D+C Development and Cooperation (No. 5, September/October 2002, p. 18-20)

If one looks around in success stories for post-conflict reconciliation, Sierra Leone certainly is such a case. After years of bloody civil war which rendered the small West African country almost to the category of a ‘failed state’ a peace process supervised and protected by the United Nations has led to what is regarded a true miracle. Successful elections in May and the start of rapid economic recovery mark the beginning of a new era for the devastated country. Emmanuel Wongibe reports from a recent visit.

There are two sides to every coin and if the coin in hand is a Leone, the currency of a West African country, then the last seven months have revealed the lucky side. On May 14 this year, Sierra Leone conducted parliamentary and presidential elections, which foreign observers unanimously described as "peaceful, free and fair." That verdict took many people, even the most optimistic, by surprise. "Almost a miracle" were the words of Johan Van Hecke, head of the European Union election observer team. That miracle also seems to be at work in other areas as Sierra Leone’s five million people begin the long and painful process of reconciliation, rehabilitation and reconstruction.

"The war is over" Sierra Leone’s President, Ahmed Tejan Kabbah, declared in January. That declaration came hard on the heels of a disarmament process supervised by United Nations peacekeepers, in which more than 47,000 fighters handed over their weapons. Since then, a series of positive developments have added to the fortunes of the country. Apart from the May elections, the unanimous decision by the UN Security Council to extend the mandate of the 17,400 strong peacekeeping force, UNAMSIL (currently the UN’s largest operation) till November 2002 and the creation of an international tribunal,to try those responsible for war crimes, have taken Sierra Leone’s normalisation process a step further. But for Sierra Leoneans, who have gone through thick and thin in the last five years, perhaps the most important development is the fact that the once dreaded rebel movement, the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), is transforming itself into a political party while its leader, Foday Sankoh, is safely in detention facing trial for murder and related charges.

Many find consolation in the utterances of the new Secretary General of the RUF party, Pallo Bangura, who was also the party’s presidential candidate in the May elections. "We are now a political party and we will never again take up arms in this country", the former university lecturer has said ever so often. But if there is a place where the saying "never say never" has a horrifying relevance it is Sierra Leone with its series of civil wars. Having experienced at least eight coups, counter coups and attempted coups since 1967, Sierra Leoneans know it better than anyone else. Still, even against all odds, they have decided to put hope entirely on what they see as a fresh start.

The massive turnout for the surprisingly peaceful elections is a pointer to the people’s desire to depart from the ways of the past. Freetown’s generally quiet airport came to life in the weeks leading to the May 14 elections as many Sierra Leonean refugees from Guinea Conakry, Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon, streamed back home to cast their vote. As the planes touch down and begin to taxi to their halt, heaps of sand bags along the runway and a couple of white-painted UN aircraft, offer the first hints that all is not well here. And as if to tell the story in screaming headlines, the names "Diamond" and "Paramount" are boldly written on helicopters belonging to two rival companies that fly passengers from the airport, across the lagoon, into the city.

For both Charles Kwana, who flew in from Accra on election day and Tamba Finoh, who made the trip from Guinea by road on a UN-organised truck, there was a mix of excitement and anxiety. Like many other refugees, they had never been back home since they fled more than three years ago. "The people are tired of war" this is how Karin Junker, a German member of the European Union election observer mission, interpreted the "overwhelming eagerness to vote seen at polling stations" on that Tuesday May 14, 2002. There is also a readiness among the war weary people to make great concessions in the name of peace.

The Morideen Amputee Camp in the capital Freetown is home to hundreds of men, women and children whose legs and arms were savagely hacked off by RUF rebels. Sabindi is one of the poor victims, and was one of the first to vote. Like many other amputees in the crowded facility, he is ready to forgive the rebels. "They are our brothers who did this to us. The people did not come from another country, but we have forgiven them." Salebi, another amputee, said "We are lucky, because others were killed, and we pray to God to give them eternal rest."

While the healing process seems to have started in earnest at various levels, Sierra Leone’s economy is still hurting. State revenue collapsed as fighting scared off potential investors and stalled the few economic operations that were ongoing. Tourism which used to be a major foreign exchange earner is almost non-existent. But here too, the firm belief that the worst is behind them is spurring Sierra Leoneans on. Across the country the sound of heavy construction equipment is once again being heard, and in residential areas, masons and carpenters are busy. Statistics from the Ministry of Development and Economic Planning show that there has been a 40 per cent increase in applications for building permits for residential housing from 1999 to 2001. Commercial and entertainment quarters have seen a 50 per cent growth within the same period.

Cecil Williams, General Manager of the Tourist Board of Sierra Leone, notes that even in this very capital-intensive sector, nationals are as active as foreign investors. As a sign of the renewed confidence Sierra Leoneans now have in their country’s future, he singles out a massive and fairly advanced hotel project on the beach front in Freetown, owned by Sierra Leone-born soccer star, Mohamed Kallon, who plays for the Italian first division club, Inter Milan.

The Chinese which in better days put up some of the prestige projects like the city stadium and bridges in the hinterland are back in town again. To demonstrate Chinese construction excellence, Eric Liu, General Manager of China’s Global Trade & Investment Company Ltd., invites me to visit their own project site. Chinese engineers, masons and carpenters, work frantically with a few Sierra Leoneans hands, as his company undertakes extensive restoration work on the ruins of the 210 bedroom Bintumani Hotel, which used to be the jewel of Sierra Leone. With a measured sense of pride, he points to the dozens of containers on the premises saying "all the material has been shipped from China." Eric Liu gives me a tour of the massive facility, completely run down by months of occupation by rebel forces. "This is where we will have lunch when you come back in five months," says the confident and upbeat sounding Chinese manager.

In a country where almost everything had ground to a halt because of war, very small changes which would otherwise hardly be noticed, may suddenly assume considerable importance. For the mining sector, which is currently the backbone of the country’s economy, the turn-around has been dramatic. An international clamp down on the trade in "blood diamonds", with the introduction of a certification system, has markedly reduced illegal exports of the gems. According to the Minister of Mines, Mohamed Swarray Deen, the government earned $26 million from diamond exports in 2001, which is more than 20 times the 1999 figure. The hopeful signs and the transparency brought to the sector, are encouraging some major investors to return. For instance, the Canadian mining group, DiamondWorks Ltd., which left the country in 1997, is already repairing its installations for an imminent resumption of operations.

Today, reconstruction is a reality, ex-combatants and their victims are receiving vocational skills which are easing their reintegration into society; new buildings and hotels are shooting up transforming the skyline of the capital city; the beaches are getting busy once again and people are venturing to enjoy night life. But for a people whose hopes have been shattered ever so often, even these very tangible developments are not enough to calm their fears about what tomorrow may hold in store for them.

Away from the centres of political power, and far into the hinterland, signs of a not too certain future are emerging. The diamond belt, is the scene of action, where new entrepreneurs,this time civilians, are rapidly filling the vacuum left by the demise of the rebels, who were the diamond lords of yesterday. But like yesterday, exploitation continues even if this time round, it is with the coerced consent of unemployed youths. What is worrying, is not the huge amount of money that these people make, it is the influence that comes with it. The recent futile attempts by the government to hunt down a ’rumoured’ massive 1000 carat piece of diamond, described as the second largest ever found in the world, is ample proof that the newcomers are gaining influence and spreading their tentacles well beyond the frontiers of the African continent. According to unconfirmed reports the giant diamond might have found its way into Israel.

Fears of a possible resurgence of fighting in Sierra Leone have been expressed by a Brussels-based think tank, the International Crisis Group. But it is pointing at external rather than domestic causes. "The international community may rejoice that the war has left Sierra Leone but it cannot be sure that peace has come there until the wider war ends", it warns in a recently published report, identifying Liberia’s on-going rebel insurgence as the main threat to stability in Sierra Leone. In fact, many experts are agreed that the triangular conflict, involving Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, has been sustained for years by the ability of rebel groups to feed on each other.

Back to the subject of a coin in hand. There is no doubt that the side of that coin which the people of Sierra Leone have at hand now, is one which they would like to be looking at forever. But since there is another side, there can be no guarantee that the lucky side is theirs for keeps. With the gruesome atrocities the people of this country have witnessed in the last decade, there is an outpouring of good wishes for them. Unfortunately, as we have learned from history, wishes may not be enough to prevent a repeat of those horrors. Sierra Leoneans will remain mindful of the old adage that it is wise to be "sleeping with one eye."

Radio for Peace

The reconciliation process in Sierra Leone was aided by the media, with Radio for Development taking the lead. Sierra Leone’s fairly empty airwaves, had a newcomer in May 2000. Radio UNAMSIL, popularly known as FM103, started off with a four-hour daily broadcast of only music. At its Mammy Yoko headquarters in Freetown, the station now runs a 24 hour service, both on FM and short wave (6140KHZ) offering a mix of music, news, information, drama, as well as discussion programmes, carefully put together to promote peace and reconciliation. The station is the brain child of the United Nations, intended to support the peace process. It is also making up for the huge void in development communication in the war torn country by providing health, education and environment programmes.

English and Creole, the lingua franca in the country, are the main languages of broadcast, but there are also programmes in three vernacular languages - Mende, Themne and Limba. A 15 man-strong operation, Radio UNAMSIL prides itself with the little ground it has covered in "an endeavour to fulfil a rather complex and challenging mission". Station manager, Sheila Dallas, says radio for peace calls for "lots of imagination, innovation and creativity" with little room for pre-conceived notions.

Drawn mainly from a pool of local professionals, Radio UNAMSIL’s staff, produce programmes that generally address issues such as crime, guilt, justice, tolerance, forgiveness, peace, etc., which are central to any reconciliation process. For many of these professionals radio for peace is an entirely new concept which they have to grapple with. For Kumba Briwa "its the careful choice of words and a near religious attachment to fairness and balance" that is crucial in her work. Children’s programme producer, Fatouma Nsaire, emphasises "the ability to listen, calm the fears of war-traumatised children, and encourage them." FM103 has fast become a favourite for Freetown residents and you are likely to be listening to its programmes once you board a taxi.

With a few more months to go for the expiration of the mandate of the UN mission in Sierra Leone, the station manager is giving some thought to what will happen when this voice of peace goes silent. "It worries me, of course" Jamaican-born Sheila Dallas takes off, after a prolonged silence. "Something will hopefully be done", to ensure that even if the mission were to close tomorrow, FM103 "continues in some form or sort, to consolidate the peace process."