Today, July 1, 2025, marks a profoundly poignant moment in Liberia's tumultuous history. Forty-five years after his brutal assassination during a military coup, former President William Tolbert is set to receive a symbolic reburial. This ceremony, alongside those for 13 of his cabinet members who were executed 10 days later, is not merely a funeral; it is a powerful act of national reconciliation, a collective endeavor to confront a violent past that has haunted the nation for decades.
The absence of physical remains – none of the 14 corpses have ever been found, believed to have been unceremoniously dumped in a mass grave – only amplifies the symbolic weight of these state funerals. Attended by President Joseph Boakai and other dignitaries, these ceremonies are a testament to Liberia's determination to heal from its wounds and forge a more unified future.
The events of April 12, 1980, when 28-year-old Master Sergeant Samuel Doe seized power, were a watershed moment in Liberian history. This coup abruptly ended over a century of political dominance by the Americo-Liberians, descendants of freed black slaves who had emigrated from the United States in the 1800s. This minority group, constituting approximately 2-5% of the total population at the time of the coup, had held a disproportionate grip on political and economic power since Liberia's founding in 1847.
Tolbert's nine-year presidency (1971-1980), despite some initial reforms, was increasingly marked by growing dissatisfaction over glaring ethnic inequalities. The majority indigenous Liberian population, comprising various ethnic groups such as the Kpelle, Bassa, Gio, Mano, and Krahn, had long felt marginalized and excluded from the benefits of the nation's development. This simmering discontent ultimately provided fertile ground for the coup.
Tolbert's overthrow was not an isolated incident but the grim prelude to a prolonged period of instability, culminating in two devastating civil wars (1989-1997 and 1999-2003) that claimed an estimated 250,000 lives and displaced roughly two-thirds of the population. Samuel Doe, who initiated the instability, himself met a violent end at the hands of rebels in 1990. Poignantly, his own reburial in his hometown last week, also ordered by President Boakai, highlights the inclusive nature of this current reconciliation drive. "This is not just a burial; it is a moment of national reflection, a time to reconcile with our history, to heal from our wounds, and to remember with respect and purpose," President Boakai stated at Doe's funeral.
For the families of those executed in 1980, today's ceremony offers a profound sense of remembrance and a long-awaited measure of respect for their loved ones. Yvette Chesson-Gibson, daughter of the executed Justice Minister Joseph Chesson, articulated the enduring pain: "It has been 45 years and the pain is still fresh." Yet, she emphasized that this is merely the beginning: "This is not just a ceremony, it is the beginning of a closure. Reconciliation is not an event."
Bindu Dennis, whose father Charles Cecil Dennis served as Tolbert's Foreign Minister and was among those executed, echoed this sentiment: "Our fathers were simply murdered in one of the world's most despicable and inhumane public acts of brutality, violence and cruelty born out of an ugly spirit of greed for political power." She stressed the importance of acknowledging the past without forgetting: "As long as you understand that closure doesn't mean forgetting, then we're on the same page."
Until recently, the 14 executed individuals were commemorated by a tombstone bearing their names, a site where former presidents annually paid respects. However, an excavation earlier this year revealed no human remains, underscoring the enduring mystery and pain.
Jarso Maley Jallah, the minister overseeing the reburial program, articulated the broader national ambition: "there are some things that have happened in our country that we're not proud of, but yet we are Liberians, and we must come together to advance our nation." As a mark of public service, each family will be presented with a Liberian flag, accompanied by a 21-gun salute, honoring lives lost and acknowledging their sacrifices.
