YMCA radio stations assist nation building

29 August 2008

Matthew Brimah came from a poor family in Ganta, Liberia, with seven children and a handicapped mother relying on his father for support.

He wanted to be a journalist, was a member of the press club at school and studied journalism. But like many people whose dreams are fashioned by an unhealthy dose of the harsh reality of their circumstances and limited opportunities, he put this dream aside and worked as a labourer in agricultural projects.
 
In 1997, after work one day, he came across some people putting up a radio transmitter. He offered to help them, and discovered they were launching a Christian radio station that night. When all was ready and it was time to go on air, the novice presenters were struck by stage fright. Seizing the opportunity, Matthew stepped up to the radio microphone and became the station’s first radio announcer and worked there for the next six years. During this time, he took his wife and two children to a neighbouring county that was not as badly affected by the civil war, which wreaked havoc on the country for 14 years.  
 
In 2003 during a visit to his family, he was accosted by some of Charles Taylor’s government soldiers – themselves erstwhile rebels. On finding radio equipment in his bag, they accused him of planning to set up a radio station to communicate with the LURD rebels to co-ordinate an attack on Ganta. In front of his crying wife and children, they stripped him of his clothes, and he always wonders what may have happened if a woman who recognized him had not come by at that moment and told the soldiers that he was indeed a radio journalist.
 
That very day, he joined the army. Why would he join the ranks of the people who had humiliated and threatened him in public? He chose to join them rather than be again humiliated or hurt by them. Soon after this, the town of Ganta was completely obliterated by the LURD rebel take-over.

Matthew does not say much about the war, but the images still haunt him. I saw his eyes well up with tears and his body tense when we watched an American movie together, which had scenes of bush warfare. Like thousands of others in Liberia, Matthew tries to focus on the present and the work that must be done to build a sustainable country. After Taylor’s government was dismantled, Matthew handed in his gun in the disarmament process. When a YMCA Y-echo amateur radio station was started in Ganta in 2004, he joined the crew as a full-time volunteer and is now a Programme Director.

This station is one of five in the country, which are all managed and operated by young people (many under the age of 30). In 2002, all stations were shut down and equipment was seized on the same day at the same hour as they did not toe the Taylor party line. In true YMCA spirit, the movement bought slots on other radio stations to continue their messages, until they could re-establish the radio stations.
 
During the post-war period, the YMCA stations encouraged people to return to their villages, take part in the disarmament and reconstruction process and begin a countrywide process of psychological recovery and rebuilding of communities. Matthew used his war experience to reach out to fellow ex-combatants, telling listeners, “I was once a fighter too – you can be like me, you can change your life.” He motivated the ex-combatants to turn in their weapons and take part in the skills development offered as part of the disarmament. He tells of many ex-combatants who, after listening to his messages on air, signed up for YMCA training such as carpentry, and are now earning a living. The YMCA reaches over 20 000 listeners on a daily basis with programmes on health, peace, civic education and advocacy. Liberia has one of the
highest illiteracy rates in the world, and many people rely solely on the information being provided to them by radio.
 
As Liberia moves from a conflict-stricken state into an era of growth and development, the active involvement of youth is crucial. The youth who operate the YMCA radio stations are a vital link between the local and national leaders, and the communities who, to a large extent, have been denied adequate information on issues that affect them. These mainly self-taught youth have passion, dedication and tenacity. They need the opportunities to match this with skills and experiential learning. As part of the Africa Alliance renewed strategic plan, we are focusing on shared learnings and skills exchange within Africa. To this end, we are exploring an African youth exchange programme between Liberia and identified African countries.  
 
We salute the youth of Liberia who work at these radio stations, operated by car battery in a country that has no electricity – such is the power of commitment of many youth in Africa.

By Gil Harper, Strategic Advisor, Africa Alliance of YMCAs
Published in the Africa Alliance Newsletter, July 2008