PHOTO: Activists marching for justice on the streets of Monrovia
By Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com
Monrovia, Liberia- In search of Justice for rape victims, rape activists under the banner March for Justice are calling on Liberian lawmakers to amend the rape law, imposing death for rape convicts, instead of life imprisonment.
The group is headed by Mrs. Ne-suah Beyan Livingstone and Mr. Titus Paklah.
According Mrs. Livingstone, despite many men being found guilty of rape in court who have been given life imprisonments, this is yet to deter perpetrators from committing this heinous crime in the country.
She believes that when the death penalty is served convicted rapists, the issue is of rape will drastically decrease in Liberia. But at the moment, putting convicted rapists in jail for life imprisonments, are not yielding the desired results in the new rape law, this prominent women and children’s rights activist said.
Mrs. Livingstone added that the reason why many Liberian Lawmakers are not taking serious this rape issue is that their children are all abroad. She recalled an incident several years ago, when a former Lawmaker Edward Ford’s daughter died at JFK during the Ebola crisis, it was when he got to know the messy health system ordinary citizens endue on a daily basis.
A similar call for the imposition of death penalty for convicted rapists has also been made by the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL), Major General Prince C. Johnson to deter the rising menace.
March for justice
The march for justice, which was stage today, Tuesday, January 25, 2022, started from the Camp Johnson Road in central Monrovia and ended at the Capitol Building on Capitol Hill, where a petition was read to three lawmakers-Moses Acarious Gray of District #8, C. B. Barshall of District #3 and Rustolyn Suacoco Dennis of District #4 all of Montserrado County.
The march for Justice was held to demand justice for the 13-year-old rape victim, Blessing Molton who was raped to death by a man, age 35 identified as Prince Massaquoi.
According to eyewitness accounts, the deceased victim was sent by this perpetrator Prince Massaquoi to buy water for after her mother sent her to release her phone from on charge.
As an obedience child, Blessing Morton went ahead to purchase his water for him and when she brought to him, he hauled her in his room where he allegedly sexually abuse her both in her private part and anus which made it very impossible for her to walk freely.
As he carried out the act, he is said to have increased the volume of his music high so that no one would hear the victim crying for help.
After his alleged act perpetrated against the 13-year-old minor, the man who lived in the deceased neighbourhood, threatened that If she told anyone, he would kill her.
The alleged rape occurred on January 18, 2022 on the Camp Johnson road in the perpetrator’s room.
Days after the crime took place, the deceased victim started crying with her stomach but she couldn’t really open up to her parents about what had happened to her, until it got worse. At that time, her father pressed her to tell what was really happening to her when, after which she opened up and revealed that she was raped by perpetrator, Prince Massaquoi.
But prior to her confession, she was taken to clinic when the child’s parents though it was just a minor illness that could be solved there. But when she underwent medical examination, it was revealed that she was gruesomely raped with some of her internal organ destroyed.
The 13-year-old girl was finally taken to the JKF Medical Center for further medical examination, where surgery was performed, but she died while the surgery was underway.
The late Blessing Morton was a third grade student at the C.D.B. King elementary school on the Camp Johnson Road in central Monrovia.
The protesters carried placards, with some of the inscription saying, “why rape babies? Let us stop rape in Liberia,” among other things.
“Stop raping babies, they are our future. Our little Blessing need justice,” other placards said.
The march for Justice comprised school students, friends of victim Blessing Morton and mothers.