In the East of Liberia are still living about 60 000 refugees from the Ivory Coast (March 2012). In May 2011, they fled after the elections and the following riots. At the beginning they were welcome in Liberia, because during the civil war, many Liberians stayed in Ivory Coast. But life is hard and the atmosphere is tensed.
Nevertheless, many refugees stay in Liberia. Especially the women remain in the villages.
Both villages I visited, organised welcoming events for medica mondiale, a german NGO who supports traumatised women in war and crisis zones. In the second village, the mood is tense, as there is not enough food and the speakers request assistance (the village is very closed to the border of the Ivory Coast, and on the other side is a river, the possibilities to create fields are limited).
The UNHCR wants, that the refugees from the villages go to the camps, where they are easier to control and can be "repatriated”. There they have to buy extra food, but where to get the money?
