Liberia declared rape a national emergency after appalling spike in cases

Photo Credits: Luckas Jackson/REUTERS

With the appalling spike in the rape cases, Liberian President George Weah has declared rape as a national emergency. George Weah has ordered for new measures to tackle the current problem post the increasing cases in the poor West African State.

The declaration step comes after the protests carried out by thousands of Liberians regarding the rising cases of rape in the capital city Monrovia in the last month. The protests were centered to draw attention to the rising incidents of sexual assault.

George, while addressing the issue had mentioned on Friday that he would be installing a special prosecutor for the rape cases in Liberia and also establish a national sex offender registry.

According to the official statement, the Liberian government will also set up a so-called “national security task force” on sexual and gender adhering violence.

The elevating count of rape cases in Liberia is a rising concern. As per the United States Report in 2016, 803 rape cases were recorded in the country of 4.5 million in the previous year and only 2 % of the cases were convicted.