Thomas Quiwonkpa

Thomas Quiwonkpa, a Gio from Nimba County, was a Commanding General of the Armed Forces of Liberia and founder of the National Patriotic Front of Liberia.

In 1983, Quiwonkpa was demoted, and was subsequently charged with an attempt to overthrow the Doe administration. The charges forced Quiwonkpa to flee the country.

On November 12, 1985, one month after elections were held, Quiwonkpa, supported by about 24 heavily armed men, covertly entered Liberia through Sierra Leone, and launched a coup against President Doe. Bad timing, unorthodox methods used by Quiwonkpa and lack of support from the United States resulted in the disastrous failure of the uprising. Quiwonkpa was later captured, killed, and allegedly mutilated by Krahn soldiers loyal to President Doe [cite book |last=Ellis |first=Stephen |year=2002 |title=The Mask of Anarchy: The Destruction of Liberia and the Religious Roots of an African Civil War |publisher=C. Hurst & Co. |ISBN=1-85065-417-4 p. 146]

In a massive campaign of retribution against the coup plotters and their supporters, Doe's government launched a bloody purge against the Gio and Mano ethnic groups in Quiwonkpa's Nimba County, raising alarm about a possible genocide. Doe's slaughter of an estimated 3,000 people created the opportunity for the exploitation of ethnic rivalries that later fuelled the Liberian Civil War. [cite book |last=Adebajo |first=Adekeye |year=2002 |title=Building Peace in West Africa: Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea-Bissau |publisher=Lynne Rienner Publishers |ISBN 1-58826-077-1 p. 46]

References

External links

* [http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/liberia-1985.htm Liberia - Election and Coup Attempt - 1985]