Sierra Leone (catch all)

[Jedburgh]

Chatham House, 30 Sep 08: Sierra Leone a Year After Elections: Still in the Balance

....the scale of the challenges is large, and past performance, beyond the stabilization of the security sector, has been questionable. The external threats posed by increased oil and food prices are great, but are dwarfed by the severe threat of the increasing drugs trade in Sierra Leone. If these threats are to be met, new bilateral support will be needed. Given that the level of UK commitment has almost certainly peaked, other countries in Europe which will be affected by the establishment of drugs cartels inWest Africa should increase support as a matter of self-interest......

[Jedburgh]

GFN-SSR, 31 Oct 08: UK Military Intervention and Progress in Sierra Leone, 2001-2006

The aim of this paper is to examine progress in Sierra Leone between 2001 and 2006, within a regional context, as result of UK military intervention and assistance. It focuses on what is commonly termed post-conflict reconstruction and development. In particular, it will explore the transformation of the security sector and the relationship between security and development. The paper draws on research, but also on first-hand experience of the author, who served in Sierra Leone under United Nations command during 2001 and then as military advisor to the government of Sierra Leone/Commander International Military Advisory Training Team in 2006.

[davidbfpo]

A short RUSI commentary:http://www.rusi.org/analysis/comment...519CD2196877F/

Quite reflective and maybe of interest for the role of the international military advisory mission (IMATT); with a now dated Canadian explanation:http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-...=75&CdnOpId=86

[davidbfpo]

A new book by Kieran Mitton, a Kings War Studies academic: Rebels in a Rotten State: Understanding Atrocity in the Sierra Leone Civil War:http://www.hurstpublishers.com/book/...one-civil-war/

From the publishers abstract:

The atrocities of civil wars present us with many difficult questions. How do seemingly ordinary individuals come to commit such extraordinary acts of cruelty, often against unarmed civilians? Can we ever truly understand such acts of ‘evil’? Based on a wealth of original interviews with perpetrators of violence in Sierra Leone’s civil war, this book provides a detailed response.

If you register with the publishers you get a discount and free P&P worldwide.

[davidbfpo]

A five minute podcast by the author:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJLT...ature=youtu.be

[davidbfpo]

Hat tip to WoTR for a David Ucko article which is a comprehensive review of the UK role in Sierra Leone; a longer version (18 pgs) is in the Journal of Strategic Studies - free for a short while.

WoTR:http://warontherocks.com/2016/08/whe...-sierra-leone/

Longer version:http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/1...0.2015.1110695

[davidbfpo]

A short article by a PhD student that starts with:

The British intervention in the Sierra Leone civil war aimed to create long-term security for civilians.
More than 15 years on, how sustainable is security in the country? Sierra Leone’s eleven year long civil war (1991-2002) is renowned as one of the most brutal intra-state conflicts in recent history. Atrocities were perpetrated by all parties to the conflict.
(Later) arguably the vast majority of the destabilising factors attributed to the outbreak of the civil war persist.

Link:https://sustainablesecurity.org/2017...one-revisited/