January 6, 2021
By: Mohamed Kargbo
The Flying Star Amputee Football Association through its Secretary General, Chernor Shaw has on the 6th January called on the Government of Sierra Leone to make this day a National Holiday. He made this statement during the “Good Morning Salon program on Radio Democracy 98.1 FM “.
He says the idea behind the proposition is for Sierra Leoneans to remember those who died at that turbulent time.
“This day is very important to us as a people as many people have started to forget about the 11 years civil war that happened in Sierra Leone. That was the day we saw the greatest atrocities…people were killed mercilessly, body parts amputated, properties destroyed, rebels found pleasures in slitting open the bellies of pregnant women… women and girls were raped…”
Shaw argues that even though the war officially ended in 2002 there is need to have a yearly moment of reflection on those ugly experiences.
The Secretary General said, if the Government of Sierra Leone grants their request, they are ready to collaborate with other stakeholders in coming out with plan in observing the day annually.
He spoke about the current status of war wounded persons saying: “Our people are still begging, we are not seeing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommendations implemented, especially the free health care delivery to us. So if Government grants us the right to rally support on January 6, we can derive meaningful benefits to empower our members…”
According to Frank Kargbo who happened to be the Executive Secretary of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Sierra Leone, “the judiciary, local chiefs, and many others were instigated the situation that sparked the war. He said before the war, government was centralized, and corruption was legitimized like other human rights abuses and violations.
Hallmarks of the war included forced recruitment of child soldiers by the Revolutionary United Front and the atrocious conduct of all warring factions was well documented in the TRC report.
Yet no precise number of abducted children has been confirmed, and estimated figures vary. For instance, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) estimated that 10,000 children were involved in various fighting forces, and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) indicated that 6,000 children were forced into violence over the years according to the TRC report.
