SIERRA LEONE-POLITICS: Aid Agencies Pull Out of Eastern District

By Lansana Fofana Reprint | | Print |

Lansana Fofana

KENEMA, Sierra Leone, May 7 1997 (IPS) - Aid agencies, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), have pulled out of the Eastern District of Kenema following the weekend clashes between government troops and a group of local hunters, the Kamajors.

Thousands of returnees and displaced persons have been left stranded as the agencies head for safer territory. “We do not wish to endanger the life of anyone working for us. The situation in Kenema is still unsafe and the UNHCR has no option but to suspend our operations until we are sure of a return of calm,” a UNHCR official in Kenema, Benedict Akinowa, said Tuesday.

At the weekend, there was a gun battle between government troops and the Kamajors which left up to 20 people dead. “The fighting was very tense and I saw bodies littered all over the place,” Akinowa said.

According to an eyewitness, the Kamajors used rocket propelled grenades, bombs and assault rifles in their hunt for the soldiers. “Any soldier caught by the Kamajors was instantly shot dead,” said Brima Gobeh. “Even relatives of soldiers were slain randomly. It was an ugly sight.”

Last month, Sierra Leone’s government announced that the Kamajors would be confined to their chiefdoms and that their military activities would cease. The Kamajors became involved in Sierra Leone’s war in 1994 and fought alongside government troops.

The traditional hunters, who are believed to possess mystical powers, were feared by the rebels of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), but their popularity with the government troops began to wane, even though they scored several victories for the army.

Since the signing of the Peace Accord last November between the government and RUF to end the six-year-old conflict, the Kamajors and government army have clashed in districts in the North. Aid agencies working in the North also had to beat a hasty retreat because of these clashes.

Besides the UNHCR, other agencies that have fled Kenema include the World Food Programme (WFP), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Catholic Mission and Cause Canada.

The agencies provided the returnees with basic necessities and tools for farming and helped to resettle those who were returning to their home area from other parts of the country.

The weekend clashes have also unsettled many of the displaced who fear they may have to pull up stakes once again. “I regret coming back with my family of six. I saw lots of killings here in 1994, and do not want to be caught anymore in the bloodletting,” said Morie Lahai. “I thought returning home was the best idea, but that might have been a sad mistake.”

An official of the WFP in Freetown, the Sierra Leonean capital, confirmed Wednesday that the agency had withdrawn its staff from the Eastern district.

“Our operations will only resume when we are pretty sure of a return of normalcy. At the moment though, we think it is unsafe to continue functioning in Kenema,” the WFP official said.

Diplomats here have expressed concern at the growing rift between the Kamajors and the government soldiers. If the clashes continue, one diplomat said, the RUF, which has split into two factions, could rear its military head once again. “I am concerned that the intransigent wing of the RUF may cash in on the situation and launch fresh attacks,” a Western envoy told IPS Wednesday. “This may not augur well for the peace process.”

A local military analyst expressed concern at the Kamajors’ growing power. “The Kamajors have been seriously pampered by the civilian regime to the extent that they have assumed the role of the army,” said Ismail Bah. “If they are not contained, they will plunge this country into further chaos in their adventurism.”

President Tejan Kabbah has set up a six-man Commission of Inquiry to investigate the causes of the frequent clashes between the two sides and to work out a peaceful co-existence between them. The Committee includes an Anglican cleric, a senior military officer, a police officer, a paramount chief and two others.