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April 8, 2009
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EU
publishes new list of aircraft banned over its skies
The European Union has today
issued a list of companies/aircraft operators that are not to be
allowed to fly over any European Union air space. A statement
from the EU and available on the organisation's website lists a
number of countries in Africa affected by this new order.
 Sierra
Leone is on today's list too - not too surprising one might say
given the lack of respect for law and order as well as
international rules and regulations existing in a number of
departments/ministries in the get-rich-quick-at-whatever-cost
atmosphere. What would raise eyebrows though is the number of
aircraft-operating companies registered as originating from
Sierra Leone. And the names - ranging from
Paramount Airlines to Orange Air Sierra Leone. The EU
banning reason states "All air carriers certified by the
authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of
Sierra Leone, including...." effectively means that our
personnel engaged in aircraft/company certification are not to
be trusted.
MORE
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LET US ALL LEARN FROM THE LESSONS
OF MARCH 23, 1991, ITS AFTERMATH AND WHAT LED TO IT
AFTER THOSE FIRST SHOTS WERE FIRED IN BOMARU!!! |
Monday March 23,
2009 -
Whoever said that a political party cannot run a radio
station in a professional manner?
Many opinions have been
expressed and continue to hit the ether over the closure
of the two radio stations belonging to the Ernest Bai
Koroma-led ruling APC party and the main opposition SLPP
whose new Chairman is John Benjamin. Any organisation,
person or group of persons can run a radio station as
long as rules and regulations are laid down which to all
intent and purpose are fair and not seen to suppress the
freedom of expression as enshrined in the constitution
and other articles that are to be found within the
African Union and the United Nations that give
individuals and organisations the right to have their
views heard. These rules must also be enforced in equal
measure to all such broadcasting outlets operating
within the country - political party or not. The content
is what matters and there are simple rules to make sound
radio broadcasting a pleasure to both listeners and
those who disseminate the information. How?
READ ON
And we have just seen
something on the internet which we found interesting
given the fact that the writer was complaining about the
repression of a free press.
 Are
we getting there? This is a part of what he wrote about
the press in his home country, Sierra Leone
"It is a fact that
every African journalist who practices strictly
according to the tenets of the journalism profession
will always be a danger to the government of his
country.
It is pathetic that though democracy and journalism
are two sides of the same coin for any national
development, African despotic leaders in particular
seem to ignore the fact and try to muzzle press
freedom in order to conceal their dirty rule. Any
journalist that attempts to expose their criminality
will face their wrath."
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Thursday March
19, 2009 -
Charges against persons thought to have been responsible
for the "riotous" conduct in recent days
Reports from Freetown say
that a number of people have been picked up by the
authorities and charged with various offences relating
to the violence in the capital over the weekend. It
would be recalled that this latest attack on the offices
of the opposition, the third since the voting into power
of the Ernest Bai Koroma government has left many asking
about the direction of democracy, the rule of law and
good governance with residents of the capital likening
the atmosphere to that of the lawlessness and
sheer terror that existed under AFRC/RUF Mark I headed
by one Johnny Paul Koroma.
MORE
...as the state struggles
for prosecution witnesses 8 CID officers brought in
What passes for a
"democratic" government (aka AFRC/RUF Mk11) under
President Ernest Bai Koroma appears to find itself in a
bind - getting prosecution witnesses in the case against
the 22 members of the opposition. These were actions
caught on camera with many witnesses around who could
testify as to what happened not only on the 13th March,
but more so on the 16th after the return of the "hale
and hearty" President from India.
MORE
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....and that
Ernest Bai Koroma speech - echoes of the Stevens/SI
Koroma/CA Kamara-Taylor "treason charge" days?
This is a reminder to the
Minister of Information and Broadcasting,
 the one and
only Alhaji I B Kargbo former school teacher and
journalist who has seen it all and therefore must know
better than his colleagues in AFRC Mark II. This piece
is to remind him, lest he's forgotten of what the APC
then tried to hang on one Commissioner of Police, a
certain Ezekiel Coker who unable to control rioting
school children asked his colleague in the army to bring
out troops to help get the situation under control. This
was seized upon and interpreted by eager beaver party
members that by this singular action, the poor man was
instigating, actually begging the army to take over the
country!!!!
MORE
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The Sierra Herald
continues to monitor the situation
in the only country that we can call "Land That We Love
Our Sierra Leone". We shall, using all means at our
disposal identify all the actors as well as all those
who have been fuelling hate and violence in the country.
And when we are done, we shall present the evidence to
the appropriate authorities where Serry Kamal's nolle
prosequi is irrelevant. We have been informed that
one so-called "ambassador" was heard at one APC meeting
saying "This is not the APC I know. All the SLPP leaders
should be arrested and charged with treason". Mr
Ambassador, the Sierra Herald is now on that
blood-soaked dinosaur's tail of yours. For only a
dinosaur and a violent thing like you can still refuse
to wake up and know that this is 2009 and not 1973 as
you prepared for those Bo elections.
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QUESTIONS
AND YET MORE QUESTIONS |
First for the mayor of Freetown.
 Forgive our asking "great one" Herbert George Williams -
are you really the brother of colleague Reginald George Williams
of the then good old and famous SLBS Newsroom? The son of one of
our greatest mothers in the teaching profession? I hope
not. But if you are - then you must hang your head in
shame and repent this Sunday morning the Ides of March
and shed your tears of shame and disgrace, asking God
for forgiveness. After which you may want to remind us
where P and T is located in the United Kingdom - the
organisation/company you are quoted as having
recommended your great clock and where it was bought.
And why should the unveiling of a mere public clock be
the source of such display of false grandeur and violent
political intrigue? Have we become a nation of idlers?
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And another....
 Please send to us
instances of when opposition party offices (UNPP, NUP,
APC etc etc) were attacked and blood allowed to flow
freely when the uncaring and inept SLPP was in power
under President Kabbah for nearly a decade.
Representatives of the international community had
better take note and not wait until things get out of
hand as gains made after a decade of war get eroded. It
is to be noted that when in 1996 we had a run-off
between Ahmad Tejan Kabbah and one Dr John Karefa-Smart,
the elder man willingly accepted that his junior brother
had won and chose to remain in the opposition, refusing
to have his party members accept any post from the SLPP.
No opposition party office was attacked. The same
happened in 2002 with the UN force firmly in place. No
opposition party office was attacked. And then came
2007. No sooner had NEC declared Ernest Bai Koroma the
winner when hell was visited upon the losing SLPP. It is
not to be forgotten also that in those attacks,
Nigerians also came in for the wrath of the winners.
Yes, the winners were actually attacking the losers!!!!
And Nigerians were targeted because they had helped kick
AFRC/RUF Mark One out and this EBK set-up (AFRC/RUF Mk
II) which passes for a government now believes it is its
duty to settle scores on behalf of the AFRC/RUF of
Johnny Paul Koroma.
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Yet still another -
 Have youths
failed to learn from the lessons of history - that they
can be used and discarded at will by politicians? Is
this how "man den nor gladie" becomes clay in the hands
of manipulators? Serry Kamal may use his nolle
prosequi to make all your actions a "buff case" but
out here justice awaits you. If you the young decide to
be used once more to ignite the flames of hate in the
mother country, upon your individual heads would it be.
This time it is not going to be "those who carry the
greatest responsibility" only, but those individuals who
carried out the carnage after a decade of war.
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And the last question on this
Sunday March 15, 2009 morning. Where were these
new-found gbatolites when the khaki boys of the NPRC
were asked that the APC and SLPP be banned from the
political life of the country? Where were they when
being APC was such an anathema that it took bold and
brave men like Eddie Turay to dare raise their heads
above the parapets during those days? Where were they,
we ask again? Look at them coming out of the woodwork,
out of the sewers, mouths foaming blood and gangrene
shouting APC APC APC. When the APC was in opposition and
UNAMSIL forces made sure the kind of violence we are now
witnessing was never dared - where were the scum who
would take us back to the violent past? Where were they?
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Friday March 13,
2009 -
Learning from the past....the limits of praise-singing
The recent past has seen a
flurry of what can only be
 described as a deluge of
materials emanating from "supporters" of the various
sides in the mother country mainly from the corners of
the ruling Ernest Bai Koroma-led APC (AFRC Mk II) and
the main opposition SLPP that has now got a Chairman in
the person of John Benjamin former NPRC junta
Secretary-General. While the Sierra Herald would doff
its hat to the rather lively debates on the various
internet outlets so readily available for readers to
make up their minds, caution would be advised here lest
at the end of the day "journalists" and writers of
various shades find themselves in a position where they
would wish what they had written would just go away and
not haunt them. As is happening with the
Expo Times
apologist team during junta rule. Which brings us to the
furore over that so-called
Dream Team publication
and our humble submission that such publications are not
new.
MORE
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Friday March 6,
2009 -
Tragedy in Zimbabwe as PM's wife is killed in road
accident
A sense of shock and
disbelief swept Zimbabwe today as reports emerged that
new Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
 had
been involved in a road accident that left him with yet
to be specified injuries. His wife of 30 years, Susan
died some say, on the way to hospital. They had six
children. The opposition MDC has called for an
independent investigation into the accident. However
there are reports doing the rounds that it could have
been a genuine accident in an area prone to such mishaps
with head-on collisions claiming many a life.
Conspiracy theories made initial presence felt
over the tragedy but
this quickly evaporated when reports started filtering
that even within MDC circles there's a hint that it
could have been an accident. Television pictures showed
a very contrite and clearly grief-stricken
President Mugabe holding the hands of his chief
political rival and doing his best to comfort him. It
was an emotional sight as the First Lady wiped tears
from her eyes as she viewed the injured Prime Minister
on that hospital bed. One report quoting the UK Foreign
Office says that he truck that collided with
Tsvangirai's car belongs to the United States
Development Agency and was carrying British and U.S.
aid. The British government said it believed the crash
to be a "genuine accident".
While wishing the Zimbabwean Prime Minister a speedy
recovery, the Sierra Herald mourns with all concerned
over the death of Susan Tsvangirai with prayers that the
Good Lord in His mercies will give her the rest only He
can offer to His flock in His repose. Farewell Susan.
Mrs Susan Tsvangirai is to be buried on Wednesday this
week - 11th March.
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Thursday March
5, 2009 - Rights
activists gunned down in Kenya. State extra-judicial
executions gone too far?
The
executive director of the Oscar foundation Executive
Director Oscar Kamau King’ara alongside a former
University of Nairobi student leader Paul Oulo 
have died after the two were gunned down this evening by
"unknown people" near the university of Nairobi hostels
on State House road. The killings come in the wake of
disruptions in commuter activities believed to have been
organised by an outlawed sect, the Mungiki. Oscar Kamau
King'ara foundation has been accused by the government
as being the front for the Mungiki and with government
spokesman
Dr
Mutua telling reporters on Thursday that the Oscar
Foundation had been identified as one of the
organisations funding activities of the outlawed group
with threats that the organisation would be deregistered
it is not surprising that
these murders have been laid at the feet of the
government. More so as the murdered foundation head
provided evidence to the UN Special Rapporteur on
extrajudicial killings Prof Philip Alston.
The Daily Nation has reported his call that
the government establishes
"independent
investigations into the killing of two prominent
activists.
The BBC reports that "A UN report last week
called for Kenya's top policeman and the attorney
general to resign for failing to address police
impunity."
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Wednesday March
4, 2009 -
Sudan's President Omar el Bashir now a wanted man as
ICC issues arrest warrant. The wheels of justice on
the move again.
He tried to bluff his
way through, pretended he cared less about the threat of
an arrest warrant nor the warrant itself, but behind the
scenes he used every opportunity to lobby that "this
sword of Damocles be taken away from me".
And recently fearing the worst, he even went as far as
to order the release of thousands of non-Muslim
prisoners. All did not work and today what he feared
most happened. The International Criminal Court, the ICC
slammed a warrant of arrest against President Omar el
Bashir of Sudan.
According to the BBC
Thousands of
protesters took to the streets of the capital,
Khartoum, after the announcement, amid fears of
unrest. The UN estimates 300,000 people have died in
Darfur's six-year conflict.
Millions more have been displaced.
Today's action has been
welcomed by human rights campaigners and should send a
message to the wicked that in today's world they just
cannot manipulate events to protect themselves from
justice. Indeed as Richard Dicker of Human Rights Watch
in
a press release
from the organisation has noted has noted
“With this arrest
warrant, the International Criminal Court has made
Omar al-Bashir a wanted man.....Not even Presidents
are guaranteed a free pass for horrific crimes"
This thing called
justice has a way of catching up with the
wicked.
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Monday March 2,
2009
- Guinea Bissau - President
Joao Bernardo
Vieira is murdered. A coup
in the making?
First news from the BBC indicated that there had
been
an explosion and that the Head of the Army had been
killed in that explosion. Even as watchers of this
trouble-hit and coup-prone country tried to figure out
what was going on came the sad news of the murder of the
President Vieira - a former guerrilla leader who staged
a coup, was ousted and got re-elected twice. The last
time some serious and disturbing news came regarding him
was after heavy firing directed at his official
residence by forces the authorities claimed were from
outside the country. According to the BBC, the
killing of Joao Bernardo Vieira is thought to have been
a revenge attack, after the army chief of staff died in
an explosion a few hours earlier. The army denies there
is a coup, and the capital Bissau is said to be quiet.
Many questions are now been raised about this latest
blot on the continent's attempt at democracy and with
Guinea Bissau now notorious as a haven for Latin
American drug traffickers using the country as a staging
post for the supply of cocaine to Europe and the US, one
school of thought is beginning to ask just how much
influence the drug traffickers will have in the type of
government that eventually emerges after this murder. In
fact, they would want to know if the Latin drug barons
had a hand in his murder!!! Is this the price for making
your country a narco-state?
THE GUARDIAN
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Tuesday
February 17, 2009 -
30 years hiding from
justice. At last former Khmer Rouge official Duch
in court to face justice in Cambodia.
You could have taken him
for just another good old man
trying to spend his twilight years in peace doing
whatever good his hands find. You would indeed be
forgiven for being deceived - for this man who appeared
in a UN-backed court in Cambodia is none other than the
notorious
Comrade Duch, real name
Kaing Guek Eav (age 66) the head of at least two
prison camps during the reign of the Khmer Rouge. He is
appearing before this court after he was indicted
sometime last year for allegedly overseeing the torture
and killing of more than 12,000 men, women and children.
Reports say that his appearance in court today is seen
as a long-awaited, but vital and important step towards
justice for the nearly two million people who died under
the Khmer Rouge rule from 1975 to 1979.
Kaing Guek Eav faces charges of crimes against humanity,
grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, in addition to
the offences of homicide and torture under Cambodian
criminal law. The court that is trying him is UN-backed
and has the rather unusual-sounding name -
the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia,
the ECCC.
This thing called justice....the wheels may seem to move
slowly, too slowly sometimes but they do get there.
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A crusader for
human rights goes to the great beyond
- Dr. Alison Des Forges is no
more
It is indeed with great sorrow and a sense of
incomparable
loss that the Sierra Herald has to report the passing
away of a great campaigner for the rights of the human
being Dr. Alison Des Forges. According to
Human Rights Watch, she was among the passengers
killed in the crash of Flight 3407 from Newark to
Buffalo on February 12, 2009. Des Forges, senior adviser
to Human Rights Watch's Africa division for almost two
decades, dedicated her life to working on Rwanda and was
the world's leading expert on the 1994 Rwanda genocide
and its aftermath. The Sierra Herald joins all those who
mourn and have expressed sorrow at this turn of events
and pray that she will find eternal rest for a job well
done while on Planet Earth. Farewell Dr Des Forges. You
have done your work for the rights of human beings.
Farewell.
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Saturday February 14, 2009.
Cotton Tree News
is 2 years today.
Oh for a breath of fresh
air - and we have it. CTN,
 Cotton
Tree News is 2 years today since it started broadcasting
the news, commentaries on social, political and economic
as well as other programmes that are of interest to
Sierra Leoneans and associates within and outside the
country. Their online media is truly a treasure trove
that throws a fresh and uninhibited spotlight on what
obtains on the ground as well as giving Sierra Leoneans
an opportunity to give their views on issues affecting
their lives. It is also refreshing to hear government
functionaries giving their side of the story in quality
audio to questions raised by programmes thus making it
all sound so professional, so balanced and so "this is
how it should be done".
Listening to their
weekly review programme on the internet brought out
something that the APC mouthpieces have so far failed to
highlight - that the Salary Increases for the President,
Ministers and others Document had now been shelved -
thanks to President Koroma insisting that he never knew
about it causing his then Secretary Sampha Koroma to
fall on his sword. (More
on that later)
The Sierra
Herald salutes Cotton Tree News on their second year in
operation today February 14, 2009.
Keep up the good work
and continue to be a beacon to those rabid outlets that
pass for mouthpieces of the Ernest Bai Koroma set-up aka
AFRC-Mk II.
Floreat CTN!!!!
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Thursday
February 12, 2009 -
Accountability - the basis of
democracy as UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown faces
grilling from Parliament.
UK Prime Minister Gordon
Brown faced a grilling today from a House of Parliament
Liaison Committee who wanted him to explain his role in
the events that have led to the present economic crisis.
Until he became Prime Minister in June 2007, succeeding
Tony Blair, Gordon Brown was the Labour government's
chief economics strategist as the Chancellor and under
him the country enjoyed a healthy growth until the
recent global downturn made every concerned economist
wanting to take a closer look at the drawing board.
Interest in today's grilling by Parliament, his second
was of particular interest as questions were raised over
the resignation of a top official in the FSA, the
Financial Services Authority a government think tank.
Sir James Crosby was said to have been appointed under
the watch of a certain Chancellor of the Exchequer, one
Gordon Brown.
MORE
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 ....and
in Sierra Leone law makers and public office holders
fail to declare assets. ACC Chief waves
the 2008 Anti Corruption Act.
The Head of Sierra Leone's
Anti Corruption Commission Abdul Tejan Cole has told the
BBC that despite
extending the deadline for the declaration of
assets, MPs as well as ministers and deputies have
so far failed to respect the provisions of the Anti
Corruption Act of 2008 which empowers the body to levy
fines as well as sending defaulting people to jail. In
an interview with the BBC's Umaru Fofanah Mr Tejan Cole
revealed that out of 128 MPs only 18 had complied while
out of 45 ministers and deputy ministers, only 15 have
fulfilled their obligations (7 ministers and 8 deputy
ministers). The Anti Corruption Commission head sounded
very disappointed at so many contravening the provisions
of the Act.
MORE
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Wednesday
February 11, 2009 -
History is made as Morgan Tsvangirai becomes Zimbabwe's
PM
History has been made in
Zimbabwe today with the swearing-in of the country's
chief opposition leader Morgan Richard Tsvangirai as
Prime Minister in a power-sharing deal that has been
floundering in rocky and somewhat treacherous waters.
Today's move now makes the opposition a part of what
could be a "unity government" with the opposition now a
part of the government and which critics say creates a
one-party state atmosphere that does not augur well for
democracy. A similar move in Kenya has seen President
Moi Kibaki and main opposition Raila Odinga forming a
new "all-inclusive" set-up that should represent the
wishes of the people of Zimbabwe. And nothing could be
further from the truth. Should this now be seen as a
blueprint for recalcitrant governments not wanting to
give up power at defeat at the polls? We hope not.
MORE
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February 4, 2009
- Another
colleague is targeted and murdered in Somalia
It is with deep regret and
great sadness that we have to report the death of
another journalist in Somalia. Said Tahlil Ahmed,
Director of Somalia's independent HornAfrik radio
station was killed by masked men while on his way to
attend a press conference in a group of fellow
journalists. One eyewitness told the
BBC a group of journalists were attacked on their way
to a press conference called by the hardline Islamist militia al-Shabab. However
a spokesman for the group denied any responsibility for the
killing. The manner of Said's murder clearly showed that his attackers were out
to get him and to make sure that he did not live to see
the next minute. When the first shots caught him and he
was lyiing on the ground bleeding, his assailants,
thought to be three in number and all masked then moved
in and fired several shots into his head. The Sierra
Herald calls on the international community to use all
the resources at its command to bring to book Said's
cowardly killers. Said Tahlil joins the
growing number of
journalists who have fallen in Somalia in the
course of their lawful duties.
MORE
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The
Press, Politics and that
"Dream Team" publication
A widely-circulated open
letter addressed to the Sierra Leone government
leadership as well as various media outlets in the
capital Freetown appears to be the main topic of
discussion in many a circle in Sierra Leone. The letter
signed by a group purporting to threaten the Ernest Bai
Koroma set-up with dire consequences lists a number of
things it would want to see investigated or reversed. A
press conference called by Information and Communication
minister I B Kargbo and reportedly addressed by Defence
minister Parlor Conteh and his Police counterpart Brima
Acha Kamara did it's best to justify whatever complaints
the letter's author/s came up with. And true to form,
some online outlets who see no wrong in the Freetown
set-up have already started fingering people they
believe could be behind the letter, demanding that fire
and brimstone be poured on the heads of the perceived
enemies. This letter was dated 1st January 2009, the day
Sierra Leone's Parliament went into a special session to
carry out an unconstitutional and disgraceful and
equally shameless act of making the country's chief
tormentor Libya's Colonel Khadaffi an "honorary
citizen". So why is the government, associated
gbatolites and unprincipled yaylibas reacting only now?
MORE
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Echoes
of AFRC/RUF junta rule as BBC journalist Umaru Fofanah
is threatened
BBC correspondent Umaru
Fofanah who reports for this international and
well-respected news organisation (BBC) from
Sierra Leone has circulated a letter of complaint to the
country's media watchdog, the Independent Media
Commission, the IMC. He has brought to the
attention of all and sundry threats alleged to have been broadcast by the
ruling APC radio "We Yone". And Umaru's "crime"? He
dared to report on the proceedings of a press conference
called by top guns within the same ruling APC party!!!
The Sierra Herald would urge the Ernest Bai Koroma
set-up to do all it can to get to the bottom of this as
this action contravenes the basis of democratic
principles the use of which saw the the opposition APC
wresting power from the SLPP at the 2007 polls. The
Sierra Herald would want to remind the authorities that
this move by the APC radio was a similar method employed during junta rule
in September 1997 to justify the hunt for former BBC
reporter Victor Sylver. Remember this from the junta-supporting Expo
Times newspaper going as far as to publish a so-called
"Letter to the Editor" justifying the manhunt?
MORE
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The Sierra Herald Reminder published in 2004 - equally relevant to the
new "demi-god" Ernest Bai Koroma who does no wrong in the eyes of the
gbatolites.
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....AND THE APOLOGIST WHO CONTINUES TO LIVE IN DENIAL AS HE MILKS
CHARITIES IN EUROPE AND WHEREVER ---- CONCEALING HIS TRUE ROLE IN
THE PERSECUTION OF JOURNALISTS DURING THE MURDEROUS JUNTA RULE
IN SIERRA LEONE BETWEEN MAY 1997 AND FEBRUARY 1998...... |
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......THE
SEARCH CONTINUES -
STILL LOOKING
FOR AN EDITOR....GET IN TOUCH PLEASE..... |
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"When those who are trained in our
noble profession, journalism that is, take a back seat, what do you
expect of journalism in the mother country? It gets picked up by
opportunistic, self-seeking and criminally-inclined vermin and sewer
rats who thinking that it is a free for all art would want to use it in
the furtherance of their evil machinations including continued support
for our tormentors, the AFRC/RUF coalition of evil otherwise known as
the beasts".
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WHY WE REFUSE TO BE PUT OFF -
SUPPORTERS OF THE BEASTS MUST COME OUT CLEAN |
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WE SHALL CONTINUE HUNTING
THEM UNTIL THE JUNTA SUPPORTERS TELL THE WORLD WHAT THEY DID IN PRIVATE
AND IN PUBLIC IN FURTHERING THE AGENDA OF THE AFRC/RUF COALITION OF EVIL
OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE BEASTS -
MORE
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November 25 - TIME FOR ACTION
AGAINST PERPETRATORS OF VIOLENCE AGAINST THE SIERRA
LEONEAN WOMAN AND CHILD
November 25 is a day
dedicated by the United Nations
 for
the world to focus on domestic violence against women
and we would want to add - all forms of violence against
women, be it physical, psychological or otherwise. And
indeed on this day, November 25, 2008 a court in the
United Kingdom
sentenced a father to life for the abuse of his own
daughters. Many in the UK on hearing of this story
of an abuse that lasted for well over 20 years were
appalled, stunned and at their wits ends to hear of such
an incidence happening right under the noses of law
enforcement authorities as well as those in the social
and medical services whose business it is to detect and
investigate such vile acts. Today Wednesday November 26,
the matter was raised in Prime Minister's Questions with
Prime Minister Gordon Brown promising a change in the
present laws if necessary. He added that people were
outraged by the unspeakable abuse perpetrated
against the women. His own daughters!!!!!
And in the mother
country Sierra Leone. Allow us to remind you of the
horrendous details of
rapes, murders and acts of torture our female folks
were subjected to at the hands of a sadistic group in
national army colours who had taken an oath to defend
and protect their victims, at the hands of rebels and
elements of the AFRC/RUF coalition of evil who used the
rape
and torture of Sierra Leone's women and girls as
instruments of war. Our thoughts go to the surviving
victims as we ask the question - is the Ernest Koroma
government having in it's top ranks in whatever capacity
those who carried out these acts against our women folk
as well as those who actively encouraged such acts? We
hope not.
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Exposing
our sins - Sorious Samura takes a look at donor funds
and their use
November 24, 2008 - Sierra Leonean journalist
and film maker our very own Sorious Samura has done it
again.
 Using
Uganda and his very own country, Sierra Leone as
examples he has once again, using all the right tools of
the trade exposed just how aid from the donor community
gets used with the bottom line being - those for whom
such aid is meant never get to benefit, not even from
the proverbial crumbs from the table of the feasters.
The BBC's Panorama programme
"Addicted to Aid" is just what has been long overdue
to show that the donor community could well be only
interested in statistics of aid and not how such
resources are administered. Sierra Leone's Minister of
Health Dr Soccoh Alex Kabia is honest enough to admit
that one of the problems he has to tackle is what looks
like the endemic corruption in a ministry that should be
concerned about the delivery of basic health services.
The focus on health could well be a tip of the iceberg
of corruption and outright thieving that could well be
replicated in many a government institution in the
mother country Sierra Leone. This is the shameful and
disgusting story of how UNICEF drugs funded by the tax
payers in developed countries such as the United Kingdom
and the United States enrich the pockets of the
heartless. This is the continuing story of how uncaring
governments operate in Sierra Leone and goes to the
heart of just how "pharmacies" have become profit-making
outlets for the wicked.
MORE
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Tuesday november
11, 2008
- The awful horror that is Jammeh's Gambia
If you are to believe the
imagery that was once and still is the selling point of
the Gambia
 with
pictures of smiling and friendly citizens giving you
that enchanting smile against a backdrop of sea and
gentle billows, you would be forgiven for thinking that
this could well be heaven this side of the continent.
Indeed the Tourism ministry website proclaims "Welcome
to The Gambia, the smiling coast of Africa".
However the harsh reality on the ground is that this
country now ruled by a despot who brooks no criticism
from real and perceived opponents has managed to secure
for itself all the characteristics of the awful horror -
a thing spawned from the very depths of all that is
abominable. The rights group, Amnesty International, AI
has today given an insight into the human rights
situation in the Gambia with a report that should get
the authorities take a
second good look at how the country is run and make good
on their terrible human rights record. And to think that
the African Commission on Human and People Rights is
headquartered in the capital Banjul calls into question
such a location where President Jammeh can claim that he
cures
afflictions like HIV/AIDS and his Health
minister a professional doctor can only nod in agreement
knowing the claims to be absurd, false and dangerous.
MORE
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Monday November
10, 2008 -
A sad day for
Africa - Mama Africa is no more, gone to the great
beyond
It is with great sadness,
genuine grief and sorrow that the Sierra Herald has to
put on these pages
news just received about the death of one of
Africa's greatest activists, daughters, mothers, grand
mothers and women freedom fighters - the one and only
Miriam Makeba.
She was 76.
Sierra Leoneans
would recall the visit of this strong-willed yet gentle
advocate for freedom for her people when she visited the
country after she moved to neighbouring Guinea with
husband US black activist, Stokely Carmichael.
May the Good Lord
grant her a peaceful repose.
Sleep well our
sister, mother, grandmother and fighter for the rights
of the oppressed.
Amen
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SLAUGHTER IN DRC
- TIME FOR THE WORLD TO CAPTURE AND CHARGE LAURENT
NKUNDA
Even as the international
community met in Nairobi to find a way of putting a halt
to the extreme violence and mayhem going on in the
Democratic Republic of Congo, the DRC, one voice appears
to be calling attention to its owner, the spoiler who
using whatever excuse continues to defy each and every
call that he reins in his men and give the people of the
DRC the peace desperately needed.
There he was calling
the shots in a sovereign state, deciding when a
ceasefire should hold and to be broken, playing god as
his troops carry out horrific deeds against the unarmed
civilian population. The main victims women. Like
Maskita, like Nkunda?
It's time for the
international community through the International
Criminal Court to charge Laurent Nkunda with among
others, war crimes, crimes against humanity, rape,
murder and arson.
It's time to call the
bluff and swagger of Laurent Nkunda so he can pay for
his crimes against innocent and unarmed civilians in the
Democratic Republic of Congo. Laurent Nkunda has to be
shown for what he really is - a mass murderer, a
monster!!!!!
MORE
THE GUARDIAN ON THE SYSTEMATIC MURDERS BY SUSPECTED
NKUNDA FORCES
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Wednesday
November 5, 2008 -
HISTORY IS MADE
AS OBAMA WINS THE WHITE HOUSE
Yes, this was history in
the making and the
Sierra Herald could not afford to miss any of it. Sierra
herald pundits and reporters kept their eyes and ears
glued to radio and television sets awaiting the final
outcome of what has become the "impossible" dream -
having a "coloured" person as President of the United
States of America. And after some nail-biting wait with
the results - Obama at 207 and McCain slowly
creeping up and although the predictions had it for him,
viewers and listeners were still wary of the Bradley
effect. That was until 4 am gmt. Suddenly the 207 on the
BBC TV site changed to 273 and the shouts went out.
270 were needed and here was 273 at 4am gmt with all the
results not yet out!!!!
The Sierra Herald
congratulates the people of the United States of America
for showing that unlike the recent past, it is they, the
voters who should and must decide on who leads them as
President. Not the courts. And the people have
delivered.
Congratulations too to
the Republicans for putting up a brave face and fight
despite the odds.
And even as the screens
show McCain at 145 and Obama at 306, then 333 Republican
candidate McCain is now delivering his concession
speech, showing once more the greatness of this thing
called true democracy when practised as it should!!!
The Sierra Herald now
awaits a new US foreign policy that should put people at
the heart of US decisions and a call that Africa would
not be given its due respect in the league of nations of
this world.
Congratulations
President Barrack Obama!!!!!!!!!
(PS - We have not heard
of any men in black Task Force!!!!!)
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VICTORY FOR
JUSTICE - CHARLES "CHUKIE" TAYLOR CONVICTED BY US COURT
IN LANDMARK CASE
He was untouchable, dished
out death, rape and torture at will sure in the
knowledge that with his father at the helm, he can get
away with anything.
 Not
so says the law as a US court has now convicted Charles
"Chukie" Taylor son of war crimes suspect former
Liberian President Charles Taylor of charges relating to
crimes committed while heading his father's Anti
Terrorist Unit, the ATU. The Miami Herald, a US-based
newspaper noted that "President Taylor's son, a US
citizen was convicted on Thursday of leading a campaign
of torture against people opposed to his father's rule".
Human Rights organisations have generally welcomed this
verdict which should now open the way for the trial of
many who have been linked to atrocities in other
countries and have now acquired citizenship in states
that do not know about their role in the encouragement
of human rights abuses. Elise Keppler senior counsel for
the rights group
Human Rights Watch has welcomed the verdict noting
"Today's verdict is
a milestone in ensuring justice for atrocities.
Never before has torture committed abroad been
prosecuted in the United States. We now look to the
Department of Justice to bring more cases like this
one."
The Sierra Herald would
urge all those who know about those now living abroad
and who actively encouraged the orgy of murder, rape,
torture and looting in Sierra Leone to contact us and/or
other rights groups to bring all such persons to
justice. Impunity should never be allowed to stand.
MORE
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WAKI
REPORT OUT - KOFI ANNAN URGES JUSTICE FOR VICTIMS -
"IMPUNITY MUST NOT BE ALLOWED TO STAND"
Former UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan has stated that a Special Tribunal must be set up by the Kenyan authorities
to try those most responsible for the violence in that
country in the wake of disputed elections.
The former UN chief also said the international
community expects the tribunal to be formed and start
operating within six months to end the
culture of impunity as well as gross violation of human
rights. Mr Annan said that the setting up of the
Tribunal would foster a new age of democracy,
accountability and the rule of law in Kenya. In an
exclusive interview on the BBC Network Africa programme
the former world body's chief scribe said
"The tendency
sometimes to protect perpetrators for the sake of
peace....forgive and
let's move on....doesn't help society. Impunity
should not be allowed to stand"
The Sierra Herald hopes
that Sierra Leone's Attorney-General and Minister of
Justice is following events in Kenya with a legal eye in
the hope that he can realise, before it is too late that
his continued protection of extremely violent alleged
murderers, rapists and human rights abusers may not put
him on a collision course with international justice.
MORE
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THE CHARLES "CHUCKIE" TAYLOR TRIAL BLOG |
BIRDS
OF A FEATHER AND UNREPENTANT PARTNERS IN A MASSIVE
COVER-UP OF OPERATIONS DURING JUNTA REPRESSION. GIBRIL
AND SEAGA AGAIN 
Gibril Gbanabome
Koroma, the unrepentant junta apologist is at it again,
giving his former boss and his ilk - beneficiaries
of junta goodies a new image, planting deliberate
falsehoods while shying away from their role in the
persecution of colleagues and others thought to be
against the Johnny Paul Koroma junta, the AFRC (May 25
1997-February 1998). The latest to be brought to the
attention of the Sierra Herald is a
Gibril report on a talk given by Dr Ibrahim Seaga
Shaw at a show organised by the National Union of
Journalists in the United Kingdom and of course, you can
safely guess just how tricky it was for him when he
was asked to talk on the topic (according to Gbanabome)
-
‘New Threats To Media Freedom-how we
fight back’. You guessed it. He was caught on the wrong
foot - for how can Ibrahim Seaga Shaw of Expo Times
under junta rule really talk about threats when he was a
part of the threat to journalists when the junta was
unleashing abuses and terror on colleagues? And their
stance as the obnoxious junta reigned terror on
perceived opponents? "We were advocating for a peaceful
resolution of the conflict". Well we'll continue to
remind them of articles they published that gave the
junta the oxygen of publicity during those horrendous
times for journalists including just how they damned
reports on junta atrocities by human rights
organisations.
The
Gibril report
The constitution as interpreted by
the Expo Times that recognises the obnoxious junta -
August 26, 1997
Expo
Times publication damning Amnesty International's report
on abuses under junta rule and justifying summary
executions
Rights group IFEX report on the
state of the media and Seaga Shaw's use of junta
resources to hit out at another colleague
The Expo Times publication
fingering BBC reporter Victor Sylver
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Thursday
December 18, 2008
-
Victory for the wheels of
justice - Chief genocide suspect is convicted and
sentenced to life in jail
The man (monster?) alleged
to be the kingpin behind "the efficient slaughter" of
some 800,000 Tutsis, moderate Hutus and those perceived
to be in opposition Theoneste Bagosora has finally met
the justice he'd been trying to run away from. He has
been convicted of among other crimes, genocide, crimes
against humanity
and sentenced him to life in
prison. The
UK-based Guardian newspaper reporting on the
verdict has this headline - Rwanda's Himmler: the man
behind the genocide
with the article by journalist Chris McGreal noting -
You
might call him the Heinrich Himmler
of
Rwanda.
Theoneste Bagosora was less
grand than the Nazi SS leader,
eschewing pitch-black uniforms and
grand military parades, but he
espoused an ideology as hateful and
ultimately as deadly as the man who
oversaw the Holocaust. And he was
just as organised.
So
powerful was this evil man that though
he had officially retired from the
Rwandan army as a colonel, he still
continued to wield command and control
positions taking upon himself the role
of master planner in bringing upon
hapless Rwandans who were subjects of
his ire and hatred the apocalypse he had
promised when he stormed out of a peace
meeting between Tutsi and Hutu elements.
His
conviction by the International Criminal
Tribunal for Rwanda, the ICTR has been
generally welcomed by human rights
organisations as well as survivors some
of whom have expressed regret that their
tormentor had recourse to justice in the
courts while his victims never stood a
chance as they were hacked, shot and
bludgeoned to death in an orgy of
bloodletting that left so many dead,
wounded, traumatised, raped and
dispossessed.
The
Sierra Herald welcomes this verdict
hoping that one day all the main actors
behind the atrocities in Sierra Leone
will face justice - be they
"journalists" who gave the oxygen of
publicity to the AFRC/RUF junta in
Sierra Leone from May 1997 to February
1998 or those who wielded the machetes,
raped our women and girl-folks and
enslaved those they had drugged.
His
lawyers say they will appeal the
verdict.
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That shoe attack - journalism gone
mad or is there a message?
The recent incident shown on the
world's media - of a journalist throwing his shoes at US
President George Bush while on a visit to Iraq raises a
number of questions and puts member of the Fourth
estate, real journalists we mean smack in the centre of the
spotlight. And isn't it strange to notice that certain
online outlets claiming to be managed by "journalists"
have still not thought it fit to comment? Is that action
by somebody passing himself off as a journalist
stretching matters beyond the remit and duty of a
journalist? The Sierra Herald believes that whatever a
journalist's experiences could be the display by that
journalist, Muntadhar al-Zaidi
throwing shoes at a visiting US President at a meeting
he had attended as a member of the Fourth Estate does
not augur well for the profession as governments and
other institutions that have to be held accountable
would use this and any other excuse to selectively bar
journalists they believe would be asking questions they
would not feel comfortable with. And using journalism as
a cover for other deeds is nothing new as was witnessed
in the mother country when certain journalists were
targeted by the junta (May 25, 1997-February 1998) by
their own "colleagues".
MORE
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DECEMBER 10 -
HUMAN RIGHTS DAY - A TIME TO REMEMBER
Today December 10 2008 is
the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights. This year's theme is poignant -
“Dignity
and justice for all of us" and should be a
time to look back at how the mother country Sierra Leone
has fared and is doing with regards to respecting,
protecting and defending the rights of everyone within
the borders of Sierra Leone and as Article 2 emphasises
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms
set forth in this Declaration, without distinction
of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language,
religion, political or other opinion, national or
social origin, property, birth or other status.
And the question that
readily comes to mind would be - how many Sierra
Leoneans really know their rights under the constitution
and do we have a government/structures in place that
respect the human rights of Sierra Leoneans in a country
where money, influence and political status trample the
rights of others. Indeed as UN Chief Scribe Ban Ki-Moon
has noted on this day.
It is our duty to ensure that these rights are a
living reality -- that they are known, understood
and enjoyed by everyone, everywhere. It is often
those who most need their human rights protected,
who also need to be informed that the Declaration
exists -- and that it exists for them
And as Sierra Leoneans
reflect on this, the press must take a stand to expose
all cases, allegations and attempts at trampling the
rights of Sierra Leoneans in their own God-given
country. Now that there is a new executive in power, the
professional body SLAJ must make it it's duty to clearly
identify who journalists are as distinct from writers of
sorts lest the profession gets dragged into the sewers
of infamy.
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SLAJ
ELECTIONS 2008 AND
Umaru Fofanah
EMERGES AS THE NEW HEAD OF THE PROFESSIONAL ORGANISATION
WITH A CLEAN SWEEP ACROSS THE BOARD
Saturday November 29 was a
very important day in the calendar of journalists as
members assembled to choose officers that should lead as
well as run the affairs of the august body, the Sierra
Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ).
Campaigning was said to
have been intense with candidates going all out to show
just what they had to offer and wherever and whenever
possible, candidates were on hand for public debates,
selling their plans for the organisation as well as what
should make them the preferred candidate. And eyes were
on the top seat and who would occupy it with Standard
Times newspaper editor Philip Neville, veteran newspaper
journalist Ibrahim Karim-Sei and veteran journalist as
well as the BBC's correspondent Umaru Fofanah vying for
the top job.
At the close of
counting and final results, Umaru emerged by a clear
lead as the winner thereby taking on the challenging
task of bringing some amount of sanity, credibility as
well as respectability to the Fourth Estate. It will not
be an easy task, but there's always a start and one of
them should be making sure that all those who carry the
tag "journalist" are just what they are and fit for
purpose.
His sweep of the board in
all regions of the country shows SLAJ do have a
man for all the regions and should strengthen Umaru's
team as they begin the new journey.
While wishing the
winning team headed by Umaru all the best, our
commiserations go to all who lost bearing in mind that
they should be holding their heads high for taking part
in a worthy exercise. Indeed there are no losers but
winners all round with those not making it having a deep
well of knowledge that can be used by the new team in
building up the image of our very own SLAJ.
Well done!!!!
NB: There should not be
any hint of animosity nor what we call "bad blood"
between Umaru and Philip after these elections. The
Sierra Herald sees everyone using his experiences in the
field as well as ability and skills in helping make SLAJ
rise to even greater heights.
Umaru and
Philip - remember you both suffered under the
jackboots of the beasts during those dark days - so put
away your differences and work for an independent and
worthy SLAJ - the kind of organisation that stood up to
the beasts during junta rule in
Sierra Leone's darkest hours!!!!!
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November 26, 2008
- INQUEST INTO DEATH OF BBC REPORTER ENDS -
KATE PEYTON WAS UNLAWFULLY KILLED IN MOGADISHU
An inquest into the death of a BBC
Producer, Kate Peyton
in Mogadishu has concluded she was killed unlawfully with observations
by the Coroner Peter Dean that lessons must be learnt by the BBC and
other media outlets on the deployment of reporters in dangerous areas.
According to the BBC, Miss Peyton, who
was shot dead in Mogadishu in 2005, was one of the BBC's most
experienced producers in Africa. She had worked with the BBC since 1993,
first joining as a radio reporter on Merseyside and then moving to
Manchester in 1995 to become a regional television reporter. She moved
to Johannesburg in 2001 to work on the BBC's world planning desk and in
the following years covered stories including the Aids crisis, floods in
Mozambique and the humanitarian crisis in Darfur.
However details emerging at the inquest
showed a link between a producer wanting her contract renewed and going
on what appeared to be a dangerous assignment to prove to her bosses
that she was committed to the job. According to
press reports (also
see the Guardian) the coroner said he wanted a
transcript of the inquest sent to the BBC and felt it would be "remiss"
if he did not give the BBC and other organisations a chance to learn
lessons from the inquest.
"This is not a criticism," he added.
"We all learn from mistakes. "I find no fault in the risk assessment
process. It was a caring and careful risk assessment."
Anthony Hudson, barrister for the BBC,
told the coroner that the corporation had "listened carefully" to
observations he had made during the inquest.
After the
hearing, the Peyton family said in a
statement: "We are gratified that after
nearly four years, the coroner has been
able to offer some advice as to how the
BBC might improve its treatment of
journalists asked to undertake dangerous
assignments."
Peyton's
sister Rebecca added: "We have found it
baffling, depressing and exhausting that
the BBC has put so much energy and
considerable financial resources on
this.
"God
knows how much taxpayers' money it has
cost. I think there certainly are
lessons to be learned and we very much
hope that the BBC will learn them.
"We've had such a battle with the BBC to
get all this information into the open."
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| LAURENT NKUNDA MUST
BE MADE TO ACCOUNT - WAR CRIMES AND CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY CHARGES NOW
It is apparent that one move that would help ease
the violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the DRC would be the resolve
of the international community to carefully remove the main evil characters and
this includes the man who says he's fighting in the DRC to save Tutsis. Laurent
Nkunda must be arrested using whatever means necessary to bring him to book. His
continued excuse that he was in the DRC with armed insurgents because he wanted
to protect Tutsis in the DRC as well as to stop cross border incursions by the Interahamwe
into Rwanda is beginning to sound hollow if not cynical.
One would argue
that Joseph Kabila should have reined in the group that has been blamed for the
1994 genocide in Rwanda and that such a group with a track record of cruelty,
murder, rape and all manner of human rights violations must never be allowed to
roam freely in the DRC armed to the teeth and free to put whoever they saw
desire to the sword. This certainly does not give Laurent Nkunda the license to
murder, rape and abuse the rights of civilians living in their own God-given
country as was seen in the recent massacre of civilians in Kiwanja whose only
crime, it seems was for them to have been found trying to be safe from the
murder and mayhem going all around them....and these were unarmed civilians!!!!
The UK Daily Mail reports that journalist
Alfred Ndjondjo Victwahiki Munyamariza 25,
was forced out of his house and shot in the head in his garden in plain view of
his wife and toddler daughter. The AFRC/RUF pattern all over again.
Indeed it is
worth noting that the DRC government had at one-time issued an arrest warrant
for Laurent Nkunda - a move that could not be enforced because within the DRC
itself, militias thought to be allied with government forces were engaged in
similar acts and as always, against the unarmed civilian population.
This
reminder is from the rights group Human Rights Watch
article of 2006.
Joseph Kabila
too must share the blame for not calling for help in dealing with an armed and
genocide-inclined group that helped bring his father Laurent to power. The
leaders of the
Interahamwe must be
made to account too with those accused of individual acts of rape and murder
brought to justice.
Impunity must
never be allowed to stand.
DENIALS OF HUMAN
RIGHTS ABUSES IN SIERRA LEONE - THE GIBRIL GBANABOME KOROMA UNREPENTANT
AFRC/RUF JUNTA APOLOGISTS - THEIR LATEST LIE
 Just as the Holocaust deniers want
to rewrite history and say that Nazi Death and Concentration
Camps were a World War II myth,
 so
too are apologists for the butchers during junta rule between
May 1997 and February 1998 and the January 6, 1999 massacres
want the world to believe that nothing of the sort occurred in
Sierra Leone. Even though Gibril Gbanabome Koroma, could no
doubt have clearly omitted the role of his newspaper the Expo
Times in justifying the atrocities of the junta as he
deceived the Canadian immigration authorities on why he wants
protection from Lt General Dallaire's country, it is
unbelievable almost to the point of the absurd that he would
continue to abuse this welcome and protection from Canada by
re-inventing his type who supported the junta during Sierra
Leone's trying times.
His latest is making a
journalist out of one Sullay Adekulay
(on his unapologetic and
unrepentant online junta machine) who was never known in
journalistic circles in Sierra Leone, who was never a member of
the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists, SLAJ as claimed by
his mentor Sheka Tarawallie and who has managed like Tarawallie,
Seaga Shaw and his brother to deceive their way into an
organisation that caters for the protection of journalists
fleeing prosecution, the EJN thus putting the organisation's
good name and noble intentions into disrepute.
In fact what is even more
worrying is that this so-called creation of Gibril Gbanabome
Koroma when challenged at the EJN meeting in 2007 denied that he
had ever claimed to be journalist!!!! His performance at that
meeting then clearly demonstrated that he was brought into EJN
as part of the Seaga Shaw-Gbanabome-Sheka Tarawallie axis who
harassed all those opposing the unrecognised (both nationally
and internationally) repressive, brutal and murderous AFRC/RUF
junta.
Indeed! It is like allowing
Khieu Samphan (PhD from France) to seat on a board that
seeks to protect victims of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia!!!!
It is such
blatant hoodwinking, cover up and outright falsehood that create
problems for genuine asylum seekers wanting to avail themselves
of the protection offered by countries like the United Kingdom.
MORE
MAY 3 - WORLD PRESS FREEDOM
DAY - 2008
Supporters of human rights
abusers, rapists and murderers may try to rewrite history,
distort events of what really happened in the mother country
Sierra Leone during those turbulent and terrible years
especially under the jackboots of the beasts (read AFRC/RUF
junta) during their seizure of power from May 29, 1997 to
February 1998, but they will never succeed as survivors will
always be there to tell and write about the truth. From the
summary executions of civilians (eg 6 innocent civilians who
were taken to Cockerill for summary execution because they had
travelled from Lungi to Freetown by boat. Lungi was then
regarded as enemy territory because of the junta belief that
their gadfly 98.1 FM was located there). The January 6, 1999 and
the Mabaylla massacres of September 1997 cap it all.
NEVER AGAIN, WE SAY NEVER AGAIN
-
CAN WE ALLOW
JOURNALISTS USING THEIR CONNECTIONS WITH WHATEVER JUNTA OR
GOVERNMENT TO FINGER PERCEIVED OPPONENTS FOR HARASSMENT, TORTURE
AND MURDER.
WE SAY, NEVER AGAIN
And just for the records, we
reproduce 2 items published by Expo Times during junta rule.
Kindly note that the junta was never recognised by the
international community, nor by the vast majority of Sierra Leoneans who escaped from their clutches using whatever means.
What we have reproduced is a part of the Expo Times newspaper
campaign to keep the junta in power at whatever cost.
1.
Condemning rights group Amnesty
International for exposing abuses by the junta (The Expo
Times justifying summary executions, among others.)
2.
Basking in the limelight of
the junta excesses (Please note the due recognition of the
illegal, brutal, murderous and human rights abusing regime by
the Expo Times.)
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September 4, 2007
Ten
years ago today, residents in the capital Freetown witnessed the extent
to which desperate men and women would go to maintain any form of grip
on power. For on this day ten years ago, the world became very much
aware of what beasts in human form are capable of doing to their fellow
human beings as the horrors of the Mabaylla massacre were laid bare.
The Johnny Paul junta claimed it was the
handiwork of ECOMOG forces who had heavy guns at Lungi across the
estuary. The villain even went as far as to
send off something to the
regional body, ECOWAS to complain stating "the Nigerians are actively
and deliberately encouraging and orchestrating a genocidal civil war".
Not satisfied with this and knowing he
could not explain why RPG (rocket-propelled grenade) fragments as well
as bullet and shell casings were to be found in the general area of the
attack on civilians, Johnny Paul Koroma became a "preacher man"
overnight with
a so-termed "prayer"
concocted by his gbatolites who saw no wrong in the AFRC/RUF coalition
of evil. What he and others in the know forgot and
could have brushed aside was the rather harmless but clearly deep
warning that God is not fooled and there is always a price to be paid
for using His name in vain!!!!
Residents were not fooled. They knew who
carried out the murders.
They
knew that those spent shell casings that were to be found along Goderich
Street and other areas were not from ECOMOG guns!!!! Anyone who dared to openly state that the
junta was responsible or even dared to mention that they did not believe
the junta version were shot out of hand as a warning to others as those
who survived the initial blasts at Mabaylla discovered. ......and in all this, junta journalists in
the pay of the coalition of evil helped spread the junta propaganda of
death - even going the distance in fingering colleagues thought to be
against the murderous regime, especially those believed to have had
doubts over the junta version!!!!
MORE............AND
EVEN MORE
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