Liberia: Where are the weapons? Is disarmament really working?

The United Nations has poured 15,000 peacekeepers into Liberia and more than 54,000 former combatants have been disarmed, but UN officials admit that not everyone is handing in a weapon and vast tracts of the West African country remain inaccessible to UN patrols. Officially the news is very upbeat. According to figures collated by the UN Mission in Liberia, (UNMIL), 54,525 combatants had been disarmed by 12 July. However, only 17,906 weapons were collected from them- an average of one rifle, rocket launcher, pistol or mortar round for every three fighters.