Women of the Liberia Mass Action for Peace
During the second Liberian civil war (1999-2003), a group of women, led by Leymah Gbowee, decided to ‘take the destiny of Liberia into their own hands’ and say ‘no to violence and yes to peace.’
The Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace campaign was born. In images seen around the world, thousands of Christian and Muslim women dressed in white gathered at a fish market in Monrovia, the capital, and sang and prayed.
WLMAP convinced then- President Charles Taylor to attend peace talks with leaders of warring factions and through sit-ins and a threatened sex strike, Liberian women ended decades of violence to bring about peace in their country.
Continued political activism saw the election of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in Liberia in 2005, the first woman president of any country in Africa.
International Activists
