BriefingAfrica

Liberia’s ‘Iron Lady’ Praised at Home and Abroad, Though Some Dissent Remains

Liberia’s ‘Iron Lady’ Praised at Home and Abroad, Though Some Dissent Remains

MONROVIA, Liberia -- To Liberians, she is President Ellen, or "our iron lady." Her supporters call her a difference-maker and a straight talker, a leader who says what she's going to do and then does it. Those qualities have inspired admiration and even love for President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Africa's first female president.

"She love the country," Roland Watson, a driver for an aid agency, said. "I think she want to make things happen in this country."

The same cannot be said about Liberia's former presidents, who presided over 14 years of civil war that claimed 250,000 lives and impoverished much of the country.

Keep reading for free!

Get instant access to the rest of this article by submitting your email address below. You'll also get access to three articles of your choice each month and our free newsletter:

Or, Subscribe now to get full access.

Already a subscriber? Log in here .

What you’ll get with an All-Access subscription to World Politics Review:

A WPR subscription is like no other resource — it’s like having a personal curator and expert analyst of global affairs news. Subscribe now, and you’ll get:

  • Immediate and instant access to the full searchable library of tens of thousands of articles.
  • Daily articles with original analysis, written by leading topic experts, delivered to you every weekday.
  • Regular in-depth articles with deep dives into important issues and countries.
  • The Daily Review email, with our take on the day’s most important news, the latest WPR analysis, what’s on our radar, and more.
  • The Weekly Review email, with quick summaries of the week’s most important coverage, and what’s to come.
  • Completely ad-free reading.

And all of this is available to you when you subscribe today.

BEGIN YOUR WPR SUBSCRIPTION NOW

More World Politics Review