Ellen and Ellen rule Liberia

The people of the impoverished country of Liberia in West Africa carry the memories of 14 years of bloody civil war. After the peace agreement in 2003, the country has largely disappeared from the international spotlight. But that does not mean the problems have been solved, says Ellen Margrethe Løj, head of UNMIL, the UN peacekeeping operation in Liberia

By Marlene Lyhne Sørensen

When Ellen Margrethe Løj needs to take stock of the state of affairs in Liberia, one of the things she checks is the building activity along the road to the airport, which is about an hour’s drive from the capital, Monrovia.

And judged by this criterion, Liberia is moving in the right direction:

“There is more building activity now than 18 months ago when I first arrived in the country. I see it as a sign of a budding faith in the future. People do not build houses for themselves using private means if they think they are going to flee tomorrow,” says Ellen Margrethe Løj during a trip to Denmark where she was born and raised, but only visits when she takes a couple of weeks’ holiday.

After a long career in the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and many years’ experience in international diplomacy, including six years as Danish ambassador to the UN in New York, she was asked 18 months ago by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to lead the UN peacekeeping operation in Liberia, UNMIL, which includes 10,000 soldiers and 1,350 police officers. UNMIL’s mission is to ensure that the war which racked the country from 1989 to 2003 does not flare up again, and to ensure sufficient security for rebuilding the country, which is badly scarred after the 14 year-long civil war that claimed the lives of 270,000 people and displaced 800,000.

“I believe it is a peacekeeping operation that can succeed. The war was a conflict between warlords who wanted to have power and the natural resources. The population did not support warlords for ideological reasons, but because they needed food on their table. If development projects enable Liberians to benefit from their natural resources, then I cannot see any reason for them to go to war again,” says Ellen Margrethe Løj, the UN Special Representative in Liberia and the highest placed Dane in the UN system.

No trust in the authorities
Ellen Margrethe Løj makes no secret of the fact that there is a long way to go. Liberia is one of the world’s poorest countries. The infrastructure is in ruins, there is a lack of education, jobs, health centres, water supplies and electricity. And not least, there is a lack of security.

During the war, the country’s own army and police force were used against the local population, and as part of the peace agreement and to recreate trust in the authorities, a thorough clean-up in the ranks was required. The army was disbanded and police officers who had made serious violations of human rights were dismissed.

A new Liberian army is now undergoing training, and the UN is responsible for training the police force. Together they will gradually resume control and security in the country. The biggest success criterion is to make the UN peacekeepers unnecessary.

“One of the greatest challenges is the continued lack of trust in the authorities. It lies deep in the Liberians that they have to fend for themselves, and they become incensed when robberies and murders occur with impunity. If the police arrest a suspect, there is no trust that any prosecution will result. And then there is a risk that they may take things into their own hands.”

Ellen Margrethe Løj

Born 17 October 1948. Daughter of a farmer on Falster, Denmark.
Graduated from Copenhagen University in 1973 with a Master’s degree in political science, and took up a position at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark
Secretary of Embassy at the UN Mission, New York 1979-80
Counsellor of Embassy at the representation to the EC, Brussels 1982-85 Ambassador to Israel 1989-92
Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
of Denmark’s South Group (Danida), whose responsibilities include Africa, 1996-2001
Denmark’s ambassador and Denmark’s permanent representative to the UN
in New York from 2001 to March 2007, then Ambassador to the Czech Republic Since January 2008 head of UNMIL, the UN peacekeeping operation in Liberia

No blue flashing lights
That was exactly what happened in the spring of 2009, when a group of enraged citizens attacked a prison and a police station in southern Liberia, overpowered the staff and released all the prisoners.

In such highly charged situations it is Ellen Margrethe Løj’s responsibility to decide how many UN soldiers to deploy to prevent the situation from getting further out of control. And that can be a difficult balancing act, she acknowledges.

“On the one hand we must not start attacking the civil population. On the other hand, we must be sufficiently robust to calm tempers. Fortunately I have some adept military advisors to lean on.”

UNMIL ended up putting tanks on the street and prodding people with weapons, and according to Ellen Margrethe Løj that was enough to restore peace and order.

Before answering what the greatest challenge of the job is, she pauses a moment.

“It is whether you give the right advice to the government. The Liberian government is very receptive, and you need to be aware of the responsibility you have towards them.”

Ellen Margrethe Løj continues:
“I have been very occupied with continuing to step back and gradually hand over responsibility to the Liberians. It is their country – the UN is only present for a short period and a significant task is to support Liberia in a way which ensures that they become able to take on full responsibility for the country’s development. The UN has, for example, large white pickups, with large UN letters along the sides. My security people usually suggest that we put blue flashing lights on the vehicles and drive around any congestion. But I don’t want that. We must constantly reduce our footprint and give the local population space, because if we constantly take up too much space, then we do not develop the self-confidence that is needed.”

Traditional Liberian dancer performs during the observance of the International Day of Peace, as Ellen Margrethe Løj, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), watches.
UN Photo by Christopher Herwig.

Ellen and Ellen
For years men have ruled Liberia. Their greed and lust for power have flattened the country and traumatised the population. Today women head the West African country. In addition to the UN’s Ellen Margrethe Løj, there is another Ellen: Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, the country’s president. And that is an advantage when the UN discusses equality with the government, says Ellen Margrethe Løj.

“We don’t have to debate the usefulness of both genders being represented. They understand that. Instead we can discuss how to make it happen, and that is an amazing advantage compared to many other countries. UNMIL’s military, on the other hand, are not as used to female bosses, but they have had to learn to live with it. Actually, I don’t think so much that it is my gender as my administrative approach that they have had to get used to. It is more Scandinavian; slightly less formal and with slightly less emphasis on hierarchy. But they did frown at me a bit the first time I turned up unannounced in the General’s office.”

UN in Liberia

The UN peacekeeping mission in Liberia has the task of preserving the peace that was secured in 2003 after 14 years of civil war.
The force originally consisted of 15,000 soldiers. The number has been gradually reduced and now totals 10,000 soldiers and 1,350 police officers.
UNMIL assisted at the first democratic election in Liberia, which was held in 2005. The next election is in 2011.

No private life
When Ellen Margrethe Løj is in Denmark, she enjoys moving around without being surrounded by security people. In Liberia, where there is a lot of crime, life is quite different. Ellen Margrethe Løj lives and works in the same building, and when she ventures outside it is always with bodyguards and soldiers.

“I once sneaked out with the garbage bin, with no security people accompanying me. But only a moment later, a guard appeared who had been keeping an eye on me through a monitor. So no, you don’t have a private life. It is an interesting challenge, but personally it is tough. There is only work, and you are constantly on duty,” says Ellen Margrethe Løj, before she gets up to go to her car. A smile spreads across her face.

“Now I am going to drive – without security people!”