Annan Says New Liberian Sanctions Could Be Harmful

(Rapaport…October 15, 2001) UN Secretary General Kofi Annan says tightening the existing sanctions on Liberia’s rubber and timber exports could have serious economic repercussions for the already poverty-stricken country. A tightening of sanctions, he said, “would particularly affect the most vulnerable of Liberia’s population given that their resilience and coping capacities are next to exhausted.” Annan also suggests that new sanctions could worsen exchange rates, increase prices for essential commodities, decrease savings and lead to the flight of more capital.