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Minister of Health and Social Welfare of the Republic of Liberia.
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 11 June 2014
To open this issue on ‘Violence against Health Care’, the Review sought the perspective of a health-care professional who has worked in the context of an armed conflict.
Dr Walter T. Gwenigale is the Minister of Health and Social Welfare of the Republic of Liberia. A practising surgeon for more than 30 years, including during the civil war, he has served as Bong County health officer, director of Phebe Hospital and president of the Christian Health Association of Liberia. He has also served on the World Health Organization's executive board and as a board member of the Roll Back Malaria campaign.
In this interview, Minister Gwenigale explains how the armed conflict in Liberia impacted on the work of remotely-located Phebe hospital, on the needs of its patients and on the ability of the hospital staff to provide them with adequate medical care. He describes the main security challenges and the way in which the hospital staff attempted to address them. He also recalls instances in which the hospital staff and facilities were the direct target of this violence, sometimes leading to tragic consequences. In addition to the short-term impact of the armed conflict he witnessed as a doctor, Minister Gwenigale also reflects on the long-term effect of this conflict on the health system in Liberia today.
This interview was conducted on 4 December 2012 in Monrovia, Liberia, by Pedram Yazdi, Communication delegate, and Varney Bawn, communication assistant, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegation in Liberia.
1 Editor's note: Phebe Hospital in Gbarnga (about 300 kilometres from Monrovia in central Liberia's largely rural Bong County) opened in 1921 and never stopped working throughout the conflict (1989–2003). See the hospital's website: http://phebehospital.com/
2 Editor's note: Samuel Kanyon Doe (1951–1990) was the head of state of Liberia from 1980 to 1990.
3 Editor's note: Prince Johnson was a senior commander of Charles Taylor's National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL). In 1990, he left the NPFL to form the Independent National Patriotic Front of Liberia (INPFL), which captured a part of Monrovia in September 1990.
4 Editor's note: Charles Taylor headed the NPFL from 1989, until he was elected as Liberia's president in 1997.
5 Editor's note: in September 1994, the hospital was attacked and looted. It was reported that at least 100 people were killed, namely hospital staff, patients and civilians who had sought refuge in the hospital. See inter alia Republic of Liberia Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Final report - Volume II: Consolidated Final Report, 2009, at pp. 174, 181 and 182.
6 Editor's note: as of the 1 December 2013, 1 Liberian dollar (LRD) was worth 0.01 US dollar.