Sierra Leone History part I

An update in 300 words or less:

• I have successfully raised $2,200- the program cost! I cannot begin to express my gratitude toward those who have helped me- you have all been such blessings. I still have about $200 or a little more left to pay for medical costs- but a majority of the fund raising is done with. Thank you oh so very much for all of your financial support and prayers. I may sound like a broken record, but I am incredibly grateful.

• I got my plane ticket today. I leave on June 21st at 2pm.
  
  
• I've gotten a great response to the Chaska Herald article. In fact, I've gotten advice from people as far away as Florida (how neat)! If you haven't read it yet you can check it out here. I've loved hearing people's stories, advice and everything else, so don't be shy!!! I'm all about community involvement, so pleasee feel free to email me at krape003@umn.edu with anything at all. I love getting email! Also, please share this website with anyone who may be interested. Community is key. Make sure to keep an eye on The Herald this summer for some interesting articles.
  
  
• I'll be preaching at Discovery United Methodist Church in Chanhassen when I get back on August 31st. I'm also hoping to talk with (though not preach- because once is stressful enough!) other local churches and organizations (especially youth and young adult)- so if you, your organization or your church are interested just shoot me an email. I'll also be speaking at the Chanhassen library in late fall.

262 words- perfect.

So now on to what is, in my opinion, the much more interesting part of this post: a little lesson in modern Sierra Leone history (thought the fact that this interests me so much may reveal my nerdy side). As a forewarning- like all conflicts, there are many different stories of what transpired and many different situations that lead to the violence. This summary is based off of my limited knowledge- do some digging around if you are interested in more in depth info.

It is a little hard to pinpoint exactly what started the civil war. In 1985 Joseph Momoh was elected president in a single party election. Momoh was a military ruler, but not viewed as a dictator. Early in his presidency, Momoh declared a state of economic emergency, which gave him a great deal of economic control. President Momoh's corrupt advisors took advantage of this and the economy continued to decline steadily.
As the government as a whole began to corrode, the trade of weapons became easier, drug abuse increase and crime became problematic. Illegal trade with Liberia also became a major problem. Many of Momohs early opposition (many of whom were students) were expelled from the country, which actually allowed them to foster the opposition. The opposition trained at a military camp in Liberia. These groups then went into the Western Kono District, which, notably, has man diamond mines, and spread their began spreading their ideology.
By this point the economy was, for all practical purposes, at the low of lows. Sierra Leone was (and is) rich in resources, but a very poor country. A struggle over control of the diamond mines and industry began.

So all of the elements necessary for a civil war were present in Sierra Leone- a weak, often uninvolved president, a corrupt government, a single party government, a exceedingly weak economy, illegal arms trade, drug use, deported student opposition, poorly managed natural resources- waiting to explode. And explode they did.

However that is for another post. So be sure to tune in next time for another fascinating look at Sierra Leonean history.