The TRC received 1,200 applications for the job of statement-taker, with applicants coming from all 15 Liberian counties.Each applicant completed an aptitude test, and the highest scoring applicants were selected for interviews. Those who made the interview cut were given a week of training and then a second aptitude test. The names of the final 200 statement-takers were published in newspapers across Liberia so that anyone who had participated in human rights abuses during the conflict could be identified by the public.

Statements from Liberians will form the basis for all of the TRC’s work and will directly influence the final report. Statements are often quoted as part of national narrative and provide a starting point for future investigation and research. The statements gathered will help the TRC make decisions about when and where to hold public hearings and statements are used to influence final recommendations, including amnesties, prosecutions, reparations, and system reforms.