003 Accra Peace Agreement finally halted the bloodshed. Recognizing the need for accountability, President Boakai has taken decisive steps toward establishing a War and Economic Crimes Court. On May 2, 2024, he signed Executive Order #131, creating an office to investigate atrocities and draft a framework for the court.
This move aligns with long-standing demands for justice, particularly from victims and advocacy groups who have waited decades for redress. The court’s mandate is sweeping: it will prosecute war crimes, crimes against humanity, and large-scale corruption during the wars and beyond, blending international legal standards with Liberian jurisprudence.
Public support for the court is strong, with many viewing it as essential for healing.
Yet challenges loom, including securing funding and overcoming political resistance. Some argue that revisiting the past could reopen old wounds, but proponents counter that justice is indispensable for lasting peace. The court’s establishment also fulfills a key recommendation of Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), which documented wartime atrocities in a 2010 report but saw its findings ignored for years.
In April 2024, Liberia’s Legislature passed a joint resolution endorsing the court, with lawmakers like Thomas Goshua and Speaker Fonati Koffa urging swift action. The resolution outlines a hybrid tribunal model, blending local and international oversight, and calls for reparations, a national monument, and continued reconciliation programs. The court’s success hinges on meticulous planning, robust funding, and unwavering political will.
