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The assaults on Sunday occurred as a deep-seated sense of animosity among Sierra Leoneans feeling the pinch of a faltering economy.
Freetown is gradually becoming more peaceful after shooting over the weekend sent the nation’s capital into a state of terror.
Early on Sunday morning, gunfire broke out as armed individuals stormed Wilberforce Barracks, the military’s principal base and one of the biggest garrisons in the nation of West Africa.
Social media videos showed a number of prisoners fleeing the Central Prison, also known as the Pademba Road Prison, after armed men stormed the building and freed nearly all of the about 1890 convicts reportedly housed inside. An assault also occurred on a police station that housed convicts. Thirteen troops are among the at least twenty confirmed deaths.
About seventeen hours after the initial gunshots, President Julius Maada Bio said in a televised speech on Sunday night that the attackers had been “rebuffed” and that the majority of those in charge of the attacks had been taken into custody.
Speaking from the presidential residence, which is just around 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from the assaulted barracks, he stated, “I want to assure everybody who is resident in Sierra Leone that we have overcome this challenge.”
On Monday, a number of military roadblocks appeared in and around Freetown. Residents reported that while several stores in the central business center reopened and some individuals returned to work, banks and schools remained closed. Additionally, until further notice, a curfew has been enforced from nightfall to dawn, and flights into and out of the nation are only permitted during these hours.
Since 2020, a series of coups and countercoups have shook West Africa, coinciding with the assaults. Many Sierra Leoneans have referred to the violent events as an attempted coup, despite President Bio and other officials being careful not to use that phrase.
“Many believe it was an attempt to overthrow the government,” stated Amadou Lamarana Bah, a journalist who attempted to cover the turmoil but was repelled by military troops brandishing guns. As information from the authorities continues to surface, there has been ongoing conjecture on the assailants’ true motivation, he added. Some claim it was an attempt to free a few military commanders who were detained. Nothing has returned to normal yet.
“We had a feeling something was coming.”
The events of Sunday were the pinnacle of tensions that had been building since the conclusion of hotly fought elections in June. Samura Kamara, the opposition All People’s Congress (APC) candidate, swiftly denounced the SLPP victory when President Bio was re-elected, claiming the results lacked credibility. Both US officials and observers from the European Union have complained about the electoral commission’s results’ lack of transparency.
However, the attacks on Sunday also coincided with a deepening of animosity among Sierra Leoneans, who are feeling the sting of a faltering economy severely impacted by the COVID-19 epidemic and the aftermath of Russia’s conflict on Ukraine. President Bio has been the target of a lot of ire from those who believe he frequently takes lavish foreign vacations.
These sentiments were further heightened in August of last year when police opened fire on crowds in Freetown that were demonstrating against excessive food prices. This was an uncommon incident in a nation where demonstrations are often nonviolent. Six police officers and at least 21 people perished in the rioting.
“Even though it’s not directly related, I believe that what happened last year created an environment where some people might have sensed an opening,” stated Kieran Mitton, a researcher from King’s College London who specializes in Sierra Leone. He claimed that President Bio and the nation were now at risk because to the crackdown. There’s a pervasive feeling of discontent. Many of the folks I’ve spoken to have mentioned that they had expectations. Perhaps not this, but given how dire things are in the nation, we were expecting anything.
Sierra Leoneans have frequently criticized international media for attributing the nation’s current problems to vicious civil conflicts that lasted for almost ten years, from the 1990s to 2001, resulting in thousands of deaths and a stagnant economy. Some concede that the latest violence does bring up memories of those difficult times.
“During the war, I was a teenager,” the journalist Bah said. “I remember the day we went to a mosque to take cover, and there were military people there firing all around. There were some fatalities. Officers pointing weapons remind us of those experiences even if we survived.
Even while individuals are making an effort to advance, for some Sunday seemed like the nation moved several steps backward. When the shootings started, blogger Sallu Kamuskay was stranded in another section of the town, getting ready for a friend’s wedding. His phone was exploding with messages from anxious friends and relatives as he woke up from his siesta.
“After we said, ‘never again,’ I was shocked to wake up to the news,” Kamuskay remarked.
Because of an emergency all-day curfew, the groom’s parents had to stay in the center of the mayhem.”My friend’s mother and father joined via WhatsApp video call, so those of us who were already here had to continue with the wedding,” he stated.
“Unidentified assailants”
Who directed the assaults on the military armory is unknown. The attackers have been described by the authorities as “unidentified,” and further inquiries are being conducted to ascertain their identify.
For months, there have been rumblings about a potential coup. Fourteen senior military commanders were detained in August on charges of “subversion,” or undermining authority. Their identities remained a secret.
However, at least two experts told Al Jazeera that over fifty individuals, including former rebel leaders and military officials, may have been engaged in the strikes on Sunday. According to the experts, the invaders seemed to have successfully broken into the barracks and taken some weapons out before a presidential special guard stepped in and drove them out of the city.
A social media video purportedly captured locals looking inside a truck that the assailants had left behind, according to a local fact-checking website. There are bullet cartridges, military fatigues, an RPG grenade launcher, and a rifle in the vehicle.
The Clingendael Institute’s West Africa Director, Kars de Bruijne, finds it strange that the assailants chose to target an armory rather than a more vulnerable location, as is customary in coup attempts.De Bruijne stated, “You’d think that they’d go to the State House,” alluding to the presidential mansion. “It’s possible they were planning to do that, but there was a lot of opposition.” He went on to say that the prisoners could have been let out “to make sure they could create a lot of chaos.”
Ernest Bai Koroma, the nation’s most recent president and an opposition African National Congress member, has been connected to a number of the victims of the gunshots.
Among them, according to local media, was Idrissa “Leatherboot” Hamid Kamara, an ex-fighter who was imprisoned during the conflict and then joined the previous president’s security detail. In what seemed to be an assault on Koroma’s residence, the army of Sierra Leone also shot and killed one of his bodyguards, capturing the other one.
In a statement, Koroma dissociated himself from the violence. The former president posted on social media, saying, “I’m deeply concerned over the unfolding events in Freetown, and I strongly condemn the grave breaches of state security.”
According to de Bruijne, as investigators work to piece together additional information, there may be a military and police reorganization in the upcoming weeks.The analyst said, “I’m afraid there will be a very serious crackdown on the APC.” He stated that politicians should be held accountable if they are proven to be engaged, but that there is a chance that the authorities may overreact, which might result in the arrest of those who had no direct involvement in this.
cries for harmony
In a nation where politics have dominated events and where some claim government officials have used inciting language in the past, President Bio’s speech to the people on Sunday night was consoling. For instance, following the August fatalities, Bio and government representatives referred the demonstrators as “insurrectionists.”
On Sunday, Bio emphasized applauding the “bravery” of the security officers while used neutral terminology like as “individuals” and “attackers”. He urged Sierra Leoneans to fight for the nation’s hard-won peace regardless of political affiliation.
Reflecting on the president’s shift in attitude, Mitton of King’s College stated, “Even when it has been questionable if a coup was even in the cards, he has called a coup, when he has talked about political unrest, he has called it mutiny or treason.”
Given that Bio is an ex-military and former military dictator, one might assume that he gets along well with the army, but Mitton pointed out that isn’t always the case. “I believe he would prefer to think of the military as being on his side, but that suggests that things are more complicated than they seem. Within the military, there are always going to be factions, and if you form an alliance with one of them, some of them will feel left out.
Even while many people are still unhappy with the difficulties they confront financially, the journalist claimed that Bio’s tone on Sunday resonated with a large number of individuals around the nation, Bah. He remarked, “Sierra Leonans praised the way he addressed the situation.” “I don’t think people want military rule; they just want him to reduce spending, particularly on travel.”
Some claim they wish to keep moving forward.
“Our only desire is tranquility,” stated blogger Kamuskay. “People want peace even when they are unhappy with the election results and the way this government is running the country.”
SOURCE:-ALJAZEERA
