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“Poverty makes me look old,” says Finda Joseph. Even though she’s only 32, having five small boys and no support system makes her look older than her age.
Finda is one of an innumerable population of urban squatters and internal refugees in Monrovia, Liberia. Most arrived in Liberia after the war and found refugee in abandoned houses. Because they aren’t officially refugees or officially vulnerable populations, they often fall through the cracks of the assistance safety net.
The Minister of Information recently said squatters should “move or be removed.”
I wonder what will happen to Finda.
anstis says:
The tragedy of urban internal refugees seems so much worse than rural refugees who live (directly) in post-conflict areas (like Northern Uganda). Urban refugees are so far under the radar; yet will probably destabilize regions to a greater extent and should be a structural concern of all governments. On that note, how different is Monrovia from good old Kampala?
[Reply]
— March 2, 2009 @ 7:12 pm