From: barnhart@gagme.chi.il.us (Mr Aaron Barnhart)
Subject: IPS: SIERRA LEONE: PANIC GRIPS DIAMOND-RICH DISTRICT
Originator: barnhart@gagme
Organization: Evanston, Illinois
Date: Fri, 9 Oct 1992 01:38:13 GMT

Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all rights reserved.  Permission to re-
print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Title: SIERRA LEONE: PANIC GRIPS DIAMOND-RICH DISTRICT


an inter press service feature

by lansana fofana

koidu, sierra leone, oct 1 ( ips) -- at 22.oo hours a burst
of gunfire warns residents of koidu town to stay indoors.

the shots continue several hours later. it is sunday, some
people dive under the beds. some tune in the radio for news.
nothing coming. the rebels have taken koidu, many assume.

clearly, gandorhun, some 30 kms from koidu, the capital of
sierra leone's diamond-rich district of kono, has fallen to
rebels of the revolutionary united front (ruf) who have been
fighting in the country's southern and eastegn districts since
march 1992.

infact, this is the second time the town has been taken by
the ruf. the first time was jun. 5, 1991.

officials of the ruling military council say government
forces withdrew from gandorhun ''for tactical reasons''. but
koidu residents, who are next door and fall in the firing line,
are not convinced.

in the morning, people start to pack their luggage. there
is a large community of lebanese in kono, mainly involved in
diamond mining amd export. they meet im central koidu to discuss
the urgency of the situation.

some of the lebanese quickly pack up and flee to freetown,
the sierra leone capital. already, reports say their gem stones
and hard currency have all been siphoned off to safe vaults
outside the country.

the people of koidu have no time for rest. armed robberies
in the night are almost a normal ingredient of life for
residents.

a european diamond magnate gets shot by night robbers
reportedly dressed in military combat fatigues. his home is
ransacked and valuables, including diamonds and foreign
currency, are stolen.

across the township, shops remain closed, taxis are off the
streets and vigilantes and volunteers arm themselves with
machetes and knives in defence of the township.

come monday and troops reinforcement, including guineans,
drive into koidu town from the daru military base. township
residents pour into the streets in solidarity with the incoming
combatants. (more/ips)


sierra leone: panic (2)

small relief. more troops keep pouring in throughout tuesday
and wednesday. with high military presence, some residents think
twice and decline to flee, with hopes of a return of normal life
in koidu if gandorhun is retaken.

not so for all residents. many want an immediate counter-
offensive to flush out the rebels. komo is clearly strategic.
many believe the taking of the district will give the rebels an
upper hand.

the military police often launch campaigns to track down
deserting combatants and soldiers commandeer vihicles and take
to the battlefront. all is set for this great offensive, the
''grandmother of all battles'', according to private s. kamara.

''we are behind you'', the president of the lebanese
community in komo, kassim basma, told the under-secretary for
defence, lt komba mondeh. ''i have advised my people to stay and
give the government all our support''.

a principal of a secondary school in koidu says parents are
threatening to withdraw their children from school.

the resident secretary of the ruling military council for the
eastern region, lt tom nyuma, told ips thursday his troops will
recapture gandorhun ''before long''.

the residents of the area have been cooperating with the
soldiers, thus boosting the morale of the fighters.

meanwhile, some observers, fearing the uncontrollable spread
of the war, have been suggesting dialogue with the guf, which is
believed to be backeb by charles taylor's national patriotic
front of liberia (npfl).

this is yet to be endorsed by the military council. a
government soldiers, recuperating at koidu government hospital,
told ips: ''i saw the rebels launching rpgs (rocket-propelled
grenades), 30 calibres and mortars captured from ecomog soldiers
in liberia. i even believe they are wearing ecomog uniforms''.

ecomog is the 7,000-strong peacekeeping force of the economic
community of west african states (ecowas) stationed in
war-torn liberia.

whether or not this is true, it points to the protraction of
a sub-regional rebellion which broke out in liberia three years
ago and is fast spreading across the west africa sub-region.
(end/ips/lf/apc/92)
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