Mandingoes In US Taking Reconciliation Effort Seriously

7/3/07 - Sidiki Trawally, strawally@FrontPageAfrica.com 

Philadelphia - Hundreds of Liberian Mandingoes who attended the just ended All Mandingo Conference in Philadelphia have scorned deep-rooted disunity, which continues to plague them. They have resolved to lead an effort that will unite the community.

At the Conference, which ended Sunday, Liberian Mandingoes recognized that the only way their community will be respected and taken seriously is when they come together for the common good of all. They denounced the continuous bickering among some Mandingo organizations in the United States, saying that those trends are unhealthy and will prove counter-productive for the survival of the community.

Liberian Mandingoes from across the United States, Liberia and other places began an effort Friday to reconcile among themselves before reaching out to other Liberian communities when more than 300 participants from across the US, Belgium, Liberia and host city converged at the American’s Best Inn to discuss issues affecting their community and sought a way forward.

The conference themed “Community Unity and Empowerment in post-war Liberia” kicked off on Friday, June 29 with Mandingo elders from various states meeting at the African Islamic Community Center (AICC). At that meeting, the elders identified some of the crucial issues that are entrenched in the community. They strongly cautioned their kinsmen to work together towards building a vibrant community in the US and other places abroad.

The elders stressed the importance of unity as key for the survival of the Mandingo community. “If we are not careful, we shall continue to live apart as different people. Our enemies will definitely penetrate our community and begin to use us against each other. We can see some of those results right now,” warned Senee Bility of Newark, NJ.

In his keynote statement on Saturday at the conference ball, Musa Bility, a young and rising political figure in Liberia strongly advised his kinsmen to be aware of the impact and the negativity “this whole disunity is leading us into. It’s tearing us apart and our unique community is shaky.” He arrived Saturday from Monrovia to participate in the historic convention.

Bility said he had prepared his speech in Liberia before taking off. However, he was troubled while in transit in Brussels. “I checked the internet and I saw an article of Limany and other negative articles about the convention, I was distracted.” He did not read from his prepared statement.

Honoring our past leaders

“I want to stress to you that we (Mandingo leadership) in Monrovia have been able to talk our differences and we are

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Cross-section of delegates, observers at the event, all working together for the betterment of our community. Only in America we keep hearing that you guys are having problems among yourself. This is sad and the trend must be corrected immediately if we are to achieve anything as people of one community.”

Bility, who is Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Port Authority (NPA) in Liberia paid tributes to some of the fallen Mandingo statesmen including Dr. Edward Beyan Kesselly, founder of the ruling Unity Party (UP). “We must respect and honor our past leaders. We should be proud that one of our kinsmen founded a party that is now ruling Liberia.”

He said Alhaji Kromah, who led the struggle against Charles Taylor “was a voice of hope and inspiration for our people at the time when we were humiliated killed and our people fled en mass to other countries.” Bility noted that through the struggle led by Kromah, who’s now a professor at the University of Liberia and former presidential candidate in the 2005 elections, “our people came back to Liberia with pride and dignity.”

He described former LURD leader, Sekou Damate Konneh as the “most important leader in the last 25 years in that he did not violate any agreement he signed. He led the struggle that drove Charles Taylor out of Liberia and he is largely responsible for the peace we now have in Liberia. This is a reality whether we like it or not.”

Be our own man, stop proxy war

According to the keynote speaker, "following closely on the heels of Dr. Kesselly’s generation was the generation of leaders that included Alhaji Kromah, Sekou Damante Konneh and others. We salute them for their courage and we pay tribute to their gallantry. Without their sacrifices, our community might not have been able to secure a place of respect on the contemporary Liberian political landscape." 

“Our challenge today is to build on this legacy and to expand opportunities for succeeding generations. Meeting this challenge requires that we deepen our understanding of the Liberia political, social and economic processes and develop both the personal and community capacities to ensure solid participation on our own merits and not through surrogates,” Bility said.

He added, “Our first challenge is to deepen our knowledge about ourselves and our country. We need to pay more attention to the history and culture of our people, understand from whence we come so that we can more clearly chart a course to the future.

The young speaker noted that though these past leaders deserve “credit as we must honor them for their time has passed and now is our time. As such we must stop fighting proxy war and begin to identify what we can do for our country by ourselves. Take 16 years out of the life of any of these leaders and you will realize they were our age when they started their activities. If they could do it, we too have come of age to step up to the challenge of leadership in our community and nation.”

Mandingoes formed union

At the conference, Liberian Mandingoes saw the need to establish a federation, a union of Mandingo organizations from across the United States which will provide means for internal reconciliation within the Mandingo community and enables Mandingos to discuss how they can form an integral part of the reconciliation and rebuilding process of Liberia. They formed a union named and styled as Federation of Liberian Mandingoes of the USA (FELMAUSA). The conference also earmarked some projects for Liberia in the areas of health, education, media, and human rights.  

Delegates also elected an official team of leaders to propel FELMAUSA. Mohammed Richmond Konneh of Pennsylvania was elected as President. Other officials elected include Mrs. Mamiata Jabateh of North Carolina as vice president for administration; Messrs Mamadee Bangalee Sesay of Minnesota as vice president for operations, Morris Kromah of Milwaukee as General Secretary, Mohammed Sheriff of North Carolina as Financial Secretary and Haja Massa Keita of New York as Treasurer. Former Liberian army chief of staff, Abraham Kromah was elected Chairman of the FELMAUSA Board.

Hon. Stanley Straughter, Chairman of the African and Caribbean Commission in the Philadelphia Major office, challenged the officers to conserve the Mandingo ethnic group and its cultures. He called on them to protect and promote the interest of Mandingos at home and abroad, while at the same time encourage dialogue geared towards peace building, unity and reconciliation among all Liberians. The Philadelphia city official crowned the first FELMAUSA Queen, Massa Kromah, who represented the East Coast. She defeated Ms. Sheriff from the Midwest.

The conference concluded on Sunday with the signing of FELMAUSA's Constitution by delegates from various states including host state, Atlanta, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Jersey, Texas, Wisconsin, Virginia, Maryland, Washington DC, etc. Delegates from New York, Europe and Liberia served as observers. The signing ceremony was followed by sporting events in which host state defeated Minnesota in the final match to clinch the first FELMASUA trophy. New Jersey's Mande soccer team won third place.

Meanwhile FELMAUSA Secretariat has clarified that previously selected guest speaker Alhaji Kromah, whose selection was strongly rejected by some Mandingoes in Philadelphia, could not attend the conference due to family emergency. “He lost someone in his family. Otherwise he would have loved to join us here,” Morris told FPA.

He also said the final communiqué from the conference is being processed and would be released to the public soon. He said conference papers prepared by various speakers including  Alvin Teage Jalloh, Attorney-at-law here in Philadelphia, Mamiata Jabateh Sirleaf of North Carolina, Dr. Abu Mansally of Philadelphia and Momo Dudu of Minnesota would also be released via FELMAUSA website at: www.felmausa.org.

Source: FrontPageAfrica.com

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