Sierra+Leone+Independence



__ Sierra Leone Independence __


 * __Pre-Colonization__ **
 * Increased foreign influences caused the form of a Barter system between locals and Europeans.
 * Slave trading became a major commodity.
 * Bunce Island was a prime place of slave transport, where slaves were sent to America and Europe.
 * __British Colonization__ **
 * First discovered by a modern nation in 1492 by Portuguese Pedro da Cintra, who named the country Serra Lyoa, meaning Lion Mountains.
 * First colonized in 1787 when Britain founded Freetown, now the Sierra Leone capital, as a settlement for freed African slaves.
 * Intergration of slaves leads to constant tribal wars.
 * The British began to settle on the coastal region in 1808, and used Freetown as their naval base for antislavery patrols.
 * The interior of the country was later added as British settlement areas in 1896.
 * __Independence__ **
 * Following World War II, the British gave into nationalist demands to establish Democratic institutions in West Africa.
 * A constitution was written to guarantee independence to Sierra Leone in several steps.
 * British government appointed Sir Milton Margai to lead first self-controlled Sierra Leone government.
 * Sierra Leone gains full independence on April 27, 1961 after over 170 years of British colonial rule.
 * __Post-Independence__ **
 * Independence was followed by political instability, violent conflict, and economic inactivity.


 * In 1967, the APC (All People's Congress party) came to power under Siaka Stevens, who became Sierra Leone's President in 1971, and made the APC the only legal party.
 * In 1985 Major General Joseph Momoh was elected President after being selected as the only candidate. However, his administration experienced much corruption, and in 1992, he was overthrown in a coup, led by Captain Valentine Strasser.
 * <span style="font: 18px/21px 'Times New Roman';">At the same time, a war had broken out in the neighboring country of Liberia, and Sierra Leone quickly became involved in the conflict, which lasted ten years and involved terrible fighting, and atrocities and punishments against civilians until peace was achieved in 2002, with help from England and a large United Nations peacekeeping operation.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 21px;">In recent years, Sierra Leone has experienced dramatic economic growth, however, poverty and unemployment remain major challenges.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 21px;">In June 2009, the United Nations said that despite some impressive gains in the reconstruction of the country since the civil war, efforts to improve peace and prosperity have remained.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 21px;">Sierra Leone's independence has not been very beneficial because of its political instability:
 * http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1065898.stm
 * <span style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #464646; font-family: verdana,helvetica,arial,sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">**1967** - Military coup deposes Premier Siaka Stevens' government.
 * <span style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #464646; font-family: verdana,helvetica,arial,sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">**1968** - Siaka Stevens returns to power at the head of a civilian government following another military coup.
 * <span style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #464646; font-family: verdana,helvetica,arial,sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">**1992** - President Joseph Momoh ousted in military coup led by Captain Valentine Strasser, apparently frustrated by failure to deal with rebels. Under international pressure, Strasser announces plans for the first multi-party elections since 1967.
 * <span style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #464646; font-family: verdana,helvetica,arial,sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">**1996** January - Strasser ousted in military coup led by his defence minister, Brigadier Julius Maada Bio.
 * <span style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #464646; font-family: verdana,helvetica,arial,sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">**1996** - Ahmad Tejan Kabbah elected president in February, signs peace accord with Sankoh's rebels in November.
 * <span style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #464646; font-family: verdana,helvetica,arial,sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">**1997** - Peace deal unravels. President Kabbah deposed by army in May. Major Johnny Paul Koroma, in prison awaiting the outcome of a treason trial, leads the military junta - the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC).
 * "I had heard from adults that this was a revolutionary war...But what kind of liberation movement shoots innocent civilians, children, that little girl?"