Liberia's
President, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has written a heartfelt letter to the
world over the Ebola crisis that hit her country. In the letter which
was read over the radio and transmitted worldwide, she likened the Ebola
epidermic to the civil war her country faced 11 years ago which killed a
lot of Liberians, crumbled their economy and vital institutions.
The
president called on the international community to stop all theoretical
explanations on the Ebola crisis and act fast to stop the spread of the
deadly virus. Find her letter after the cut...
Dear World
In
just over six months, Ebola has managed to bring my country to a
standstill. We have lost over 2,000 Liberians. Some are children struck
down in the prime of their youth. Some were fathers, mothers, brothers
or best friends. Many were brave health workers that risked their lives
to save others, or simply offer victims comfort in their final moments.
There
is no coincidence Ebola has taken hold in three fragile states –
Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea - all battling to overcome the effects
of interconnected wars. In Liberia, our civil war ended only eleven
years ago. It destroyed our public infrastructure, crushed our economy
and led to an exodus of educated professionals. A country that had some
3,000 qualified doctors at the start of the war was dependent by its end
on barely three dozen. In the last few years, Liberia was bouncing
back. We realized there was a long way to go, but the future was looking
bright.
Now
Ebola threatens to erase that hard work. Our economy was set to be
larger and stronger this year, offering more jobs to Liberians and
raising living standards. Ebola is not just a health crisis – across
West Africa, a generation of young people risk being lost to an economic
catastrophe as harvests are missed, markets are shut and borders are
closed.
The
virus has been able to spread so rapidly because of the insufficient
strength of the emergency, medical and military services that remain
under-resourced and without the preparedness to confront such a
challenge. This would have been the case whether the confrontation was
with Ebola, another infectious disease, or a natural disaster.
But
one thing is clear. This is a fight in which the whole world has a
stake. This disease respects no borders. The damage it is causing in
West Africa, whether in public health, the economy or within communities
– is already reverberating throughout the region and across the world.
The
international reaction to this crisis was initially inconsistent and
lacking in clear direction or urgency. Now finally, the world has woken
up. The community of nations has realized they cannot simply pull up the
drawbridge and wish this situation away.
This
fight requires a commitment from every nation that has the capacity to
help – whether that is with emergency funds, medical supplies or
clinical expertise.
I
have every faith in our resilience as Liberians, and our capacity as
global citizens, to face down this disease, beat it and rebuild. History
has shown that when a people are at their darkest hour, humanity has an
enviable ability to act with bravery, compassion and selflessness for
the benefit of those most in need.
From
governments to international organisations, financial institutions to
NGOs, politicians to ordinary people on the street in any corner of the
world, we all have a stake in the battle against Ebola. It is the duty
of all of us, as global citizens, to send a message that we will not
leave millions of West Africans to fend for themselves against an enemy
that they do not know, and against whom they have little defence.
The
time for talking or theorizing is over. Only concerted action will save
my country, and our neighbours, from experiencing another national
tragedy. The words of Henrik Ibsen have never been truer: “A thousand
words leave not the same deep impression as does a single deed.
Yours sincerely,
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
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