Word: truthful
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American movies took ages to address Iraq and its satellite wars, and then tended to point fingers at the military. Documentaries said that soldiers were bred to be mindless killers (The Ground Truth) and then discarded when they lost their limbs or their minds (Body of War). Dramatic films like In the Valley of Elah and Redacted said that Iraq was a communicable disease that turned decent guys into psycho killers...
These worthy films were based on fact and told a microscopic truth, but they left untold the larger ache of an Iraq tour: how men in peril survive. Finally comes The Hurt Locker, a scary, thrilling patrol of those Baghdad streets by men who defuse IEDs. Written by journalist Mark Boal (whose reporting was the basis for Elah) and directed by action-movie maven Kathryn Bigelow, this film looks, feels and smells real; you'll need to rinse off the grit after seeing...
...That image has now taken a hit. In its final report, released yesterday, Liberia's Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), a body modeled on South Africa's historic truth commission, says Johnson Sirleaf should be banned from government for 30 years for her early support of former Liberian President Charles Taylor. Taylor, who played a central role in Liberia's conflict, is on trial in the Hague for crimes against humanity that stem from his part in the civil war in neighboring Sierra Leone. (See pictures of death and life in Sierra Leone...
...says Johnson Sirleaf didn't go far enough. One of the ideas behind a truth commission is that people responsible for past errors show remorse. By not apologizing or showing more remorse, the TRC says, Johnson Sirleaf denied both her own responsibility and undermined the TRC process. Those who disclosed their misdeeds in greater detail and showed remorse were not recommended for further censure or prosecution. Milton Blayi, whose nomme de guerre was General Butt Naked because he entered the battlefield completely naked but for his boots, admitted culpability for as many as 20,000 deaths, for example...
...President's defenders say the fact Johnson Sirleaf took part in a process that highlighted her early role in Liberia's meltdown is proof of her commitment to good governance. "She allowed the whole process to roll out and that shows that she is concerned about the truth," says Suliman Baldo, the Africa Director for the International Center for Transitional Justice. Many Liberians probably agree with that...