- Guineans continue to witness the festering of a potentially explosive and disastrous anomaly to the State with the serial rioting of military personnel who have been demanding back pay and better conditions. In the latest flare up, precipitated by the sacking of former Prime Minster Lansana Kouyate by the ailing Guinean strongman General Lansana Conte, soldiers rampaged in the capital Conakry, looting shops, robbing civilians and firing in the air. Former premier Kouyate was a compromise candidate put forward to appease the soldiers in 2007 during another major military unrest. The soldiers are angry over the non-payment of salary arrears, some as far back as 1996 and the many broke…

- The consistent and seemingly systematic abuse perpetrated by some members of Liberia National Police (LNP) under Inspector General Colonel Munah Sieh continues to erode the confidence of the citizenry, the media and international partners. Repeatedly and without justification, some police officers acting with or without the knowlege of their superiors have visited abusive excesses on members of the media and ordinary citizens . The latest case in point is the August 31, assault and arrest of journalist Rufus J. Paul of Daily Observer newspaper who was arrested for what the police called 'trying to cover a raiding exercise without invitation" . According to media reports,…