On May 7, 1986, Liberian President Samuel Doe declared emergency measures to suppress rising opposition. His authoritarian leadership, initially welcomed as Liberia’s first indigenous (non-Americo-Liberian) president, had descended into corruption and ethnic favoritism. Doe’s declaration signaled Liberia’s deepening political crisis, which would eventually spiral into civil war. His rule remains a cautionary tale about the complex legacies of postcolonial leadership challenges in Africa and the dangers of foreign meddling, as both Cold War powers played a role in Doe’s rise and fall.
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