A PARIAH NO MORE:

Treaty record for Liberian leader (BBC, 9/17/05)

Liberian President Gyude Bryant has endorsed 103 international treaties at the UN summit in New York, a record for a single state at any one time.

Eighty-three of the treaties have become law, while the remaining 20 require ratification.

The treaties were part of a decades-old backlog which includes agreements on trade, human rights, corruption and nuclear proliferation.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said the signings were a landmark.

Meanwhile World Bank Liberia director Mats Karlsson described them as "absolutely extraordinary".