Blood diamonds 'not the cause' of Sierra Leone war
Updated on 05 August 2010
Sierra Leone's civil war was long and brutal but, writes SOAS fellow Dr David Harris exclusively for Channel 4 News, the issue of diamonds needs to be kept in perspective.
The importance of diamonds in the history of Sierra Leone is without question. Siaka Stevens used vast numbers of smuggled diamonds to prop up his presidency in the 1970s and '80s.
The conflict in the 1990s and early 2000s was fuelled by the mining and trading of these tiny precious stones. All sides, including peacekeepers, were involved in this lucrative business.
Hence, we now have the curious appearance of British model, Naomi Campbell, at the trial of former Liberian president, Charles Taylor, who has been accused of trading with and arming Sierra Leone's Revolutionary United Front (RUF).
The civil war was long and brutal. The issue of diamonds, though, needs to be kept in perspective. They were not the cause of the war. They were fuel for the prolongation of the war and most likely one of the reasons that it turned so mercenary and nasty. The causes of the war, however, are far, far wider in scope.
More from Channel 4 News
- War crimes trial: Campbell received 'dirty stones'
- Naomi Campbell and 'blood diamonds': Hague witness writes about the trial
- Why Naomi Campbell's Hague appearance matters
- Who Knows Who: Naomi Campbell
The Sierra Leonean state was created from the mismatch of an under-resourced British colonial enterprise with African political hierarchies. The state, colonial or post-colonial, has never succeeded in imposing itself on its territory or people.
That a ragtag outfit like the RUF could subject Sierra Leone to a decade of civil war speaks volumes. Even when governments have tried, they have found formidable obstacles to even-handed development. Education, jobs, infrastructure and accountability deteriorated more in Sierra Leone than in almost any other African country.
Diamonds have been more of a curse than a blessing to the country and Charles Taylor has played a part in this conflict, but there is much more to the war than these two factors.
By focusing on the trials of a handful of people, are we perhaps losing focus on some fundamental questions as to why Sierra Leone, and many other African countries not far behind, has reached this state of affairs?
War-crimes trials are highly destabilising to countries emerging from conflict. The Sierra Leone Special Court has been fortunate not to re-ignite tensions, but at the same time has managed to convict just eight of the indicted, none of them the biggest fish.
Taylor is the last and easily the biggest of them all and has attracted attention far beyond events, some positive, currently happening in Sierra Leone or Liberia. At the same time, if he is convicted after a long and expensive trial, the effect on the problems of these two countries will unfortunately be negligible.
Dr David Harris is a teaching fellow at the Department of Politics and International Studies, SOAS. His book Civil War and Democracy in West Africa: Conflict Resolution, Elections and Justice in Sierra Leone and Liberia will be published by IB Tauris next year.
