A leading Liberian civil rights movement has accused the Boakai-led government of waging a “nonconventional war” against the country’s 5.5 million people through economic neglect, attacks on the justice system, policing abuses and a foreign policy the group says undermines national interests.
The Solidarity and Trust for a New Day (STAND) said in a public statement that Liberians face an array of harms it describes as an economic war that entrenches poverty and hunger; a healthcare crisis in which elites seek medical treatment abroad while ordinary citizens are neglected; a security war marked by police brutality; and a justice crisis that silences rape survivors while protecting alleged perpetrators.
“Liberia is witnessing a dangerous erosion of the rule of law, civic freedoms, and institutional accountability,” STAND said, accusing the Liberia National Police (LNP) and other state institutions of selective application of the law in violation of the constitution and international treaties including the Convention on the Rights of the Child, CEDAW and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
STAND singled out the LNP’s handling of a high-profile sexual assault allegation involving a 14-year-old, saying police cleared a suspect — former deputy youth and sports minister J. Bryant McGill — on the basis of purported DNA evidence while other accused individuals face arrest and prosecution without similar testing.
The group said that by taking on a role it said belongs to the courts, police actions have undermined due process and public confidence in justice institutions.
The movement also condemned what it described as the violent suppression of peaceful protests, citing use of tear gas, arbitrary arrests, excessive force and fabricated charges against demonstrators.
STAND accused authorities of selectively enforcing public order laws and deploying civilian provocateurs to disrupt civil society activities, behavior it called “state orchestrated intimidation.”
Calling police leadership “morally compromised,” STAND demanded accountability, the removal of the inspector general and structural reform of the security sector to restore neutrality and public trust.
The group said it would intensify pressure on the government and begin “sustained civil disobedience” — peaceful and nonviolent — until the demands from July 17 and December 17 protests are addressed.
STAND also criticized Liberia’s diplomatic posture, warning that alignment with Venezuela’s government signaled a departure from the country’s historic commitment to democratic norms.
The group urged international partners, donors and rights bodies to increase monitoring, press for accountability and consider targeted sanctions against individuals implicated in gross human rights violations, stressing sanctions should avoid collective punishment.
STAND appealed to Liberians to remain peaceful and resolute and by reaffirming its commitment to nonviolent resistance. “The struggle continues. Justice is non-negotiable. Resistance remains a moral duty,” the group said.
A request for comment sent to a government spokesperson and to the Liberia National Police was not immediately answered.
Liberia recorded a marginal improvement in the World Justice Project’s 2025 Rule of Law Index but the country shows worrying signs of democratic backsliding, with judges losing ground to executive outreach and rising political interference coinciding with shrinking civil liberties.
The WJP report, which compares rule-of-law performance across 143 countries, places Liberia 108th globally and 16th out of 34 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Liberia’s overall score rose by less than 1 percent in 2025, making it one of a minority of countries to register any gain in a year when the global rule-of-law recession accelerated — 68 percent of countries declined in the Index, up from 57 percent the prior year.
Beneath that modest improvement, however, the Index highlights a range of structural weaknesses. Liberia is among more than 70% of countries worldwide experiencing a contraction in civic space: “freedom of opinion and expression,” “freedom of assembly and association,” and “civic participation” all declined in 2025 — trends the WJP links to expanding authoritarianism.
