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ARCHIVE

10th(2008)



Iron Ladies of Liberia

Siatta Scott JOHNSON, Daniel JUNGE

  • USA
  • 2007
  • 77min
  • Digi-beta
  • color
  • Documentary

SYNOPSIS


Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was elected as the first woman president of Liberia. This was the first time that a woman had become a president in African history. Winning over George Weah, who is an internationally famous soccer player, Sirleaf tries hard to clean up the settled traces from the old times in an effort to establish democracy. Sirleaf, who is well known as ¡®iron lady¡¯ and a former minister of the financial department, makes the political changes in the government of Liberia by appointing ¡®other iron ladies¡¯ as cabinet members; the minister of the financial department, the economic and trade department and the head of police. With a woman president, theses ladies work hard to solve the old problems of corruption, red tape and bureaucratic policies formed during 20 years of internal war, in addition to treating war veterans fairly with proper welfare benefits. This documentary, co-directed by American Daniel Yunge and a former Liberian reporter Siatta Scott Johnson, illustrates the follow up in Liberia during Sirleaf¡¯s first year of presidency. It shows the iron ladies public lives as they meet foreign politicians and government officers in order to accomplish the transformation of Liberia into a new country and the establishment of democracy there. Also, it shows Sirleaf devoting her life to Liberia as an unmarried president. (KIM Sunah)
 

PROGRAM NOTE


Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was elected as the first woman president of Liberia. This was the first time that a woman had become a president in African history. Winning over George Weah, who is an internationally famous soccer player, Sirleaf tries hard to clean up the settled traces from the old times in an effort to establish democracy. Sirleaf, who is well known as ¡®iron lady¡¯ and a former minister of the financial department, makes the political changes in the government of Liberia by appointing ¡®other iron ladies¡¯ as cabinet members; the minister of the financial department, the economic and trade department and the head of police. With a woman president, theses ladies work hard to solve the old problems of corruption, red tape and bureaucratic policies formed during 20 years of internal war, in addition to treating war veterans fairly with proper welfare benefits. This documentary, co-directed by American Daniel Yunge and a former Liberian reporter Siatta Scott Johnson, illustrates the follow up in Liberia during Sirleaf¡¯s first year of presidency. It shows the iron ladies public lives as they meet foreign politicians and government officers in order to accomplish the transformation of Liberia into a new country and the establishment of democracy there. Also, it shows Sirleaf devoting her life to Liberia as an unmarried president. (KIM Sunah)
 

Director

  • Siatta Scott JOHNSONSiatta Scott JOHNSON

    Siatta Scott Johnson was born in Buchanan, Liberia in 1974 and raised in Grand Bassa County. Siatta fled Grand Bassa in the early 90¡¯s with the outbreak of war and settled in Monrovia. She earned her BA in Mass Communications from the University of Liberia after the civil war. She has five years of experience as a reporter and producer at DCTV and is a founding member of Omuahtee Africa Media.

  • Daniel JUNGEDaniel JUNGE

    Born in Sheridan, Wyoming and received his BA in Liberal Arts from Colorado College; he attended film school at New York University. Junge has worked in the Los Angeles, New York, and London film/television industries as an assistant director, assistant editor, and researcher. Junge had his feature-length directorial debut with Chiefs, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival, winning the award for Best documentary. Other films by Junge include We Are PHAMALy which earned four regional Emmys.

Credit

  • ProducerHenry ANSBACHER, Jonathan STACK
  • Editor Davis COOMBE
  • Music Gunnard DOBOZE
  • Sound Zlatko MAKIC