Hundreds of ex-Liberian Government fighters have staged angry protests to demand immediate payment for disarming. They fired their guns into the air and beat passers-by near a United Nations-run disarmament camp. The UN started taking weapons from some 40,000 members of government and rebel militias, many of whom are child soldiers, high on drugs, on Sunday. Some 4,500 UN peacekeepers have deployed to Liberia in a bid to end 14 years of brutal civil war. The fighters will be paid $300 but only half has been paid upfront. “This gun is my life, if I don’t get money I won’t hand in any weapons,” said Lieutenant Paul Dust, a rocket-propelled grenade in his hands and a pistol tucked in his trousers. Under the UN scheme, which is due to last nine-months, the fighters will also be given counselling and vocational training. Full Story
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