More information about sierra leone is available on the sierra leone page and from other department of state publications and other sources listed at the end of this fact sheet. This lesson will briefly summarize the sierra leone civil war, how and why it started, and the key events of sierra leone s civil war from its beginning in 1991 to its end in 2002. With the political situation stable, the mission helped organize sierra leones first ever free and fair presidential and parliamentary elections by providing logistics and public information support. The subsequent section is an evaluation of the factors that helped sustain the war for over ten years.
After the second world war, its colonies in africa and the caribbean in particular witnessed a wave of nationalist movements that began to call for selfdetermination and independence from bureaucratic colonial administrations. Similar to the literature in other contexts, i exploit cohort and conflict variation within sierra leone from microlevel data in the spirit of a differenceindifference did design. Taylor deserves 100 years in jail for his role in the atrocities bbc april 26 2012. Twelve years of nearly continuous civil war finally ended in freetown and sierra leone in 2002. Sierra leone held general elections on march 7, 2018 to elect a new president, members of parliament and local councils in the fourth cycle of elections since the civil war in 2002. The revolutionary united front, led by foday sankoh and supported by charles taylor, fought against the constantly changing government sierra leone is rich in diamonds but the government never shared their success with the population. The mercenaries profiting from sierra leones civil war 2000. In sierra leones civil war, young girls were captured, raped, forced to take up arms and kill innocent civilians. Sierra leone has experienced substantial economic growth in recent years, although the ruinous effects of the civil war continue to be felt. May 20, 2014 interesting facts about sierra leone and its civil war. Sierra leone came to world attention in the 1990s when a catastrophic civil war linked to the diamond trade was reported globally.
On the other hand, the kamajors have been accused of pillaging, terrorizing, and killing civilians in sierra leone, as well as employing soldiers under the age of 15. The armed conflict in sierra leone human rights watch. Continuing ethnic violence in the countryside however, forced a mass immigration of people into freetown. Civil war in sierra leone and the role of blood diamonds. Sierra leones trc describes the violence during the civil war thus. Our results are complementary to the other recent studies mentioned above, none of which examines institutional impacts. In 1997, ccf sponsorship activities were forced to a halt by ongoing and brutal civil war that threatened the lives of innocent civilians, including ccf staff members.
Since schooling typically takes place at a particular age for people, using school age cohorts in such a way is a very. The sierra leone civil war 19912002 was a civil war in sierra leone that began on 23. Education in sierra leone and its struggling school system. Since the end of the war, the government of sierra leone has undergone the arduous task of rebuilding the countrys physical and social infrastructure while fostering reconciliation. Diamond miners in sierra leone sifting through the sand in search of diamonds.
The effects on the economy and education and the challenges it poses to women and youths l. For the first time since the aftermath of world war ii, a former head of state was indicted and found guilty of war crimes. In making its findings and preparing its report, the commission took into account information gathered through a variety of means. Sierra leones army came under attack not only from the npfl but also from the revolutionary united front ruf, led by former sierra leone army corporal foday sankoh, who was collaborating with the liberian rebels. Sierra leones civil war internally displaced as many as 2 million people, or almost half the population, and forced almost another half million to seek refuge in neighboring countries 370,000. Beginning in march 1991, driven by the desire to overthrow the current government, oust corrupt politicians, and redistribute the resources of sierra leone, the. The sierra leone civil war sierra leone was ravaged by a civil war that started in 1991 and lasted until 2002. Sierra leone has been a source of and destination for refugees. It entails the history of sierra leone from its days as a slave harbor through to its founding as a home for free slaves, and toward its political. An examination of the sierra leone war academic journals. Sierra leone s army came under attack not only from the npfl but also from the revolutionary united front ruf, led by former sierra leone army corporal foday sankoh, who was collaborating with the liberian rebels.
Inappropriate the list including its title or description facilitates illegal activity, or contains hate speech or ad hominem attacks on a fellow goodreads member or author. Underlying grievances and the role of the revolutionary united front the root of the conflict is and remains diamonds, diamonds and diamonds. The impact of the civil war in sierra leone aufsatzaufsatz. Apr 23, 2011 on april 27, 2010, sierra leone started free health care for pregnant women, new mothers, and young children. John donnelly takes an indepth look at how the wartorn nation managed it. Interesting facts about sierra leone and its civil war a.
Incorrect book the list contains an incorrect book please specify the title of the book. Oct 18, 2018 soldiers of fortune 2000 mercenaries, allegedly working for the sierra leone government, have been charged with defeating ruf rebels but blood diamonds might be their true goal. The diamonds that were native to this land fueled the civil conflict because the wealth generated from the diamonds were not allocated properly. Spam or selfpromotional the list is spam or selfpromotional. Free slaves, freetown, and the sierra leonean civil war. Apr 25, 2017 civil war in sierra leone and the role of blood diamonds the civil war in sierra leone has been one of the most grotesque ones in history, and the nations rich diamond reserves have driven much of the violence. It began in march 1991, as the revolutionary united front ruf. The impact of the civil war in sierra leone the civil war in sierra leone lasted from 1991 to 2002. Sierra leone has been ravaged by a civil war that lasted from 1991 to 2002, and resulted in some 70,000 casualties and 2.
War and the crisis of youth in sierra leone by krijn peters. Two million were relocated and tens of thousands died in this 11 year war. On 18 january 2002, the war in sierra leone was officially declared ended. Under the agreement, ruf agrees to free the movement of persons. Since the end of the war, the government of sierra leone has undergone the arduous task of rebuilding the countrys physical and. Media in category sierra leone civil war the following 2 files are in this category, out of 2 total. Pdf an examination of the sierra leone war researchgate. During the war an estimated 50,000 sierra leoneans were killed, over one million were displaced from their homes, and thousands were victims of brutal amputations, rapes, and assaults human rights. This discussion is fundamental to this study because it portrays the fragility of the sierra leonean state before the breakout of war in 1991, and is. Sierra leone united nations development programme undp. Daniel kaindaneh is the acting national director for ccf in sierra leone. Boek maken downloaden als pdf printvriendelijke versie. During the civil war in sierra leone, while rich families could afford to send their children away to safe locations, children from poor families were often left with no school or occupation, and. Sierra leone has been ravaged by a civil war that lasted from 1991 to 2002, and resulted.
The trade in blood diamonds was the focal point of the trial, which demonstrated how natural resource exploitation can serve to fund armed conflict and lead to the abuse of human rights. Sierra leone had a decadelong civil conflict between 1991 and 2002 under the leadership of president charles taylor, where the revolutionary united front ruf, statesupported militias and state forces conscripted children for the war. The effect of civil war on the economic development of. The conditions that led to the war included a repressive predatory. This book is a historical narrative of sierra leone from the midfifteenth century to the end of its civil war in 2002. After a decadelong civil war, whose media images of ak47toting child soldiers and atrocities committed against civilians shocked a world already stunned by genocide in rwanda and the former yugoslavia, sierra leone voted in may 2002 for a government that would restore order and rebuild a country in which almost every educational, medical. Apr 05, 2018 a chronology of key events in the history of sierra leone from 1787 to the present. The country is also rich in diamonds and other minerals. It will be unfair to treat the sierra leone civil war as a mindless act of. A chronology of key events in the history of sierra leone from 1787 to the present.
The puzzle addresses characters, key events, and other details from the. The capital of the country is freetown, which was founded for former repatriated slaves in 1787. Tussen 1991 en 2002 woedde in sierra leone een burgeroorlog. Till 1961, it was a part of the british colonial empire. With its promise of free education and health care and the sharing of profits from diamond mining and its goal to change the corrupt government, the ruf was. Sierra leone simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Pdf this study is a historical analysis of sierra leone s state structure in the 20th and 21st centuries. With the recent ebola epidemic, the country continues to receive assistance channeled through a variety of donors. This civil war erupted because of the mounting dissatisfaction of the people, especially the youth that were engrossed by the rebellious revolutionary united front ruf, towards the politics of the country that was set apart by its corruption, negligence and electoral violence. From 1991 until 2000, there was a civil war in sierra leone between rebels and the government. The memoir a long way gone tells the story of a child soldier during the civil war in sierra leone. Oct 25, 2012 after he was found guilty of aiding and abetting the war crimes during the sierra leone civil war in the unbacked special court for sierra leone on april 26 2012, one victim, whose forearms were amputated during the war, indignantly talked to the bbc. This book is a historical narrative covering various periods in sierra leones history from the fifteenth century to the end of its civil war in 2002. The causes of the sierra leone civil war einternational relations. This fleeting interest, however, obscured much of the longer history of the region, and made sierra leone a laboratory for postcold war interventions. Apr 05, 2018 sierra leone has experienced substantial economic growth in recent years, although the ruinous effects of the civil war continue to be felt. The opposition sierra leone peoples party slpp candidate, rtd.
While the use of children in combat has already existed before this period, it became widespread during this event. Sierra leone is a country located towards the northwest side of the african continent. Shortly after the civil war, between 2001 and 2006, sierra leone was the largest per capita recipient of foreign aid in the world. Reports emerged of indiscriminate amputations, abductions of women and children, recruitment of children as combatants, rape, sexual slavery, cannibalism, gratuitous killings and wanton destruction of villages and towns.
Ibrahim kamara 2000 to the economist, this is war motivated by greed. Peters sheds light on the ruf militia and the role they played during the sierra leonean civil war. Shocking war crimes in sierra leone human rights watch. This content was written by a student and assessed as. Internal conflict crippled the country from the late 1980s onward, culminating in a brutal civil war that took place from 1991 to 2002. Child soldiers in the civil war in sierra leone request pdf. The sentence on charles taylor is to be pronounced on may 30, 2012, and sierra leoneans will finally receive some justice for the atrocities they have endured. The country was first made as a place where freed slaves could live. Conflict profile sierra leone 1991 2001 the decadelong war in sierra leone began in 1991 as a revolt against a longstanding dictatorship. The war was fueled by wealth from diamonds located in the east of the country, where the rebel united front ruf was strongest. On april 27, 2010, sierra leone started free health care for pregnant women, new mothers, and young children. During the war an estimated 50,000 sierra leoneans were killed, over one million were displaced from their.
The sierra leone civil war 19912002 was a civil war in sierra leone that began on 23 march 1991 when the revolutionary united front ruf, with support from the special forces of charles taylors national patriotic front of liberia npfl, intervened in sierra leone in an attempt to overthrow the joseph momoh government. New york the widespread and systematic use of rape and other sexual violence during the tenyear civil war in sierra leone is documented in a new human rights watch report released today. It was in the year 1991, when the civil war in sierra leone was started by the revolutionary united front led by foday sankoh. By elijah rami during the midtwentieth century, the british empire rapidly succumbed to a striking decline.
The devastating sierra leone civil war that lasted from 1991 to 2002 took the nations education system as an early casualty, wiping out 1,270 primary schools and forcing 67 percent of allschool aged children out of school in the year 2001. It entails the history of sierra leone from its days as a slave harbor through t. The war was characterized by widespread atrocities, including the abduction of children and systematic rape. Chris coulter abstract this article looks at how the category of female fighters in the sierra leone civil war 19912002 was interpreted by the local population and by the international humanitarian community. The revolutionary united front, led by foday sankoh and supported by charles taylor, fought against the constantly changing government. Free slaves, freetown, and the sierra leonean civil war joseph. Sierra leone relations the united states established diplomatic relations with sierra leone in 1961, following its independence from the united kingdom. Sierra leone is rich in diamonds but the government never shared. Jan 25, 2015 education in sierra leone has been a challenge.
He illuminates the social logics at play and clarifies the motives behind their constitution, conflict engagement, and conciliation. A crossword puzzle helps reinforce key ideas found in the memoir. Guide in the development, refinement, and assessment of ae programmes in sierra leone, and with populations and contexts similar to that in which the sc programme operates. The war was declared to have finished on 18 january 2002 officially. Civil war in sierra leone according to paul collier and marguerite duponchel 2010, sierra leone was at the lowest level of the united nations development programmes undp human development index hdi after the civil war came to an end. Pages in category sierra leone civil war the following 61 pages are in this category, out of 61 total. It entails the history of sierra leone from its days as a slave harbor through to its founding as a home for free slaves and toward its political independence and civil war. Between 1991 and 2002, sierra leone was heavily damaged by a tremendously violent civil war. The civil war in sierra leone lasted from 1991 to 2002. The effects on the economy and education and the challenges it.