By Cllr. Tiawan Gongloe
“Sovereignty must never be traded for minerals. The Makona River must unite us—not divide us.
The spirits of President Ahmed Sékou Touré and President William V. S. Tubman will never allow Guinea and Liberia to fight.
The relationship between our two countries is not ordinary. It was built on sacrifice, restraint, and African solidarity. It is a history that must guide us now.
In 1992, I was sent by Liberia’s Interim President, Dr. Amos C. Sawyer, as a presidential envoy to meet the leaders of Sierra Leone and Guinea regarding the peace process in Liberia. I met President Joseph Saidu Momoh in Freetown. When I arrived in Conakry, President Lansana Conté was on a tour of Guinea’s forest region, so I delivered the special message to the Guinean Foreign Minister.
During that meeting, the Foreign Minister spoke of a deep debt of gratitude that Guinea owed Liberia. He explained that when Guinea chose independence without assimilation into the French system, France reacted harshly.
At one point, France allegedly offered support to Liberia to reclaim territories lost during colonial boundary negotiations. President William V. S. Tubman refused. He chose not to spill a single drop of Liberian or Guinean blood over territorial disputes.
The Minister further explained that when Guinea faced economic blockade and isolation, President Tubman opened the Freeport of Monrovia so Guinea could import essential goods, including petroleum products. According to him, those actions helped secure Guinea’s independence.
He told me clearly: even if all ECOMOG troop-contributing countries withdrew from Liberia, Guinea would remain until Liberia found peace because Guinea would never forget Liberia’s sacrifice.
That history is sacred.
It is precisely because of that sacred history that the recent tensions surrounding the Makona River must be handled with responsibility and legal clarity.
Reports indicate that Guinean security forces crossed into Liberian territory and removed the Liberian flag. If confirmed, that action raises serious sovereignty concerns and must be addressed firmly but diplomatically.
But patriotism must be anchored in truth.
Unofficial reports suggest that mining activities may have been carried out from the Liberian side of the Makona River without the consent of the Guinean Government. If that information is accurate, such actions would violate international law governing boundary rivers and the Mining Law of Liberia.
Under international watercourse law, no state may undertake activities in a shared boundary river that affect another state without consultation and consent. Under Liberian law, no person or company may mine without lawful authorization and strict compliance with territorial and environmental regulations.
If private actors or worse, public officials engaged in unlawful mining that triggered this diplomatic strain, responsibility must follow.
No company, no interest group, and no official is greater than the sovereignty of the Republic of Liberia.
President Joseph Nyumah Boakai’s decision to suspend mining activities in the Makona River area was commendable. But suspension alone is not enough. There must be a transparent and independent investigation into the source of this dispute.
If any individual or entity violated Liberian law or international obligations, then that person or entity must be held accountable. If any government official is implicated in conduct that undermined Liberia’s sovereignty, that official should be dismissed without hesitation.
Sovereignty cannot be, should not be, and must never be compromised for profit. National integrity cannot and should not be traded for minerals.
At the same time, I urge our Guinean brothers and sisters to remember our shared history. Liberia and Guinea are bound together by more than geography. We are bound by sacrifice and mutual defense of independence.
Disputes must be resolved through diplomacy, joint investigation, and respect for law.
Liberia must defend its territorial integrity. Guinea must defend its sovereignty. But both must stand together in defense of peace.
The Makona River should symbolize cooperation, not confrontation.
I call upon Presidents Mamady Doumbouya and Joseph Nyumah Boakai to honor the legacies of Presidents Ahmed Sékou Touré and William V. S. Tubman, who chose peace, principle, and African solidarity over provocation.
Let both leaders ask themselves, in their efforts to resolve the Makona River dispute:
What would President Touré have done?�What would President Tubman have done?
Between Guinea and Liberia:
Peace before!�Peace now!�Peace forever!”
