1998 - A Year of Atrocities

Introduction

During 1998 the scale of atrocities against civilians in Sierra Leone has reached unprecedented levels. Several thousand unarmed civilians, including many women and children, have been deliberately and arbitrarily killed and mutilated by forces of the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) and the armed opposition Revolutionary Front (RUF) since February 1998. These atrocities are continuing.

The AFRC, which seized power in a military coup in May 1997 and which was joined by the RUF, was deposed in February 1998 by West African forces deployed in Sierra Leone. The government of President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, which had been elected in 1996, returned to Freetown in March 1998. Although security has since returned to the capital, Freetown, and much of the south of the country, the scale of human rights abuses committed by AFRC and RUF forces in the north and east of the country has escalated and taken on grotesque forms. From April 1998 reports emerged of civilians suffering mutilations such as crude amputations of their feet, hands, arms, lips or ears. Women and girls have been systematically raped. Hundreds of civilians, in particular children and young men and women, have been abducted by rebel forces. The violence has resulted in hundreds of thousands of Sierra Leoneans fleeing to neighbouring Guinea and Liberia or becoming internally displaced within Sierra Leone. AFRC and RUF forces must respect international humanitarian law and immediately end the gross human rights abuses which they are perpetrating against unarmed civilians.

The international community, including the United Nations (UN), the Organization of African Unity (OAU), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Commonwealth and the European Union (EU), has devoted considerable attention and effort to resolving the political crisis in Sierra Leone and to restoring the government of President Kabbah. It has since repeatedly condemned the atrocities being committed by AFRC and RUF forces. The international community has committed itself to bringing peace and security to Sierra Leone and also to assisting in its reconstruction and rehabilitation. This commitment must include initiatives to help end the gross human rights abuses being perpetrated by AFRC and RUF forces, to prevent further abuses and also to lay solid foundations for the respect and protection of human rights in the future.

The challenges facing Sierra Leone in confronting the widespread and gross human rights abuses which have continued and worsened since May 1997 are difficult and daunting. Sierra Leone's social and economic infrastructure needs to be rebuilt. Its institutions, such as the legal and judicial systems and the army and police, need to be restructured and reinforced in order to ensure protection of human rights. Civil society, including the human rights community, has a crucial role to play. The government of Sierra Leone has to respond to these challenges in a way that ensures that the fundamental human rights of all those in Sierra Leone are protected.

West African forces and a civilian militia who are fighting rebel forces must also respect international humanitarian and human rights law. Forces of the civilian militia have been responsible for extrajudicial executions, torture and ill-treatment, although on a far lesser scale than rebel forces. West African forces have in some cases illegally detained civilians and tortured and ill-treated captured combatants. Concerns have also been expressed about the protection of non-combatants during military operations.

Accountability for the gross human rights abuses which have occurred in Sierra Leone must be established. National reconciliation within Sierra Leone will not be possible if there is impunity for those who have perpetrated human rights abuses. All those charged in connection with the military coup in May 1997 and the period of AFRC rule must be granted trials which conform to international standards of fairness. Recourse to the death penalty will not contribute to the process of reconciliation.

The international community should continue to assist Sierra Leone to respond effectively to the challenges which it faces in ensuring the long-term protection and respect of human rights in Sierra Leone.

The political context

On 25 May 1997 the government of President Kabbah was overthrown in a military coup and the military formed the AFRC, headed by Major Johnny Paul Koroma. President Kabbah had come to power in March 1996 following parliamentary and presidential elections, ending four years of military rule. The AFRC claimed that they had overthrown the government because it had failed to consolidate peace in Sierra Leone following a peace agreement concluded in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, in November 1996 between the government and the RUF to end the internal armed conflict which began in 1991. It also claimed that the government was undemocratic and that it had promoted tribalism by appointing people mainly from the Mende ethnic group from the south and the east to prominent government positions. A major grievance was the perceived lack of resources accorded by the government to the Sierra Leone armed forces and a favouring of a civilian militia composed of traditional hunters of the Mende ethnic group, known as kamajors, which supported the government in the conflict against the RUF. These accusations were strongly denied by President Kabbah, members of his government and their supporters. The AFRC also called for the release and return of the RUF's leader, Foday Sankoh, in detention in Nigeria.

Foday Sankoh remained held, effectively under house arrest, in Abuja, Nigeria. He had been detained by Nigerian authorities on arrival in Nigeria in March 1997, apparently for possession of arms and ammunition. From Nigeria, Foday Sankoh announced his support for the military coup. The AFRC was subsequently joined by RUF forces who arrived in large numbers in Freetown. Foday Sankoh was named as Vice-Chairman of the AFRC and prominent members of the RUF were appointed to the AFRC's ruling council.

The overthrow of President Kabbah was condemned by the international community which demanded the return of constitutional order to Sierra Leone. Negotiations by the international community with the AFRC faltered, a global economic embargo was imposed and military intervention to restore the government of President Kabbah was seriously considered by countries in the region if dialogue and sanctions failed. Following the military coup the OAU gave a mandate to ECOWAS to take necessary action to restore legality and constitutionality to Sierra Leone and subsequently provided strong support for ECOWAS's initiatives to bring peace, security and stability to Sierra Leone. The UN Security Council also expressed its full support for the efforts of ECOWAS to resolve the political crisis in Sierra Leone.

On 23 October 1997 the AFRC signed an agreement in Conakry, in neighbouring Guinea, with representatives of five other West African governments to return power to President Kabbah by 22 April 1998. Implementation of this agreement, however, which included cessation of hostilities, disarmament and demobilization, encountered serious set-backs. Fighting between AFRC and RUF forces on the one hand and the kamajors on the other intensified.

In early February 1998, following attacks on its bases outside Freetown, West African forces deployed in Sierra Leone, the ECOWAS Cease-fire Monitoring Group (ECOMOG)[1], launched an offensive on Freetown. Chaos and violence ensued the following week during which there were many civilian casualties. Civilians were killed by AFRC and RUF forces who also looted and destroyed their homes. Reports described soldiers and RUF forces, also joined by Liberian fighters, going from house to house of those they suspected of opposing them and deliberately and arbitrarily killing them. Others died as a result of shelling both by ECOMOG and also AFRC and RUF forces. While fighting continued in Freetown, civilians in Southern and Eastern Provinces were facing an equally desperate situation as they were caught in fighting between the kamajors and AFRC and RUF forces. Thousands of people, including women and children, fled into neighbouring Liberia to escape. The humanitarian situation in Sierra Leone, already critical, deteriorated still further with the increase in hostilities.

Although after the ECOMOG intervention and the return of President Kabbah's government comparative calm and the rule of law returned to Freetown and Southern Province, armed confrontation has continued throughout the following months in Northern and Eastern Provinces as ECOMOG forces have fought to defeat remaining rebel forces. Appalling atrocities have been committed against civilians as conflict has continued. Major Johnny Paul Koroma and other prominent members of the AFRC and the RUF, including Sam Bockarie, known as Mosquito, remained with rebel forces in the north and east of the country.

The government of Sierra Leone has adopted a comprehensive program for disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of former combatants which contains clearly defined roles for ECOMOG and the UN Observer Mission in Sierra Leone (UNOMSIL), which was established by the UN Security Council in July 1998. The program is aimed at some 33,000 former combatants of the disbanded national army, the RUF and the civilian militia, known as the Civil Defence Forces (CDF). The government has expressed a particular commitment to demobilizing some 2,500 child soldiers who have fought in the internal armed conflict. Funding was expected from international financial institutions, several UN agencies and important donor nations such as the United States and the United Kingdom. As violence has escalated and offensives by ECOMOG and CDF against rebel forces have continued, however, effective implementation of this program has been prevented.

On 25 July 1998 Foday Sankoh was released by the Nigerian government into the custody of the Sierra Leonean authorities. He appeared in a television interview calling on his fighters to end atrocities against civilians and to surrender to either ECOMOG or UNOMSIL. The government subsequently reiterated a deadline of 8 August 1998 for an amnesty for rebel forces but there was no significant response. Members of the RUF were subsequently reported as claiming that Foday Sankoh had made these statements under duress and continued to demand his release. The RUF threatened to continue their campaign of violence against civilians if he remained in detention. The government announced its intention to prosecute Foday Sankoh for crimes, including gross human rights abuses, committed during Sierra Leone's internal armed conflict. He was brought to trial on 24 September 1998 and convicted and sentenced to death the following month. This prompted further attacks by rebel forces against unarmed civilians in retaliation.

Also in September 1998 rebel forces called on the government to begin negotiations for peace through the UN, the OAU and the Commonwealth Secretariat, the moral guarantors of the peace agreement signed in Abidjan. The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group on the Harare Declaration (CMAG)[2] on 9 October 1998 called on rebel forces to make an immediate statement accepting the following terms:the recognition of the legitimacy and authority of the government;an unconditional and indefinite cessation of all hostilities;and a willingness to enter into talks to bring about an immediate end to the conflict. At the same time CMAG expressed its grave concern about the humanitarian situation in Sierra Leone, in particular the continuing atrocities by rebel forces, which it condemned unreservedly. The government also responded to the call by rebel forces for negotiations by saying that they should lay down their arms and surrender to UNOMSIL military observers.

President Kabbah repeated calls for rebel forces to surrender on 19 October 1998 and renewed an offer of amnesty for those surrendering. It appeared that the amnesty implied that those surrendering who had not been responsible for crimes would be included in the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration process whereas those who were accused of criminal offences would prosecuted with due process of the law. There was, however, no significant increase in the number of those surrendering.

The West Africa sub-region

Liberia was widely reported to be providing combatants, arms and ammunition to AFRC and RUF forces in Sierra Leone. Liberian fighters were present in Freetown at the time of the ECOMOG intervention and survivors of the gross human rights abuses which followed stated that the armed groups which had attacked them had included Liberians.

In the Vahun and Kolahun areas of Lofa Country in northwestern Liberia, where tens of thousands of Sierra Leonean refugees had fled escalating fighting in eastern Sierra Leone, cooperation between rebel forces and the Liberian military was reported to be witnessed regularly. The RUF second-in-command, Sam Bockarie, was reported to have been in direct contact with Liberian military forces and to have regularly crossed the border into Liberia.

On 12 May 1998 a statement by the United States Department of State referred to "distressing rumours that RUF and AFRC forces were being assisted in their campaign of terror by other governments. Although we cannot confirm these rumours, it should be clear that any government or other party which is found to be helping the rebels to prolong the tragedy in Sierra Leone will face the strongest condemnation of the United States and the international community. "

On 20 May 1998 the President of the UN Security Council condemned as gross violations of international humanitarian law the atrocities carried out against the civilian population, particularly women and children, by the deposed AFRC and RUF, including widespread rape, mutilation and killings, and called for an immediate end to continuing violence against civilians. The Security Council also expressed grave concern about reports of military support being provided to the AFRC and RUF by other countries and called on all states to observe strictly the provisions of Security Council Resolution 1132 (1997) of 8 October 1997, which had imposed an arms embargo on Sierra Leone, and to avoid any action which might further destabilize the situation in Sierra Leone. Security Council Resolution 1171 (1998) of 5 June 1998 lifted the arms embargo on the government of Sierra Leone. The same resolution prohibited the sale and supply of arms and related matériel to non-governmental forces in Sierra Leone. The Security Council subsequently praised the efforts of the UN Secretary-General to stop the flow of arms across the border from Liberia to rebels forces in Kailahun District, Eastern Province. All states were urged to comply strictly with the terms of the UN embargo on sales of arms to rebel forces still fighting in the interior of the country.

In his Fifth Report on the Situation in Sierra Leone to the UN Security Council of 9 June 1998, the UN Secretary-General stated that the deployment of ECOMOG troops at the border with Liberia could help dispel allegations of the influx of arms or the provision of armed assistance to the AFRC and RUF by foreign forces. While welcoming a commitment by the government of Liberia not to allow its territory to be used to destabilize any neighbouring country, the Secretary-General expressed the view that verification of this would improve the security climate throughout the sub-region and improve mutual confidence among countries in the sub-region.

On 22 and 23 June 1998 a Liberian delegation visited Freetown to deliver a message from President Charles Taylor to President Kabbah on ways to promote peace between Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, the three Mano River Union countries. The delegation denied allegations that the Liberian government was supporting AFRC and RUF forces. President Kabbah and President Taylor met in Abuja on 1 July 1998 at a meeting convened by the UN Secretary-General. Agreement was reached on a number of confidence-building measures. A further meeting between President Kabbah and President Taylor took place in Monrovia, Liberia, on 20 July 1998. In a communiqué signed at the conclusion of the meeting both leaders condemned atrocities and human rights abuses committed by combatants in Sierra Leone against civilians, as well as continued rebel activities in Sierra Leone. They reaffirmed their commitment to non-aggression against the territorial integrity of each other's country and pledged to continue cooperation towards peace and security in the sub-region. Both leaders renewed a call to the UN and ECOWAS to deploy observer units on the border between Liberia and Sierra Leone and agreed to coordinate border security activities.

At a UN special conference on Sierra Leone in New York in July 1998 the meetings between President Kabbah and President Taylor were welcomed and the two leaders were urged to continue to work towards improving relations between their two countries and regional security. The importance of stopping entry of illegal supplies of weapons into Sierra Leone and ending the direct or indirect support of neighbouring countries to rebel forces was stressed.

Relations between the two countries appeared to deteriorate, however, in October 1998 when the government of Sierra Leone was reported to have complained to the international community, including the UN Secretary-General, about the presence of Liberian combatants among rebel forces in Sierra Leone and about preparations for an incursion of Liberian fighters into Sierra Leone. These allegations were vigorously denied by President Taylor. UNOMSIL military observers at that time detected no evidence of an armed incursion from Liberia.

The UN Secretary-General in his Second Progress Report on UNOMSIL on 16 October 1998 expressed deep concern about developments in the situation between Sierra Leone and Liberia and urged both governments to exercise maximum restraint, pursue dialogue and implement the confidence-building measures agreed in July 1998. He also proposed that, should both countries agree, the deployment of ECOMOG forces at the border, subsequently accompanied by UNOMSIL military observers, could help stabilize the situation and restore mutual confidence.

During a visit by Reverend Jesse Jackson, special envoy of United States President Bill Clinton, to West Africa in November 1998 he held meetings in Conakry with President Kabbah, President Taylor and President Lansana Conté of Guinea. The three heads of state on 12 November 1998 stated their commitment to non-aggression and cooperation on security issues within the Mano River Union and also to promoting peace in Sierra Leone and maintaining stability within the sub-region.

In view of the appalling level of violence against civilians which has characterized the conflict in Sierra Leone, including the widespread and gross human rights abuses being perpetrated by AFRC and RUF and their stated intention to attack unarmed civilians, Amnesty International believes that military transfers, including arms, ammunition and combatants, to rebel forces will contribute to abuses of international human rights and humanitarian principles governing the conduct of war.

Recommendations

• all governments should take all possible measures to end immediately military transfers, including arms, ammunition and combatants, to AFRC and RUF forces;

• in addition, the governments of Liberia and Guinea, which border Sierra Leone, should take all possible measures to prevent military supplies, whether they originate in their country or not, destined for AFRC and RUF forces, from entering Sierra Leone across their borders;

• effective monitoring of the border between Sierra Leone and Liberia by ECOMOG forces and UNOMSIL military observers could assist in preventing military transfers to AFRC and RUF forces;

• governments in the sub-region should use whatever influence they may have on AFRC and RUF forces to bring about an end to the atrocities they continue to perpetrate against civilians.

International response to the human rights crisis

Following the military coup in May 1997 the international community made strenuous efforts to resolve the political crisis in Sierra Leone. Since the reinstatement of President Kabbah's government in March 1998, serious attention continues to be paid to consolidating the government's position, ending the conflict in the north and east of the country, which is still claiming hundreds of civilian victims, and to assisting rehabilitation and reconstruction of the country. The continuing gross human rights abuses committed by AFRC and RUF forces have been universally condemned, including by the UN, the OAU, the EU and the Commonwealth.

United Nations

On 17 April 1998 the UN Security Council authorized the deployment of a UN liaison unit in Sierra Leone. Resolution 1162 (1998) provided for up to 10 UN military liaison and security advisory personnel in Freetown with a mandate for up to three months. The group was to coordinate closely with ECOMOG to report on the military situation in Sierra Leone and to assist in disarming former combatants. The resolution also welcomed efforts of President Kabbah and his government to restore peaceful and secure conditions, to re-establish an effective administration and democratic process and to embark on reconstruction. The resolution noted the need to promote national reconciliation and encouraged all parties to work towards that objective. All countries and international organizations were urged to provide urgent humanitarian assistance in Sierra Leone and were encouraged to help with its reconstruction and economic and social recovery. A human rights officer was also appointed to assist the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy to Sierra Leone, Francis Okelo (who was subsequently appointed as Special Representative).

In the UN Secretary-General's Fifth Report on Sierra Leone, the deteriorating human rights situation was emphasized, and it was recommended that the number of UN human rights officers in Freetown be increased.

The UN Observer Mission in Sierra Leone

On 13 July 1998 the UN Security Council established a new peace-keeping operation, UNOMSIL, which expanded the office of the Secretary General's Special Envoy, to monitor the military and security situation in Sierra Leone, as security conditions permitted, for an initial six-month period until 13 January 1999. UNOMSIL would consist of 70 military observers and would be accompanied by a small medical unit and civilian support staff. The civilian staff would advise the government and local police, report on violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in Sierra Leone, and assist the government in its efforts to address the country's human rights needs. UNOMSIL was to be led by the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Sierra Leone. Initially, 40 military observers were to be deployed from July 1998 in Freetown, Hastings and Lungi. Depending on the security situation, a second phase of deployment would take place.

In approving Resolution 1181 (1998), which established UNOMSIL, the Security Council also condemned the continued resistance by remnants of the AFRC and RUF to the legitimate government and demanded that they lay down their arms immediately. It expressed its grave concern "at the loss of life and immense suffering undergone by the people of Sierra Leone, including refugees and displaced persons, as a result of continuing rebel attacks".

Resolution 1181 (1998), in addition to establishing a military and civilian police peace-keeping mission, also mandated the monitoring of human rights and the provision of assistance to the government of Sierra Leone in addressing its human rights obligations.[3] The resolution also gave UNOMSIL military observers a mandate to monitor respect of international humanitarian law during the demobilization process.

By October 1998 the human rights component of UNOMSIL had been increased to seven staff:four international human rights officers, one national human rights officer and two support staff. Subsequent progress reports by the UN Secretary-General on UNOMSIL to the Security Council referred extensively and in detail to continuing human rights abuses in Sierra Leone. The prominence given to the human rights crisis in Sierra Leone in these reports is welcomed and should continue.

In his First Progress Report on 12 August 1998, the Secretary-General reported that "there is strong evidence of the systematic and widespread perpetration of multiple forms of human rights abuse against the civilian population, including rape. In recent weeks, elements of the former junta have continued to shell population centres such as Koidu and Daru and have used civilians as human shields in their military operations. There have been numerous instances of arbitrary execution, including of women and children, followed in some cases by mutilation of the bodies."

In his Second Progress Report on 16 October 1998, the Secretary-General stated that "the continuing conflict in Sierra Leone imposes immense suffering on the people of that country. I strongly condemn the summary executions, torture, mutilation, rapes, looting and other acts of barbarism carried out by former junta elements and call on them to lay down their arms and surrender. I am particularly outraged by the senseless acts of terror perpetrated against children, such as the amputation of limbs of boys and girls as young as six years of age, and support the efforts to bring to justice the authors of these especially abhorrent crimes. "

The UN Secretary-General concluded his Second Progress Report by stating that he would "examine with great care any realistic proposal to end the armed conflict with minimal loss of life to combatants and to innocent civilians, and to promote lasting peace and national reconciliation in Sierra Leone".

Major initiatives have been undertaken by UNOMSIL human rights officers. Continued monitoring and reporting of human rights abuses have been reflected in the UN Secretary-General's reports to the Security Council. A preliminary human rights needs assessment has been developed. Human rights officers have also closely observed trials before the High Court and court martial in Freetown of those charged with treason in connection with the military coup in May 1997 and have intervened with the government in relation to these trials when appropriate. Guidance on human rights reporting to UNOMSIL military observers has been provided and human rights training programs for police officers, prison officials, the legal profession and the media have been developed and implemented. A human rights monitoring network including local non-governmental human rights organizations throughout the country and international non-governmental organizations has also been developed. Training for the network in human rights monitoring and reporting has been planned by UNOMSIL human rights officers, in cooperation with the National Commission for Democracy and Human Rights and a coalition of local groups, the National Forum for Human Rights. Increased cooperation between local human rights groups has been encouraged and it is anticipated that the human rights training program will involve relevant sectors of civil society from all parts of the country.

The role of UNOMSIL human rights officers in human rights monitoring and reporting should be continued for as long as necessary, including until it is clear that the government is implementing international human rights guarantees effectively. In September 1998 UNOMSIL human rights officers also began to provide human rights technical assistance to the government, including assistance in meeting its reporting requirements under international human rights treaties to which it is a party, such as the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. [4]

The human rights component plays a dominant role within UNOMSIL and is an essential part of the military mandate of the peace-keeping operation. Sierra Leone continues to face a human rights emergency and monitoring and reporting of human rights abuses therefore remain essential. Strategies to develop continued and enhanced support for the UNOMSIL human rights component should be developed by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The UN special conference on Sierra Leone

The UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, convened a special conference in New York on 30 July 1998 to galvanize the international community's response to the political, humanitarian and human rights situation in Sierra Leone. The purpose of the meeting was to focus international attention on the situation in Sierra Leone and the government's initiatives aimed at resolving the conflict, restoring secure conditions and effective administration throughout the country. The conference brought together representatives of the government of Sierra Leone, intergovernmental organizations, including the UN, the OAU, ECOWAS, the EU and the Commonwealth. The special conference on Sierra Leone specifically sought assistance from the international community for UNOMSIL and for the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of former combatants, including child soldiers.

At the time of the UN special conference Amnesty International recommended that the international community's commitment to bring peace and security to Sierra Leone and to assist in its reconstruction and rehabilitation include initiatives which would help to stop the gross human rights abuses being perpetrated by AFRC and RUF forces, prevent further abuses and also lay solid foundations for the respect and protection of human rights in the future. [5]

The UN special conference strongly condemned the continued resistance of AFRC and RUF forces, and in particular their perpetration of appalling atrocities, and they were called on to lay down their arms and surrender. The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Sierra Leone urged the international community to match their pledges of support to Sierra Leone with concrete action to consolidate its democratic gains. The conference agreed to establish an international contact group to mobilize and coordinate further support for Sierra Leone. The contact group was convened by the government of the United Kingdom in London on 5 November 1998.[6] Those participating included representatives of the government of Sierra Leone, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Sierra Leone and Lansana Kouyaté, Executive Secretary of ECOWAS. In his opening address to the meeting, Tony Lloyd, United Kingdom Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, said that: "Atrocities are still being carried out by remaining rebel forces. Sierra Leone needs peace, reconciliation and lasting restoration of democracy and human rights. .. we hope to boost the efforts of the international community to meet these needs. "

Recommendations

• the human rights component of UNOMSIL should continue to be supported and strengthened;adequate resources, including additional staff, should be provided to effectively monitor and report on human rights abuses throughout the country, implement technical assistance programs with the Sierra Leone government and provide support and training to Sierra Leonean human rights groups;

• the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights should play a major role in reinforcing and providing support to the human rights component of UNOMSIL;

• the human rights component of UNOMSIL should include experts in the area of violence against women, including rape and sexual abuse;

• UNOMSIL human rights officers should continue to submit reports of violations of international humanitarian and human rights law to the UN Secretary-General and to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights;comprehensive reports on the human right situation in Sierra Leone should be made public and submitted to the UN Security Council;

• the human rights component of UNOMSIL should have sufficient resources to effectively contribute towards long-term measures for human rights protection and its human rights monitoring and reporting roles should be continued for as long as necessary;

• visits to Sierra Leone by the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions and the UN Special Rapporteur on torture should take place in order to investigate and report on the gross human rights abuses which continue to be perpetrated;

• the international contact group on Sierra Leone should place human rights at the centre of its efforts to coordinate the international community's response to the situation in Sierra Leone and ensure that adequate resources are provided to initiatives aimed at the protection and respect of human rights.

OAU and ECOWAS

Immediately after the military coup in May 1997, the OAU Secretary General, Dr Salim Ahmed Salim, condemned it as "unacceptable to the continent". The Central Organ of the OAU Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution unequivocally condemned the military coup and called for the immediate restoration of constitutional order. [7] It appealed to the leaders of ECOWAS states to pursue efforts aimed at assisting the people of Sierra Leone in the restoration of constitutional order and to the international community to support those efforts.

The 33rd OAU Assembly of Heads of State and Government meeting in Harare, Zimbabwe, in early June 1997 gave a mandate to ECOWAS to take necessary action to restore legality and constitutionality to Sierra Leone. The specific measures to be taken were to be decided by ECOWAS. The OAU Secretary General reiterated the OAU's strong support for ECOWAS's initiatives to bring peace, security and stability to Sierra Leone at the ECOWAS summit in Abuja at the end of August 1997.

It was under this mandate from the OAU that ECOWAS forces were deployed in Sierra Leone to monitor a cease-fire, to enforce the sanctions and embargo imposed by the UN Security Council and to secure peace in Sierra Leone. Military intervention by ECOMOG remained an option if dialogue between the AFRC and representatives of other ECOWAS countries and sanctions failed.

ECOWAS and ECOMOG have played a dominant role in political developments in Sierra Leone since the military coup, culminating in the removal of the AFRC and the reinstatement of President Kabbah's government in February 1998. ECOMOG forces in Sierra Leone have been widely praised by the international community. At the ECOWAS summit in Abuja in late October 1998 ECOWAS heads of state and government endorsed the extension of ECOMOG's mandate in Sierra Leone and agreed that it should be strengthened, adding that efforts to achieve a lasting solution to the conflict should continue.

Between 10,000 and 12,000 ECOMOG forces were reported to have been deployed in Sierra Leone by October 1998. ECOMOG, which is composed largely of Nigerian forces, also comprises Guinean and Ghanaian troops and further contingents from Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Guinea, Mali and Niger were envisaged. ECOMOG headquarters were to be transferred from Monrovia to Freetown. In April 1998 President Kabbah appointed the ECOMOG commander in Sierra Leone, Brigadier-General Maxwell Khobe, as head of internal security in Sierra Leone. He was subsequently appointed in July 1998 as Chief of Defence Staff of the Republic of Sierra Leone Military Force (RSLMF). The national Sierra Leone army had effectively ceased to exist but was to be re-established.

The ECOMOG force in Sierra Leone is generally considered by the international community and within Sierra Leone to be disciplined and its intervention in February 1998 was welcomed by the majority of Sierra Leoneans. During the following months, as atrocities in the north and east of the country escalated, ECOMOG forces evacuated to safety and medical facilities some of the hundreds of victims of amputations and other injuries, saving many lives.

In the following months, however, reports began to be received of human rights violations committed by ECOMOG forces, including illegal detention of civilians, and torture and ill-treatment of civilian detainees and captured combatants. Concerns have also been expressed that the safety of the civilian population might be endangered during ECOMOG operations, especially air strikes, against rebel forces, particularly in Kailahun District, a rebel stronghold. Measures to minimise the risk to civilians during combat must be undertaken during all military operations by ECOMOG forces. The OAU and ECOWAS have a responsibility to ensure that ECOMOG forces in Sierra Leone conform to international humanitarian and human rights law at all times.

As atrocities against unarmed civilians by rebel forces have continued, the need for concerted action by the international community remains. The OAU Central Organ should continue to play a role both in attempts to resolve the conflict in Sierra Leone and also to respond to post-conflict needs, in particular assistance for creating and reinforcing institutions aimed at long-term protection of human rights in Sierra Leone.

The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (African Commission), meeting in Banjul, Gambia, on 22 October 1998 agreed to send its Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, arbitrary or summary executions, Dr Mohamed Hatem Ben-Salem, to Sierra Leone in November 1998.

Recommendations

• in view of the continuing gross human rights abuses in Sierra Leone, the Central Organ of the OAU Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution should consider requesting that the UN Security Council increase the resources of the human rights component of UNOMSIL in order to investigate and document these abuses;

• in addition to its Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, arbitrary or summary executions, the African Commission should also consider a visit to Sierra Leone by its Special Rapporteur on women in order to investigate and report the gross human rights abuses which continue to be committed in Sierra Leone, including against girls and women;

• the OAU Central Organ should send a delegation to Sierra Leone to assess the country's post-conflict needs including the establishment of effective structures for the future protection and respect of human rights;

• ECOWAS should ensure full compliance of its forces in Sierra Leone to international humanitarian and human rights law;there should be a mechanism to monitor human rights violations and take measures to prevent further violations.

Human rights violations during the period of AFRC

The period from 25 May 1997 until 12 February 1998 was marked by a total disregard for the rule of law and demands from the international community to respect international humanitarian and human rights law. The rule of law completely collapsed and violence engulfed the country.

Hundreds of people who were associated with the government of President Kabbah or his political party, the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP), or who were perceived to be opposed to the AFRC were detained without charge or trial, torture and ill-treatment were systematic, and many of those perceived to be political opponents of the AFRC were extrajudicially executed.

On 20 October 1997 Amnesty International published a report which documented the human rights violations systematically committed by the AFRC and the RUF after the military coup.[8] The victims included those associated with the government of President Kabbah, journalists, students and human rights activists. Between October 1997 and February 1998 arrests, torture and killings continued relentlessly. The full toll of those detained, tortured, ill-treated and killed while the AFRC and RUF held power only emerged after they were forced from power.

During the period of AFRC rule, while it was possible to obtain limited information about human rights violations in Freetown, few details of what was happening in the Provinces were accessible. When an Amnesty International delegation travelled to Sierra Leone in May 1998, the extent of the suffering of civilians became evident. Killings, rape and looting were systematic in all parts of the country. Hundreds of people had been deliberately and arbitrarily killed, thousands lost their possessions, homes and livelihoods. Rape of girls and women was systematic throughout the country.

Amnesty International repeatedly called on the AFRC to end the systematic human rights violations which occurred after May 1997 and to adhere to its obligations under international human rights law, in particular the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (African Charter)[9]. It called for urgent measures to end arbitrary arrest and detention of those perceived to be opposed to the AFRC and to end torture, ill-treatment and extrajudicial executions.

It is important that there continue to be full and independent investigations into the human rights violations committed during the period of AFRC rule and that the truth of what occurred during those months is established and documented in order to bring those responsible to justice. There should be no impunity for the grave human rights violations committed throughout the period of AFRC rule. Investigation and accountability for these human rights violations will also contribute towards the process of national reconciliation within Sierra Leone.

Arbitrary arrest and detention

Hundreds of political detainees were held incommunicado without charge or trial. It was difficult to assess with any accuracy the number of those detained because of continuous arrests and releases, the failure of the authorities to provide information about detainees and lack of access to places of detention. Detainees were held at the Central Prison, Pademba Road, the police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) headquarters and Cockerill military headquarters in Freetown as well as other military camps, such as that known as the SS camp at the village of Regent in the hills above Freetown.

Throughout the period of AFRC rule journalists were particular targets of arrest, detention and torture. During October and November 1997 the crack-down on the press intensified;at least 20 journalists were detained and many were tortured and ill-treated. They included Jon Z. Foray, editor of the New Storm newspaper, who was arrested by soldiers on 11 October 1997. He was taken first to Cockerill military headquarters where he was handed over to the military police and then held in a freight container. Also held in the container was Prince Akpu, a Nigerian journalist who had established a newspaper called Alpha jet, and who was arrested around the same time and accused of subversive activities. (Nigerian ECOMOG forces had used military aircraft called Alpha jets in their operations.) Two days later the two journalists were collected by a senior AFRC member, apparently to be taken to CID

[1] ECOMOG had been deployed under the authority of ECOWAS in neighbouring Liberia since 1990. Immediately after the military coup in May 1997, Nigerian forces already present in Sierra Leone under the provisions of a defence agreement between Sierra Leone and Nigeria were significantly reinforced by ECOMOG forces, who were predominantly Nigerian. ECOWAS is an intergovernmental organization of 16 states (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo) with its headquarters in Nigeria. Established in 1975, the aim of ECOWAS is to promote cooperation and development and to improve relations among member states.

[2] CMAG is composed of Barbados, Botswana, Canada, Ghana, Malaysia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Zimbabwe.

[3] For further information on implementing human rights in international peace-keeping operations, refer to Peace-keeping and human rights (AI Index: IOR 40/01/94), published by Amnesty International in January 1994.

[4] Sierra Leone ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1990.

[5] For further information about Amnesty International's recommendations to the UN special conference on Sierra Leone, refer to Sierra Leone: The United Nations special conference on Sierra Leone: the protection of human rights must be a priority for the international community (AI Index: AFR 51/14/98), published by Amnesty International on 24 July 1998.

[6] The contact group included representatives from China, Egypt, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, New Zealand, Sweden, the United States and the EU.

[7] Countries which are part of the Central Organ of the OAU Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution are also part of the Bureau of the Assembly of the Heads of State and Government. The Bureau consists of 16 ambassadors and is elected annually. It plays a crucial role in decision-making and planning at the OAU. For further information about the OAU and the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, refer to Organization of African Unity: Making Human Rights a Reality for Africans (AI Index: IOR 63/01/98), published by Amnesty International in August 1998.

[8] For further information, refer to Sierra Leone: A disastrous set-back for human rights (AI Index: AFR 51/05/97), published by Amnesty International on 20 October 1997.

[9] Sierra Leone ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in 1996 and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights in 1984.