Sierra Leone - DHA-09: 22 October - 5 November 1996

  BI-MONTHLY INFORMATION REPORT SIERRA LEONE - No. 9
Period covered: 22 October - 5 November 1996

  This report has been prepared by the office of the
  United Nations Resident Coordinator in Sierra Leone


GENERAL
1. (a) Thirty-nine expatriate relief workers were
temporarily evacuated from Bo town on 30 October, 1996 as a
result of the latest in a series of clashes between the
kamajors and the military in the Southern and Eastern
Provinces of Sierra Leone. The catalyst for this latest
eruption of violence in Bo town was an incident which took
place on 29 October in Talama village, which is situated to
the West of Bo. It was reported that kamajors in Talama
village tried to prevent members of the military from
looting zinc roofing sheets from Njala University College,
7 miles outside Talama. In response, the military in Talama
detained the kamajors involved at the local barracks. On
hearing this news other kamajors in the area decided to
converge on the barracks with a view to resolving the
situation. En route, these kamajors were ambushed by
soldiers using RPG launchers and suffered casualties. The
military claim that 11 kamajors were killed and 8 wounded
whereas independent eyewitnesses maintain that they have
physically identified 27 bodies.

1. (b) The fighting in Bo town on 30 October, 1996 erupted
following the acrimonious break-up of a meeting between the
kamajors and the military at Brigade Headquarters, the
purpose of which was to enable the kamajors and the
military to resolve their differences over Talama. Reports
over the exact numbers of casualties vary although it has
been confirmed that 8 kamajors, 2 soldiers and 1 civilian
were killed. The most significant casualty was, without
doubts, the death, and subsequent ritual mutilation of
Paramount chief Lebbie, the head of the Kamajors in Bo
district. An atmosphere of nervous tranquillity currently
pervades Bo district (as of 4 November) following a visit
to Bo by the Deputy Minister of Defence, the Chief of the
Defence Staff and the Chief of Army Staff and the semi-
permanent deployment of Executive Outcomes to the area, it
remains to be seen whether the assassination and mutilation
of Paramount Chief Lebbie will result in a future backlash
by the kamajors.

2.  The MNRRR-NGO Consultative Group, which was formed
to enhance cooperation and understanding among MNRRR, NGOs
and donors (see point two, sitrep dated 8-21 October) met
on 23 October and 1 November. Consensus between MNRRR and
NGOs has been reached over the format of the revised NGO
activity profile document and it is hoped that ongoing
dialogue will resolve other outstanding concerns and lead
to the development of joint strategies.

POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS
3. (a) The United Nations Special Envoy of the Secretary-
General to Sierra Leone (SESG) met representatives of the
Revolutionary United Front (RUF) in Abidjan, C=F4te dIvoire
from 21-22 October to discuss the advancement of the peace
process. Subsequent to those meetings, President Kabbah and
a Government delegation held consultations with Corporal
Foday Sankoh and a group of RUF representatives in Abidjan
on 24 October, 1996 at a meeting convened and attended by
the president of C=F4te dIvoire.

3. (b) At the meeting Corporal Sankoh asked for
authorisation to visit his combatants in Sierra Leone so as
to explain to them the main thrust of the draft peace
agreement prior to signing it. Corporal Sankoh has
requested that he be accompanied on this mission by
representatives of the international community, namely the
UN, OAU, Commonwealth, ECOWAS and EU together with a
representative of the Government of C=F4te dIvoire.

3. (c) President Kabbah agreed to Sankohs request to make
such a trip and reiterated an earlier undertaking to ensure
the security and safety of the group while in Sierra Leone.
Kabbah did, however, insist that this process had to be
completed not later than 1 December, 1996 in keeping with
the deadline which he had indicated to the UN General
Assembly and Security Council for the signing of the peace
agreement between the GOSL and the RUF. Although the ICRC
has agreed to facilitate the travel arrangements for such a
meeting, which the RUF has indicated that they wish to hold
in the first week of November, 1996, the ICRC has yet to
receive a request from the RUF for such arrangements to be
made.

4.  The UN Special Envoy of the Secretary-General held
consultations at the United Nations headquarters in New
York form 25 October to 1 November, 1996. During the visit
he briefed the Secretary-General, the Security Council and
several high-level United Nations officials on the peace
process and other developments in Sierra Leone. On 30
October, 1996, the Security Council issued a preliminary
statement to the press in which its concern over the lack
of progress in the peace process is noted. The statement
also expresses the Security Councils hope that the GOSL and
the RUF will promptly adopt concrete measures to advance
the peace process in Sierra Leone.

5.  On 5 November, 1996, the GOSL reiterated the offer
of a general amnesty (originally made following President
Kabbahs meeting with Corporal Sankoh on 23 April, 1996) to
all members of the RUF and -RUF collaborators- on condition
that they desisted -forthwith from lending further any form
of support, assistance or encouragement to the RUF.- The
announcement tried to assure both RUF combatants and
civilians held captive by the RUF that they would be
treated humanely and provided with food and clothing. The
announcement sought to put pressure on the RUF leadership
by revealing that the kamajors had handed over items
captured from the RUF such as arms, ammunition,
communication equipment and documents to the Government.
The announcement also indicated that the kamajors had
inflicted a heavy defeat on newly-recruited RUF fighters
from a -neighbouring country,- in an attempt to undermine
RUF morale still further.

SECURITY
6.  Notwithstanding the recent clash between the
kamajors and the military in Bo town (see point one),
efforts by the kamajors to clear the Eastern and Southern
provinces of RUF activity continue. To date the majority of
the RUF strongholds in Moyamba, Kenema, Bo and Pujehun
districts have been occupied by the kamajors. It has also
been reported that a further 1,500 kamajors have been
deployed to Kailahun district, parts of which remain under
rebel control, in order to continue this offensive. The
ultimatum delivered by the kamajors to the paramount chief
of Soro Gbema chiefdom in Pujehun district, the one
remaining chiefdom in the district still under RUF control,
has been extended until 7 November, 1996 so that the
residents might have a chance to comply with the GOSLs
offer of an amnesty. (See point 5 above). Failure to comply
with this offer will result in occupation of the chiefdom
by the kamajors.

7.  On 2 November the Sierra Leonean Defence
Headquarters announced that the British Government had
agreed to provide military training assistance to the
Republic of Sierra Leone Military Forces (RSLMF). The
purpose of the training is to enable the RLSMF become more
professional and effective and thus contribute to the
stability and security of Sierra Leone.

DEMOBILISATION
8.  RUF ex-captives (-returnees-) have continued to
emerge in Blama in Kenema district during the past two
weeks following ongoing efforts by the kamajors to clear
the Southern part of Kenema and Pujehun districts of RUF
activity. In response to these new influxes the DDR
(Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration) Programme
Unit of MNRRR undertook a second screening mission from 22-
28 October, 1996. The screening exercise revealed that a
total of 566 -returnees- had entered Blama during October
1996. The latest DDR rolling action plan reveals a total -
returnee- caseload of 1,118 as at 26 October, 1996. Of
those 76 are admitted ex-combatants and 139 are children.
According to DDR 488 (ie. 44 percent) of those screened
have already returned to their areas of origin. There are
also reportedly 200 unscreened -returnees- currently
languishing in Poturu in Pujehun district and an estimated
250-300 unscreened -returnees- in Sewgbwema in the Eastern
part of Kenema district. It is clear that the screening
process needs to be streamlined and made more flexible so
that the humanitarian needs of -returnees- are met as
quickly as possible. It is, therefore, imperative that the
DDR Unit recruit and deploy its field officers to Bo and
Kenema without delay.

 RESETTLEMENT
 9.On 31 October, 1996, UN Agencies and NGOs attended a
 meeting at MNRRR to discuss resettlement-related
 initiatives currently on the table, such as the draft NGO
 resettlement strategy, in order to help MNRRR formulate
 its own ideas. Three key issues were addressed: Transport
 (the extent to which displaced people should be
 physically transported to their areas of origin), Shelter
 (the degree to which displaced people should be
 temporarily housed in transit camps): and Resettlement
 packages (the exact composition of non-food items in such
 packages. The food component will be determined by the
 Committee on Food Aid). Further research into both the
 availability of resources to meet resettlement needs and
 the capacity of implementing agencies to respond must be
 undertaken before any outstanding issues can be
 satisfactorily resolved.

 FOOD AID
 10.  Significant progress has been made in the
 development of a food strategy for the displaced people
 living in Bo and Kenema who wish to return to their areas
 of the origin in Pujehun district. There are currently
 122,106 Pujehun displaced receiving food aid in Bo and
 Kenema, 77,163 from WFP (63 percent) and 44,943 (37
 percent) from CRS. It has been suggested that
 distribution sites be located in Potoru, Bandejuma and
 Pujehun towns and that the 12 chiefdoms in the district
 be divided up proportionally by the food providers
 (currently WFP and CRS). CCSL has indicated an interest
 in serving as an implementing partner in Pejah and Sowa
 chiefdoms and ICRC will continue to operate in Makpele
 and Soro Gbema chiefdoms. CRS intends to distribute food
 to the newly-resettled people in Pujehun district in mid-
 November as there are currently believed to be only 10,
 000 people in Gondama camp. At the height of the conflict
 Gondama camp had a population of 45,000, the majority of
 whom originate from Pujehun district.

 AGRICULTURE
 11.  The Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources
 (MANR) conducted a successful workshop, financed by the
 Government of Sierra Leone (GOSL) and the African
 Development Bank (ADB), on the Agricultural Master plan
 (AMP) from 17-18 October, 1996. The AMP, which will guide
 agricultural development in Sierra Leone for the next 15
 years, will be presented to a donor conference in
 December 1996. The workshop was attended by a cross-
 section of interested parties, including Government
 ministers, Members of Parliament (especially members of
 the parliamentary committee on agriculture), diplomats,
 donor agencies, NGOs, representatives of farmers
 associations and the National Farmers Association of
 Sierra Leone (NAFSL) and the private sector.

 12.  An OFDA team has completed a joint assessment in
 order to a) analyse the impact and appropriateness of
 current NGO agriculture activities supported by the
 Bureau of Humanitarian Response (BHR)-OFDA and b)
 identify areas for future OFDA support vis-a-vis
 agricultural rehabilitation. The EU participated in the
 assessment to facilitate a coordinated approach among the
 donor community in the agricultural sector.

 13.  On 24 October, 1996, the MANR held the third
 agricultural inputs subcommittee meeting, which was
 attended by 15 NGOs, HACU, USAID, EU and FAO. Most NGOs
 presented chiefdom maps indicating areas of agricultural
 activities as well as updates of their activities since
 the previous meeting. Some concrete recommendations were
 made with regard to planning. Minutes of the meeting are
 available from MANR.

 14.  On 25 October the MANR and FAO celebrated the World
 Food Day at Ogoo farm in Freetown, which constitutes a
 model of irrigated food crop production. Farmers from
 Freetown and other parts of Sierra Leone showed their
 crop produce at the event.

 HEALTH
 15.  The Ministry of Health and Sanitations (MOHS) annual
 health sector review, which was attended by
 representatives from Government, UN agencies and NGOs,
 took place on 29-30 October, 1996. While acknowledging
 that the current security situation continued to
 represent a major constraint in the implementation of the
 National Health Action Plan, the following ideas were,
 nevertheless, espoused at the end of the conference:
 decentralisation of health service, integration of
 primary health care activities at central and district
 level, rehabilitation of health facilities, cost
 recovery, formulation of district plans, implementation
 of proposed management structures, human resource
 development. A policy for use of drugs was not clarified.

 NEW ARRIVALS
 16.  Representatives from the United Nations Office of
 Internal Oversight, Audit and Management Consulting
 Division visited Sierra Leone from 26 October - 6
 November in order to assess the UN Department of
 Humanitarian Affairss role in the coordination of
 humanitarian assistance at field level. The missions
 findings will contribute towards an overall evaluation of
 DHAs activities as requested by the UN General Assembly.


 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