Monrovia – In Doe Community, where narrow alleys and crowded homes leave little room for privacy, justice officials are confronting a problem that has taken hold in many Liberian neighborhoods: the rise of mob violence.
On a warm afternoon, residents gathered together, some standing at the edges, others seated quietly, listening as government representatives spoke not just about the law, but about fear, frustration, and trust.
For many here, “jungle justice” is not an abstract concept. It is something they have seen, sometimes participated in, often justified by anger over crime and what they describe as slow or absent responses from authorities.
But the Ministry of Justice says that response comes at a cost.
“Mob violence scares away investors and undermines the rule of law,” said Atty. Siaffa Bahn Kemokai, speaking on behalf of Justice Minister Cllr. Oswald Tweh. “When people resort to jungle justice, it creates an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty, making it difficult for businesses to thrive and for communities to grow.”
His message was direct: whatever the frustrations, taking the law into one’s own hands deepens the very insecurity people are trying to escape.
The outreach, organized with the Center for the Exchange of Intellectual Opinion (CEIO), is part of a broader national campaign launched by President Joseph Nyuma Boakai in April 2025. But here, the conversation quickly moved beyond policy.
Residents spoke of theft, delayed police response, and cases that seem to disappear once reported. Some admitted that in moments of anger, crowds act faster than the system meant to deliver justice.
That tension, between what the law demands and what people feel is immediate justice, sat at the center of the discussion.
Mohammed A. Dukuly, head of CEIO, told the gathering that change would not come from enforcement alone. It would require communities to rethink their role, to resist the pull of collective anger, and to see justice as a process, not an instant reaction.
By the end of the session, a few residents stepped forward, not to defend mob action, but to question it. Others nodded quietly, some skeptical, others reflective.
There were no promises that mob violence would end overnight.
But in Doe Community, at least for an afternoon, the conversation shifted, from punishment to prevention, from anger to accountability.
