[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 17]
[Senate]
[Page 22956]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          LIBERIA'S ELECTIONS

  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I commend the Liberian people on their 
recent Presidential and parliamentary elections. News reports of people 
camping outside polling areas to vote, strong voter turnout, and a free 
and fair democratic process in Liberia are inspiring. Following a 14-
year-long civil war and the regime of former Liberian leader Charles 
Taylor, who fled in exile in August 2003, the war-tired people of 
Liberia deserve our support as they work to bring about a legitimate, 
representative government in that country.
  However, Liberia's elections are not the silver bullet for stability. 
There remains much work to be done to build long-term stability in this 
country, and the U.S. has a meaningful role to play. We must remain 
engaged in Liberia to help rebuild and strengthen institutions. The 
legitimacy of government is contingent upon the public's confidence, 
and lasting stability depends on such steps as rooting out corruption 
and providing transparency in government. The Liberian people deserve 
our unflagging support in those endeavors. Too much is at stake to turn 
our back and allow Liberia to regress into a state that houses a 
corrupt and abusive government and further destabilizes West Africa.
  In looking forward, Liberians must also reconcile with the past. 
Years of horrible violence and conflict and the drastic decline of 
humanitarian conditions in the country under the regime of Charles 
Taylor need resolution. We also know now that Charles Taylor's desire 
for power and wealth extended beyond the borders of Liberia. I firmly 
believe that Charles Taylor is a war criminal, and I maintain that he 
should stand trial before the Special Court for Sierra Leone. The U.S. 
and the international community have a responsibility to ensure that 
the circle of violence and impunity in Liberia does not continue in its 
nascent government. And we must continue to help the Liberian people 
combat corruption, because no new leadership can bring lasting change 
if that fundamental problem is not addressed.

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