Liberian Peace Talks to Reopen as Scheduled

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, June 09, 2003

Liberian Peace Talks to Reopen as Scheduled

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Liberian peace talks will reopen on Monday as scheduled, Ghanaian Foreign Minister Addo Akufo-Addo said Sunday, though Liberia's main rebel group has given PresidentCharles Taylor 72 hours to step down.

"The talks will start on Monday," Akufo-Addo said. "It is our fullest expectation that everyone will do their best to come to grips with the situation and try their utmost for peace."

The main rebel group, the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD), struck back into the terrified capital Monrovia on Sunday, making tens of thousands of local people fleeing for their lives under pouring rain, just hours after Defense Minister Daniel Chea vowed to root out resistance.

Akufo-Addo said the Movement for Democracy in Liberia (MODEL) has already arrived in Ghana with a six-member team for the peace talks.

The planned two-week peace talks whose opening ceremony was held on Wednesday in Ghana's capital Accra were initially due to begin on Friday in the Ghanaian town of Akosombo but were suspended till Monday because mediators insisted on a ceasefire and the participation of the MODEL in the parleys.

The peace talks held under the aegis of the Economic community of West African States and the International Contact Group on Liberia are expected to result in an agreement on a comprehensive peace process, including a lasting ceasefire, security, electoral reform, respect for human rights and the rule of law.

The Liberian civil war, which lasted about 15 years and claimedat least 200,000 lives, flared up again in 1998 following attacks launched by the LURD rebels in northern Liberia.

Civil war over the past decade has made Liberia among the most miserable places in the world and the latest unrest since 1998 hasforced some 300,000 Liberians to flee to neighboring countries andclaimed thousands more lives.

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