POLITICS-SIERRA LEONE: Fugitive Junta Leader Seeks British, UN Protection

By Lansana Fofana Reprint | | Print |

Lansana Fofana

FREETOWN, Jan 21 2003 (IPS) - Sierra Leonean opposition member of Parliament Johnny Paul Koroma, who was head of the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC), which seized power in a military coup in 1997, is being sought by the police after evading arrest Saturday.

‘’Our priority now is to apprehend Mr. Koroma who is a prime suspect in subversive activities uncovered over the weekend,” remarked Fudie Daboh, head of the criminal department of the police, in an interview with IPS on Tuesday.

Daboh, a British-trained detective superintendent, said the fugitive legislator fled his west Freetown residence after a raid by police who were working on a tip-off that subversive activities had been going on there, involving former fighters of the defunct AFRC.

‘’We believe that Mr. Koroma is hiding somewhere in town and are urging him to give himself up and help the police with investigations,” Daboh said.

According to the police, two rifles and an assortment of military combat fatigues were uncovered at Koroma’s residence and 16 persons, so far, have been arrested.

Police Acting Deputy Inspector General Brima Acha Kamara said on a weekend radio talk show in the capital, Freetown, that among those in police custody are ex-combatants whose clandestine activities may be part of ‘’a wider conspiracy to destabilise the security of the state”.

It all follows an attack on an army base in the east of the city about a week ago by unknown gunmen. Among those arrested then were two serving personnel of the Sierra Leone army.

Initially, the police linked the attack to ‘’attempted robbery” but changed their theory after it was suspected that ex-combatants were fomenting trouble through clandestine activities.

Koroma, who contested presidential elections in May 2002 against incumbent President Ahmad Tejan Kabba lost the polls but secured enough votes to enter parliament with a second seat going to another member of his Peace and Liberation Party (PLP).

This latest twist in the security situation has raised fears about the future of the country’s fragile peace process.

Sierra Leone experienced a brutal civil war that lasted ten years, starting in 1991. Thousands were killed, mutilated and subjected to all forms of atrocities.

A UN-backed Special Court is underway ‘’to try individuals believed to bear the greatest responsibility for war crimes,” remarked David Crane, the American-born prosecutor of the court.

It is widely speculated that Koroma would be a possible candidate for the court, given the despicable atrocities, which his junta unleashed on the population for nine months in 1999.

Koroma has denied having any links to the botched plot to destabilise the state and told the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in an interview Monday: ‘’They (ruling party) are bent on eliminating me because they see me as a political threat”.

The erstwhile junta leader added that his sweeping of the security forces vote might have angered the politicians.

Ordinary people have been reacting sharply to the unfolding events. ‘’ What is all this nonsense about?” asks Margaret Kamara, a Freetown housewife. ‘’Do we really have peace? I am asking because I see this development as a threat to the peace process.”

Musa Kamara was even more circumspect: ‘’The authorities should treat this whole matter cautiously. Mr. Johnny Paul Koroma, too, must come out of hiding and help the police in their investigations. We are tired of war.”

An uneasy calm clearly hangs over this war-scarred city where people are barely trying to pick the pieces of their broken lives. Roadblocks, which had long been removed, resurfaced in parts of the city and security patrols and searches intensified.

An official of the UN mission in Sierra Leone, known as UNAMSIL, told IPS Tuesday that the mission was willing and prepared to receive Koroma should he hand himself to them.

‘’We will guarantee his security and ensure he is fairly treated,” the official said. Koroma has ruled out surrendering to the police or any agent of the government. He insists on the intervention of the country’s former colonial ruler Britain or the UN mission. ‘’They are the ones I believe are neutral,” Koroma said.

Until Koroma is apprehended or gives himself up Sierra Leoneans will be living with the fear of a possible resumption of hostilities.