MEDIA REACTION ON LIBERIA, JULY 14, 2003

UNCLAS TEGUCIGALPA 001667 SIPDIS FOR WHA/PDA (JGREENBLATT),WHA/CEN, PD TASK FORCE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OIIP PREL KPAO PGOV IZ HO SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION ON LIBERIA, JULY 14, 2003 ¶1. Op-ed by Carlos Alberto Montaner in Tegucigalpa-based moderate daily "El Heraldo" on 7/12 entitled "Yankee, come home!". "The international public opinion wasn't prepared to witness the show put by countless demonstrators asking for a US military intervention in Liberia, to end the civil war that is tearing this country apart. They didn't ask for troops from the U.N., NATO, the Russians, the EU, much less from the Organization of African Unity. They want the gringos. How come?, because of their historical ties. Liberia was founded by a group of former American slaves that returned to their African motherland. We just have to find out if the U.S. has the will to take on this endeavor, so little after the Iraqi campaign." "I certainly hope that the US leads an international force to bring peace to Liberia and in general to that particularly unstable African region. There's not much that can be done, and it would be absurd to create false expectations, but still there's a little hope: it appears that Liberia's neighbor country, Senegal, is slowly consolidating a democratic government. With a combination of luck, time and appropriate advice, this can be a leading example for this region. The US might just be the last hope for this poor people." Palmer