By Alfred Koroma (MRCG/ATJLF Fellow 2025)
In the second year of the 21st Century, Sierra Leone regained peace after an 11-year brutal war.
The war, which began in 1991 and ended 2002 is estimated to have killed over 50, 000 people, a harrowing chapter in the nation’s history, marked by unimaginable violence and suffering.
“They burned people alive, amputated limbs, and raped and killed pregnant women,” recalled Alhaji Haruna Sani, News Editor at Concord Times, describing it as “the wicked war in the world.”
In its aftermath, the TRC was established to investigate the causes of the conflict, document human rights abuses, and provide a roadmap for healing and reconciliation. The TRC’s final report, published in 2004, two years after the war ended, remains one of the most comprehensive accounts of the war’s origins and consequences.
As the country continues to rebuild, the report serves as a vital reminder of the structural issues that fueled the conflict, issues that, if left unaddressed, could threaten the nation’s hard-won peace.
Concord Times revisits the TRC report, analyzing its findings volume by volume and chapter by chapter, using its insights to remind citizens of the root causes of the war and examine present-day realities.
Causes of the Conflict
In volume two of the TRC report, the commissioners analyze the factors that led to the outbreak of the civil war. They identify several key structural issues that created the conditions for violence:
One of those is economic inequality and Corruption as detailed in (Volume 2, Chapter 3) of the report. The TRC found that decades of economic mismanagement and corruption had created a society of extreme inequality. Sierra Leone’s wealth, particularly from its diamond mines, was concentrated in the hands of a small elite, while the majority of the population lived in poverty. This disparity bred resentment, especially among the youth, who felt excluded from the nation’s resources and opportunities. The report warned that without equitable resource distribution and transparent governance, the risk of future instability would remain high.
In recent years, Sierra Leone has shown measurable progress in its fight against corruption, as reflected in international indices, such as the Millennium Challenge Corporation, the Afrobarometer Round 9 Survey, and the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). In the 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index, the country has a score of 33, ranking 114 out of 180 countries.
But while international rankings indicate slight improvement, Sierra Leone is still among countries struggling with corruption and corruption remains a significant challenge in the country. Many citizens remain skeptical about the true impact of anti-corruption efforts on their daily lives, suggesting a disconnect between positive international recognition and local realities.
According to Mohamed Koroma, a teacher, corruption is still prevalent at both local and institutional levels. “Police take bribes. You take your child to the hospital for free healthcare treatment, but you have to pay to get better care. Every sector of government in this country is corrupt.”
Additionally, in major government institutions like Parliament, some sitting MPs have publicly spoken out about corruption in the country’s second-highest arm of government. Year after year, the Auditor General’s report continues to highlight issues related to corruption, inefficiency, and a lack of accountability in public financial management.
The TRC’s recommendation for equitable economic distribution remains unfulfilled. Poverty is still a major issue, and the nation’s wealth remains concentrated among a small elite, while a large portion of the population faces economic hardship. According to the World Bank, the poverty rate in Sierra Leone, based on the international poverty line ($1.90 per day), was 43.0% in 2018. This means approximately 3.3 million Sierra Leoneans were still living in poverty at the time, with rural communities being the most affected.
Many of the fighters in the war were young people
In chapter four, the TRC focused more on the marginalization of youth as another cause of the war. The report says a significant portion of the combatants in the war were young people who felt abandoned by the state, explaining how decades of neglect, lack of education, and unemployment left youth vulnerable to manipulation by warlords, and emphasized the need for meaningful opportunities for young people, including access to education and employment, to prevent future unrest.
Yet, youth unemployment remains one of the most pressing challenges in the country.
In its report, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates structural youth unemployment rate to be as high as 70%, highlighting that a significant portion of young people are forced into informal, unstable, or underpaid work.
The Special Investigative Committee that examined the violent August 10, 2022, protests also pointed to youth unemployment as one of the main socio-economic triggers of the brutal unrest.
Ethnic and regional divisions
In Chapter five, the TRC pointed to the politicization of ethnic and regional identities as a contributing factor to the conflict. Politicians exploited these divisions to consolidate power, creating a sense of exclusion and alienation among certain groups. This manipulation of identity politics sowed distrust and fueled violence. The report called for national unity and the rejection of divisive politics.
This practice of politicizing ethnic and regional identities is still evident, especially during the 2018 and 2023 general elections, as the two main political parties leveraged these affiliations to consolidate political support. Some political leaders even made sensitive tribal statements during their campaigns.
However, Patrick Fatoma, Outreach Focal Person for the Residual Special Court of Sierra Leone, argues that tribalism is not deeply rooted in Sierra Leone but is merely a tool used by politicians for personal gain.
“What we have are lazy politicians trying to incite people based on their tribes,” he said. “Because they do nothing for their people, when elections come, they blame their failures on others and incite tribalism.”
“We intermarry, we attend the same schools without fighting along tribal lines. There is no tribalism in Sierra Leone, only bad politics,” he added.
Weak Governance and State Collapse (Volume 2, Chapter 6)
The collapse of state institutions, including the judiciary and security forces, created a vacuum that armed groups easily filled. The TRC noted that decades of authoritarian rule and weak governance eroded public trust in the state, making it easier for rebel groups like the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) to gain traction. The report emphasized the need for strong, transparent, and accountable institutions to prevent future conflicts.
Yet, issues related to police corruption, unlawful detentions, and the slow judicial process remain evident, undermining public trust.
Reports such as the U.S. Department of State’s 2023 Human Rights Report on Sierra Leone continues to highlight concerns about the judiciary’s inefficiency, corruption, and political influence, which affect its ability to deliver fair justice. While the government has made some efforts to improve judicial independence, challenges such as case backlogs and limited legal aid access remain prevalent.
Regarding security forces, the report points to incidents of excessive use of force, including police responses to protests like the August 2022 anti-government protests, security forces used lethal force, leading to multiple deaths. The Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone (HRCSL) and civil society organizations have often criticized the security sector for arbitrary arrests and detentions.
Volume 3: The Impact of the Conflict
The third volume of the TRC report focused on the impact of the conflict, examining the human and social consequences of the war. It highlights how the structural issues identified in Volume 2 exacerbated the suffering of ordinary Sierra Leoneans:
The war forced millions of Sierra Leoneans to flee their homes, disrupting communities and deepening social divisions. The TRC found that the lack of government support for displaced persons further eroded trust in the state.
This caused so much trauma and psychological scars documented in Chapter four of Volume three of the report.
TRC documented the profound psychological impact of the war on survivors, including victims of amputations, sexual violence, and other atrocities. The report emphasized the need for comprehensive mental health services to address the lingering trauma of the conflict.
Volume 4: Recommendations for the Future
The fourth volume of the TRC report outlines a roadmap for reconciliation and sustainable peace. It calls for systemic reforms, including economic reforms, strengthening governance, and fostering national unity to address the root causes of the conflict.
However, many of these recommendations remain partially or completely unimplemented. Corruption continues to be a major challenge, youth unemployment remains a pressing issue, and ethnic tensions occasionally flare during election periods. Moreover, the TRC emphasized the importance of addressing the psychological and social scars of the war, yet many survivors still struggle with trauma.
“It’s really painful. A grown woman like me, and I can’t wear the dresses I want,” said Elizabeth Kargbo, an amputee in Waterloo, while sharing her struggles with Concord Times. “I’m paying for what my father knew nothing about.”
Elizabeth lost her right hand at the age of five. She recounted how her mother, along with other women, was forced to surrender their children before being taken into a room. After amputating the children’s hands, the rebels called the mothers to retrieve them.
“My mum doesn’t like talking about it,” Elizabeth said. Her mother still keeps the cloth she used to tie Elizabeth’s arm after it was severed, hoping that one day there might be a way to fix it.
“The call for systemic reforms, such as equitable resource distribution, investment in education, and strengthening democratic institutions, has yet to be fully realized,” the National Unity and Reconciliation Party (NURP) said in a press statement titled “the State of National Reconciliation” published on Sunday 23 March, calling on government to prioritize the development of a national reparation policy and law that mandates the establishment of a Special Reparation Fund.
According to the party, despite the war ending over two decades ago, sustained reparation support for surviving war victims remains a serious challenge. “They currently face limited access to quality healthcare, medical and sanitation facilities, and lack of educational support for their children. Many live in dilapidated housing and shelter camps, struggle to afford food, and lack free access to public transportation.”
This story is brought to you with support from the Africa Transitional Justice Legacy Fund (ATJLF) through the Media Reform Coordinating Group (MRCG) under the project “Engaging Media and Communities to Change the Narrative on Transitional Justice Issues in Sierra Leone.”
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