Sierra Leone - DHA-08: 8-21 October 1996
Sierra Leone - DHA-08: 8-21 October 1996
BI-MONTHLY INFORMATION REPORT SIERRA LEONE - No. 8
Period covered: 8-21 October 1996
This report has been prepared by the office of the
United Nations Resident Coordinator in Sierra Leone
GENERAL
1. On 9 October, President Kabbah met the United
Nations Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs in
New York to discuss humanitarian developments in Sierra
Leone. Both parties expressed concern over the
demobilisation process. While acknowledging that systematic
demobilisation could not officially commence until the
peace accord had been signed, it was jointly recognised
that current levels of preparedness, particularly with
regard to spontaneous demobilisation, were inadequate.
Concern was also expressed over donors reluctance (ODA
excepted) to provide financial support to the
demobilisation process until a peace agreement had been
signed. President Kabbah also paid tribute to the good work
currently being carried out by NGOs but added that he was
disturbed by the unacceptable practices of some NGOs,
particularly those that had -just appeared- in Sierra
Leone.
2. Efforts are underway to establish a MNRRR-NGO
Consultative Group, which would act as a forum for fruitful
dialogue between MNRRR, NGOs and donors, thereby enhancing
coordination efforts. The group would enable participants
to: a) examine the roles and mandates of humanitarian
agencies, b) create operational procedures and guidelines,
c) strengthen existing coordination mechanisms and d)
create an environment which would enable involved parties
to become familiarised with one an others activities.
3. A rapid assessment of Pujehun district by
representatives from CRS, World Vision, Food for Peace and
UN-HACU has confirmed that people returning home are
undertaking preliminary repairs to their homes and resuming
agricultural activities. During meetings with chiefdom
representatives, assurances were given that assistance
would be forthcoming for agriculture and food for work,
particularly road repair. The assessment corroborated
previous reports that food security was the single most
pressing concern of newly-resettled people. The improved
security climate in the region is attributed mainly to the
increased presence of the kamajors. A detailed report is
available from UN-HACU on request.
4. In a statement to the press during his visit to
Sierra Leone during the first week of October, the USAID
Assistant Administrator mentioned that the United States
had contributed more than USD 133 million to Sierra Leone
since 1991. During 1996 USAID funded DHA and NGOs active in
food and non-food distributions, agricultural
rehabilitation, water and sanitation activities, medical
services and nutritional assistance. In particular, USAID
provided WFP, CRS and Care with more than 47,000 MTs of
food during 1996, valued at USD 28 million. USAID plans to
support the development of civilian groups involved in
peace and reconciliation activities and the retraining and
reintegration of RUF and ex-army personnel through
micro-projects related to agriculture or simple
infrastructure construction. The Assistant Administrator
also pledged that the -United States Government will remain
actively engaged in providing humanitarian assistance to
the people of Sierra Leone.-
5. The second in a series of Inter-agency Disaster
Management Training workshops was held in Bo from 16-19
October 1996. Thirty national senior level participants
drawn from line Ministries, international NGOs, local NGOs
and other agencies participated in the workshop, which was
rated as excellent. Some of the major topics covered
included: Camp management, Resettlement and Rehabilitation
of IDPs and refugees, Refugee and IDP protection,
Coordination and preparedness and early warning systems.
The third workshop in the series will take place in Kenema
Eastern Region 28-30 October, 1996.
SECURITY
6. Recruitment of kamajors has continued to occur in
the Eastern Province at a rate of approximately 200 per
month and there are currently believed to be more than
15,000 kamajors in Sierra Leone ( according to the Deputy
Minister of Defense via the British Military Liaison
Officer). In Kenema district it appears that the kamajors
are being coordinated into a well-organised force with a
view to clearing the whole area of rebel activity. In
particular, it is believed that the kamajors have cleared
the RUF camp at Jui in the southern part of Kenema
district, which is reportedly one of the largest RUF
strongholds in the country. Support for this operation was
also provided by Executive Outcomes and by Nigerian and
Guinean troops. Concern has been raised about the agenda
and allegiance of the kamajor recruits and there are fears
that they could become a destabilising force unless they
are incorporated into the demobilisation plan.
7. On 15 October, 1996 an estimated 400-500 people at
Magbenteh camp in Makeni started a protest during an SLRC
food distribution. Those involved were concerned over
issues such as ration size and verification procedures. The
tension escalated with the result that SLRC vehicles were
stoned by the disgruntled people. In response to this
incident SLRC temporarily stopped providing services for
Magbenteh camp. This incident underscores the need to
sensitise camp populations to the switch from general food
distribution to targeted feeding in January 1997. As the
population of Magbenteh camp is only 5,281 people the
situation was relatively easy to control but if a similar
scenario were to occur in Bo the consequences could be far
more severe. The recent sensitisation mission conducted in
Bo by representatives from UN Agencies, NGOs and donors was
an important step towards fulfilling this objective.
8. The security situation in Tonkolili district is
still unstable. On 17 October it was reported that armed
elements attacked villages in the vicinity of Bumbuna,
killed dozens of civilians, prompting residents to flee
into Magburaka. Expatriates (mainly Italian) working on the
Bumbuna dam have been evacuated to Freetown.
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS
9. In his statement at the 51st Ordinary Session of the
United Nations General Assembly delivered on 10 October
1996, Tejan Kabbah, President of Sierra Leone, appealed to
the international community not to abandon Africa. He
added: - Even though we may be on our knees in anguish, I
firmly believe that there is hope for Africa, that Africa
and its people do have the ability and capacity to overcome
natural and self-inflicted constraints, and achieve
political stability as well as economic prosperity.-
President Kabbah also called on the international community
to demand that the -RUF sign the peace agreement without
further delay, failing which the imposition of sanctions
against them should be considered, including the denial of
access to the facilities and territories of third
countries, and the prospect of their arraignment before a
War Crimes Tribunal for the serious crimes being
perpetrated against innocent civilians.-
FOOD AID
10. As the internally displaced continue to return to
their areas of origin in certain parts of Sierra Leone, WFP
has received a corresponding increase in requests for
support for food for work. These requests are mainly to
support agricultural activities of communities in the
Western Area, Bo, Kenema and Makeni. WFP has been most
happy to oblige.
HEALTH
11. During the last week of September MSF(H) conducted
an assessment of Kabala town, which is located in Koinadugu
district in the Northern Province. Relief assistance is
limited at present: Christian Extension Services (CES) is
still running a public health and community development
project in Alikalia, 30 miles south of Kabala and FAO is
sponsoring a Womens Agricultural Project. The EC micro
projects are on hold. The assessment revealed that the
situation was stable and that the population was coping
well given limited assistance. This conclusion is
understandable given that Kabala is the leading
agricultural centre in Sierra Leone. Health services were
perceived to be on a par with most other parts of Sierra
Leone: limited medical facilities, poor vaccination
coverage, limited epidemiological surveillance and
inadequate water and sanitation facilities.
DEMOBILISATION
12. On 7 October, 1996, Bandawo village, an RUF-held area
situated to the South of Blama in Kenema district, was occupied
by kamajors. 106 civilians were rescued and immediately brought
to Blama. During the next few days ex-RUF captives-camp
followers ( -returnees- in the terminology of DDR ) continued
to trickle into Blama on their accord making a total of 152 by
12 October, 1996. These 152 returnees were immediately screened
by the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR)
office of MNRRR and the results are summarised as follows: only
one individual of 152 admitted to being an ex-combatant, 57
were under the age of 15, 73 percent originated from Kenema
district, all interviewees expressed a desire to return to
their respective homes.
13. An encouraging feature of this incident was the obvious
willingness of the local population in Blama to provide relief
assistance in spite of limited resources. Under the
coordination of a local social worker shelter and food were
immediately provided. Merlin, an international NGO based in
Kenema, was also particularly quick to respond by helping the
local PHU carry out a medical and nutritional screening process
and through the provision of medical facilities. Africare and
SLRC also provided non-food items. Following the arrival of the
Freetown-based DDR team WFP made a commitment to provide food,
through SLRC, from 14 October.
14. As of 18 October the total confirmed -returnee- caseload
throughout Sierra Leone is 609 people. Of those 139 are
children and 12 self-confessed ex-combatants. The vast majority
of these -returnees- have successfully been reintegrated into
their home communities.
AGRICULTURE
15. It was encouraging to note that thirteen NGOs attended the
second Agricultural Inputs Sub-committee meeting, held on 10
October, more than double the number which attended the first
meeting on 26 September. Those NGOs who were not present at the
first meeting were given the opportunity to present their
activities relating to the distribution of agricultural inputs.
The meeting pinpointed the need to develop a common strategy
for agricultural input distribution so that farmers do not
become confused. MANR (assisted by the FAO consultant) also
intends to produce a chiefdom map which will indicate NGOs
areas of operations.
Ms. Elisabeth Lwanga
United nations Resident Coordinator
Freetown, Sierra Leone
Tel.: (232 22) 22 53 46 - 22 53 11
Fax: (232 22) 22 32 50 - (871) 151 31 21
Information Office at the Humanitarian
Assistance Coordination Unit (HACU)
Tel.: (232 22) 22 77 59 (Direct) or
(232 22) 22 97 67 (Switchboard)
Complex Emergency Division (CED) - New York
Mr. Kaoruko Seki
Tel.: (1 212) 963.9072
Fax: (1 212) 963.3630
Inter-Agency Support Branch (IASB) - Geneva
Ms. Deborah Saidy - Mr. Chris Kaye
Tel.: (41 22) 788.6384-788.6385
Fax: (41 22) 788.6386
Press to Contact- Geneva:
Ms. Madeleine Moulin-Acevedo
Tel.: (41 22) 917.2856
Fax: (41 22) 917.0023
Telex: 414242 DHA CH
E-Mail: dhagva at dha.unicc.org