Crying Freetown (by Rashid Zuberu)

To be a black man in Africa is bad news indeed. Though your skin symbolizes that you are one with the land, it also advertises your expendability. You are African - who cares if you are roughed up? No one is going to defend you. There are no laws that will protect you. Next in line for maltreatment are Asians, who seem to have the protection that comes with money. If you are a trader then you can buy friends when the going gets tough, but once your pockets are empty, then you are also vulnerable and will be punished with relish. When an African is struck, it is an act of brutality. When an Asian is struck, it is an act of revenge. Then there is the white man. In the back of many African minds, even those who spout the language of independence, there is residual respect and vestigial fear of the power of the white man. The rich countries may ignore Africa when its needs are greatest, but they will send an army to protect the precious skin of their citizens. The message is clear: mess with a white man and you are asking for trouble...

The internal conflict in Somalia, which began in 1991, was officially declared to be over in January 2002 with complete demobilization and disarmament of more than 55,000 combatants. This included almost 7,000 children from the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) – the armed opposition, the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC), renegade soldiers of the Sierra Leone army, and the government allied civil defense forces. The national army and police resumed responsibility for security and law enforcement in areas previously affected by conflict. On 25 March 2004, Secretary General Kofi Annan proposed leaving a residual UN peacekeeping force in Sierra Leone until December 2005 to ensure a smooth transfer of security responsibilities to the national government. Mr. Annan holds that at least 3,500 UN peacekeepers should stay until that date.

The population of Sierra Leone is estimated to be 5,732,681 as of July 2003, with ethnic groups consisting of 20 native African tribes, refugees from Liberia’s recent civil war, and a small number of Europeans, Lebanese, Pakistanis and Indians. The African tribes consist of Tenne, Mende, Crede, and Krio, who are descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in Freetown area in the late 18th century. The main religions are Islam (60%), indigenous beliefs (30%), and Christianity (10%), while the official language is English, though its use is limited to a literate minority. Mende and Tenne are the principal vernaculars in the south and north, respectively, while Krio (English based Creole) is spoken by the Krio in the Freetown area as a first language of 10% and understood by 95%.

The lush countryside seen from the air betrays the extent of destruction on the ground in the country that has seen almost a decade of constant civil strife. The destruction is seemingly complete as there is little left of any value. As I touched down on the soil of Sierra Leone the reality of war dawned on me as I asked myself, "Iis this the country of diamonds?" On my way to the capital of Freetown, the car I was traveling in drove through the towns and villages that have been swamped with UNAMSIL troops. My eyes filled with tears. I could not come to terms with the destruction that had taken place. As I looked into the faces of the women and children of Sierra Leone, I asked myself once more, is genuine reconciliation possible without peace, truth, justice and mercy? Mohammed, who is 15 years old, recalled, "I was 8 years when I was forced and drafted into the RUF; I spent sleepless nights watching for the enemy. My first role was to carry torch for grown up rebels and collect information from the front line. Later I was shown how to use hand grenades. Barely within a month or so was I carrying an AK-47 rifle. I raped, killed and maimed innocent people, and I felt I was superior carrying a gun; it was my power".

The war in Sierra Leone was more brutal, gruesome, and destructive than any other war fought in the West African sub-region, as neighbours turned on each other in the carnage. Abraham (28 years old) remembers, "My uncle, who was a parliamentarian back then, was chased to his home and shot in front of his family and me. The person who shot him was very young - between the ages of 10 and 12 years - and he later asked my cousin, brother and I that since he had 1 bullet and we were three, who should he shoot among us? ...We remained silent and as he was about to shoot when he saw a radio set that took his mind off us and he was later called by his commanders to move."

Many young girls and boys were used and ended up either being perpetrators or victims. Many of them who were not actively engaged in combat were often seen manning checkpoints. Adult soldiers could normally be seen standing a further 15 metres behind the barrier, so that if bullets started flying, the children would be the first victims. In any given conflict, when even a few children are involved as soldiers, all children, civilians and combatants come under suspicion.

The Sierra Leone war also saw girls being used as soldiers, though generally in smaller numbers than boys. Like many males, females joined one of the factions for their own protection, unwillingly, and become the girlfriends or wives of rebel leaders or members called "war time women", a term they use themselves. Isata, a 14-year-old girl, was abducted from her town called Kenema in Sierra Leone and taken to the frontline by the RUF. "We were distributed to men and I was given to a man who had just killed his woman. I was not given a gun but I helped in the abductions and grabbing of food from villagers. Girls who refused to become RUF wives were killed in front of us to serve as a warning to the rest of us. Fatimata gave birth on open ground to a girl fathered by one of her [RUF] rebel abductors." Then she was forced to continue fighting: "I picked up a gun and strapped the baby on my back", the emaciated 18-year-old recalled while nursing her scrawny baby.

Most of the children in Sierra Leone began participating in the conflict from as young an age as seven. Some started as porters carrying food or ammunition, or messengers, while others were spies. One rebel commander now serving a prison term declared that they are very good at getting information. You can send them across enemy lines and nobody suspects them because they are so young and as soon as they are strong enough to handle an assault rifle or semi-automatic weapon (normally at 10 years of age), children are used as soldiers.

As the ferry neared Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, I was reminded of a speech I read by Mr. Bryant, interim chairman of Liberia’s transitional government: "We expect that there will be hurdles, and hurdles there will be. This is the time for renewal, this is the time of redemption, this is the time of unity, and I ask you all to get on board." We should all get involved in helping countries like Sierra Leone, Liberia, Rwanda, Burundi, Sudan and Somalia get on their feet. We looked on and said, "It’s not my war, why should I get involved?" It’s strange how as humans, we neglect our responsibilities and attach so much importance to our culture, race, ethnicity, religion, and traditions when our family, neighbours, and friends are being slain with no remorse for such atrocities against humanity.

Freetown is no different from the towns and villages that have been ravaged by the war, as poverty is so pervasive. As the sound of a music blared across the street and people danced, I stopped to listen to the words: "Wwe are in the city but we are dying, we sleep on the street, we cannot feed ourselves yet we are happy, peace is all we ask for, to give us a chance to start all over again, it is said but its better then war." I quickly realized why so many people were dancing to the music: they have lost everything but were given a chance to start all over again, and this was all they were asking for.

One 17-year-old ex-combatant told me that she hopes to turn over a new leaf. As her 18-month-old son clung to her legs, she was learning a trade at the near-by vocational training centre for women. Often at times when conflict starts, we blame the international community, but we fail to look within ourselves and ask who the international community is. It is you and I. Let’s learn to take action to avert atrocities like the ones in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Rwanda, Burundi and many more. The civil war has reversed development gains, decimated public infrastructure and disrupted the lives of the people of Sierra Leone, three quarters of whom live on less than one dollar a day.

Who is to blame? Is it the group of men who met somewhere in a Libyan town to train and bring carnage to West Africa? It is the result of poverty, corruption, economic disparity, inequality, ethnicity, and discrimination. The paintings on the walls of the national museum in Freetown were sent in by former RUF combatants (now in prison as the main cause of the war) depict young men and women asking for forgiveness for the murders of families. One testimony given by an ex-combatant at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) in Sierra Leone states, "We know we have committed crime against our people and now we ask for forgiveness." As they celebrated their independence day on 27 April 2004, I asked for the third time, "Is Sierra Leone truly independent?"

To achieve true peace, justice must prevail, but in the case of the RUF, certainly "an eye for an eye" will make us all go blind.

[ issue contents ] [ fmm home ] [ send feedback ]