- Full name: Republic of Sierra Leone
- Population: 6.1 million (UN, 2012)
- Capital: Freetown
- Area: 71,740 sq km (27,699 sq miles)
- Major languages: English, Krio (Creole language derived from English) and a range of African languages
- Major religions: Islam, Christianity
- Life expectancy: 48 years (men), 49 years (women) (UN)
- Monetary unit: Leone
- Main exports: Diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish
- GNI per capita: US $460 (World Bank, 2011)
- Internet domain: .sl
- International dialling code: +232
www.imdb.com/title/tt0450259/plotsummary
3. Blood Diamond Violence
Diamonds
are supposed to be symbols of love, commitment, and joyful new beginnings. But
for many people in diamond-rich countries, these sparkling stones are more a
curse than a blessing. Too often, the world’s diamond mines produce not only
diamonds – but also civil wars, violence, human rights abuses, worker exploitation, environmental degradation, and unspeakable
human suffering.
Not
long ago, the public started to become aware that large numbers of diamonds are
mined in violent and inhumane settings. Consumers are now demanding, with
ever greater urgency, that their diamonds be free from bloodshed and human
rights abuses. So far, however, the diamond industry’s response has been
woefully inadequate. Diamonds with violent histories are still being mined and
allowed to enter the diamond supply, where they become indistinguishable from
other gems. Violence, human rights abuses, and other injustices remain an
everyday aspect of diamond mining.
Fueling Civil Wars
In just the past two decades, seven African countries have endured brutal civil conflicts fueled by diamonds: Sierra Leone, Liberia, Angola, the Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Diamonds intensify civil wars by financing militaries and rebel militias. These groups also fight with each other to control diamond-rich territory. The tragic result is bloodshed, loss of life, and shocking human rights abuses – from rape to the use of child soldiers.
In just the past two decades, seven African countries have endured brutal civil conflicts fueled by diamonds: Sierra Leone, Liberia, Angola, the Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Diamonds intensify civil wars by financing militaries and rebel militias. These groups also fight with each other to control diamond-rich territory. The tragic result is bloodshed, loss of life, and shocking human rights abuses – from rape to the use of child soldiers.
Diamonds that fuel civil wars are often called "blood"
or "conflict" diamonds. Although many diamond-fueled wars have now
ended, conflict diamonds remain a serious problem. Civil conflicts in Côte
d’Ivoire, the Central African Republic, and the DRC continue to this day. So far,
the war in the DRC alone has cost more than 5 million lives. In addition,
millions of people are dealing with the long-term consequences of these wars:
friends and family members lost, lives shattered, and physical and emotional
scars that will last generations.
Further
Reading
As Ivory Coast’s Gbago holds firm, ‘blood diamonds’ flow for export (Christian Science Monitor)
To Prevent Conflicts, Look to Commodities like Diamonds (New York Times)
Diamonds, a War’s Best Friend (CBS News)
Blood Diamonds (History Channel documentary)
4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Leone
5. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sl.html
6. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-14094194
7. "Why the Life Expectancy in Sierra Leone is in the 40's" (this brief video highlights why our pediatric medical mission trip is so important." http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-12498341
8. 19 December 2013 BBC Report
RUF rebels waged a campaign of amputation and rape
Junta leader Major Johnny Paul Koroma suspended the constitution
Foreign troops, such as these British soldiers, intervened in the conflict in Sierra Leone
Diamond mining is a major activity in the Kono district, in eastern Sierra Leone
As Ivory Coast’s Gbago holds firm, ‘blood diamonds’ flow for export (Christian Science Monitor)
To Prevent Conflicts, Look to Commodities like Diamonds (New York Times)
Diamonds, a War’s Best Friend (CBS News)
Blood Diamonds (History Channel documentary)
4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Leone
5. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sl.html
6. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-14094194
7. "Why the Life Expectancy in Sierra Leone is in the 40's" (this brief video highlights why our pediatric medical mission trip is so important." http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-12498341
8. 19 December 2013 BBC Report
A Chronology of Key Events
1787 - British abolitionists and philanthropists establish a settlement in Freetown for repatriated and rescued slaves.
1808 - Freetown settlement becomes crown colony.
1896 - Britain sets up a protectorate over the Freetown hinterland.
1954 - Sir Milton Margai, leader of the Sierra Leone People's Party, appointed chief minister.
1961 - Sierra Leone becomes independent.
1967 - Military coup deposes Premier Siaka Stevens' government.
1968 - Siaka Stevens returns to power at the head of a civilian government following another military coup.
1971 - Sierra Leone declared a republic, Stevens becomes executive president.
1978 - New constitution proclaims Sierra Leone a one-party state with the All People's Congress as the sole legal party.
1985 - Major-General Joseph Saidu Momoh becomes president following Stevens's retirement.
1987 - Momoh declares state of economic emergency.
War and coupsRUF rebels waged a campaign of amputation and rape
1991 - Start of civil war. Former army corporal Foday Sankoh and his Revolutionary United Front (RUF) begin campaign against President Momoh, capturing towns on border with Liberia.
1991 September - New constitution providing for a multiparty system adopted.
1992 - President Joseph Momoh ousted in military coup led by Captain Valentine Strasser, apparently frustrated by failure to deal with rebels. Under international pressure, Strasser announces plans for the first multi-party elections since 1967.
1996 January - Strasser ousted in military coup led by his defence minister, Brigadier Julius Maada Bio.
Junta leader Major Johnny Paul Koroma suspended the constitution
1996 - Ahmad Tejan Kabbah elected president in February, signs peace accord with Sankoh's rebels in November.
1997 - Peace deal unravels. President Kabbah deposed by army in May. Major Johnny Paul Koroma, in prison awaiting the outcome of a treason trial, leads the military junta - the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC). Koroma suspends the constitution, bans demonstrations and abolishes political parties.
Kabbah flees to Guinea to mobilise international support.
1997 July - The Commonwealth suspends Sierra Leone.
1997 October - The UN Security Council imposes sanctions on Sierra Leone, barring the supply of arms and petroleum products. A British company, Sandline, nonetheless supplies "logistical support", including rifles, to Kabbah allies.
1998 February - Nigerian-led West African intervention force Ecomog storms Freetown and drives rebels out.
1998 March - Kabbah makes a triumphant return to Freetown amid scenes of public rejoicing.
1999 January - Rebels backing Revolutionary United Front leader Foday Sankoh seize parts of Freetown from Ecomog. After weeks of bitter fighting they are driven out, leaving behind 5,000 dead and a devastated city.
UN intervenes
1999 May - A ceasefire is greeted with cautious optimism in Freetown amid hopes that eight years of civil war may soon be over.
1999 July - Six weeks of talks in the Togolese capital, Lome, result in a peace agreement, under which the rebels receive posts in government and assurances they will not be prosecuted for war crimes.
1999 November/December - UN troops arrive to police the peace agreement - but one rebel leader, Sam Bokari, says they are not welcome. Meanwhile, Ecomog troops are attacked outside Freetown.
2000 April/May - UN forces come under attack in the east of the country, but far worse is in store when first 50, then several hundred UN troops are abducted.
2000 May - Rebels close in on Freetown; 800 British paratroopers sent to Freetown to evacuate British citizens and to help secure the airport for UN peacekeepers; rebel leader Foday Sankoh captured.
2000 August - Eleven British soldiers taken hostage by a renegade militia group called the West Side Boys.
Disarming rebels
2000 September - British forces mount operation to rescue remaining UK hostages.
2001 January - Government postpones presidential and parliamentary elections - set for February and March - because of continuing insecurity.
2001 March - UN troops for the first time begin to deploy peacefully in rebel-held territory.
2001 May - Disarmament of rebels begins, and British-trained Sierra Leone army starts deploying in rebel-held areas.
2002 January - War declared over. UN mission says disarmament of 45,000 fighters is complete. Government, UN agree to set up war crimes court.
2002 May - Kabbah wins a landslide victory in elections. His Sierra Leone People's Party secures a majority in parliament.
2002 July - British troops leave Sierra Leone after their two-year mission to help end the civil war.
2003 July - Rebel leader Foday Sankoh dies of natural causes while awaiting trial for war crimes.
Foreign troops, such as these British soldiers, intervened in the conflict in Sierra Leone
2003 August - President Kabbah tells truth and reconciliation commission that he had no say over operations of pro-government militias during war.
2004 February - Disarmament and rehabilitation of more than 70,000 civil war combatants officially completed.
War crimes trials
2004 March - UN-backed war crimes tribunal opens courthouse to try senior militia leaders from both sides of civil war.
2004 May - First local elections in more than three decades.
2004 June - War crimes trials begin.
2004 September - UN hands control of security in capital over to local forces.
2005 August - UN Security Council authorises opening of a UN assistance mission in Sierra Leone from 2006, to follow departure of peacekeepers in December.
2005 December - The last UN peacekeeping troops leave Sierra Leone, marking the end of a five-year mission to restore order.
2006 March - Liberian ex-president Charles Taylor is arrested in Nigeria and handed over to the war crimes court in Sierra Leone which indicted him.
2006 December - President Kabbah says 90% of the country's $1.6bn (£815m) debt has been written off after negotiations with international creditors.
Taylor Trial
2007 June - Start of former Liberian president Charles Taylor's war crimes trial in The Hague, where he stands accused of instigating atrocities in Sierra Leone.
Sierra Leone's special war crimes court in Freetown delivers its first verdicts, finding three militia leaders guilty.
2007 August - Presidential and parliamentary polls. Ernest Bai Koroma wins the presidency and his All People's Congress, formerly in opposition, wins a majority in parliament.
2008 January - Former Liberian president Charles Taylor's war crimes trial in The Hague resumes after a six-month delay.
2008 August - Local elections are marred by violence between the supporters of the two main parties
Diamond mining is a major activity in the Kono district, in eastern Sierra Leone
2009 April - Three former senior leaders of the rebel Revolutionary United Front (RUF) sentenced to long jail terms for civil war atrocities.
2009 October - UN-backed Special Court winds down after seven years investigating civil war atrocities. Its remaining case, the trial of Charles Taylor, continues in The Hague.
2010 - Government launches a major boost to the national healthcare system, including free provision for nursing mothers and small children.
2010 September - UN Security Council lifts last remaining sanctions against Sierra Leone - an arms embargo and a travel ban for rebels.
2012 February - Energy companies report discovery of oil off the coasts of Liberia and Sierra Leone. Work continues to estimate their size.
2012 April - The UN-backed Sierra Leone war crimes court in The Hague concludes its work with the conviction of former Liberian leader Charles Taylor of aiding and abetting war crimes in the Sierra Leone civil war.
2012 November - First elections for since the end of the civil war held without UN oversight. President Koroma wins a second term.
2013 April - Sierra Leone deploys a battalion of troops to Somalia to join the African Union peacekeeping mission.
No comments:
Post a Comment