Sierra Leoneans love nicknames. The fun of defining people by character traits and unique personalities is part of our endearing nature. Though some nicknames may not be particularly appealing to the bearer, individuals are usually christened out of charm not malice. Our friends are usually cognizant of the individual idiosyncrasies that characterized our behaviors and are often more adept at placing labels on them. Some people are instantly remembered by their nicknames rather...

Germain Katanga, former commander of the Patriotic Resistance Force of Ituri (FRPI) has been found guilty by the International Criminal Court (ICC) of four counts of war crimes and one count of crimes against humanity under article 25(3)(d) of the Rome Statute. He was however acquitted on charges of Rape and Sexual Slavery and the use of child soldiers. His conviction was mostly based on crimes committed by the Ngiti militia on February 24, 2003 in the town of Bogoro in the Itu...

March 5, 2014 marks the closure of the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Sierra Leone (UNIPSIL) and a transition to a standard UN presence through a Country Office. But as we celebrate almost fifteen years of UN commitment to lasting peace in Sierra Leone, it is important to note that many lives could have been saved and perhaps a decade of carnage prevented in the country had the UN intervened earlier. Sierra Leoneans, like we are currently witnessing in Syria,...

Lanpedusa My Brother’s Grave

 I

Lampedusa my brother’s grave

From rickety slums and human misery

My brothers and sisters have come

Bundled in the bond of awful memories

Tightened by the confines of their wretched vessels

Huddling and cuddling in their wooded graves

The hope of a better life their only lighthouse

Where they perish others will follow

II

Lampedusa my brother’s grave

Where tombstones flow upon salty liquid

Numbering not in single files

But in hundreds of mass liq...