Sierra Leone and Liberia

Available for over a year

As Liberia's former president Charles Taylor awaits the verdict in the trial over his alleged part in Sierra Leone's civil war, Umaru Fofana gives a moving description of how he was caught up in the violence. His piece is distressing. One day in 1997, Umaru Fofana was on his way to investigate a news story in Sierra Leone. He was stopped by rebel soldiers who shot him in the leg and then took him away to attack and abuse him further. But there are other stories of the victims of the violence and how they are coping now. Despite the sad past, however, there are signs that things are getting better in the country. Pascale Harter presents.