Father Rocco Puopolo, an American Roman Catholic priest, has lived and worked in Sierra Leone for the past 23 years. Father Puopolo lived in Kenema, a town in southeastern Sierra Leone, where he worked with Sierra Leonean youth on issues of conflict analysis and resolution. Like many expatriates, he was evacuated from Sierra Leone because of the current crisis in that West African country. He is now in the United States, working with other people and organizations in search of a solution to end the conflict in Sierra Leone. As he puts it, "I have come back . . . to lobby for law, order and sanity in West Africa."

We caught up with Father Puopolo at Washington, D.C.'s Catholic University, where he spoke to us about the conflict in Sierra Leone. According to him, the conflict is primarily centered around diamonds; that since hostilities began in 1991, rebels have mostly attacked areas which are known to have this precious mineral. When rebels attack these areas, he adds, they usually take hostages whom they use as human shields. Shortly before Christmas one of his friends, Father Mario Gerra, was kidnapped from his residence and is being held by the rebels. During the same period that Father Gerra was kidnapped, the rebels tried to kidnap other priests in northern Sierra Leone, but the priests managed to escape to a neighboring town before the rebels reached them.

In addition to kidnapping members of the clergy and other people, the rebels have been burning residences. In fact, says Father Puopolo, one of the church's residences, located in northern Sierra Leone, was burned just before Christmas.

Kenema, a town located in southeastern Sierra Leone, where the priest lives and works, was safe from rebel attacks because of the Kamajors, a civil defense force made up of Sierra Leonean traditional warriors. In addition to the Kamajors in Kemena, there seems to have been a credible presence of ECOMOG soldiers, an alliance of West African forces battling the rebels in Sierra Leone.

Many of the rebels are induced to take drugs before going into battle, says Father Puopolo. He adds that when they are not under the influence of drugs, they are just as traumatized as the local population. As a result, many rebels have been known to commit suicide.

African states, including Sierra Leone, currently face a situation far worse than did the United States during the American Civil War, according to Father Puopolo. Currently, in Sierra Leone, eleven armies, including mercenaries from the South African Executive Outcome, are fighting on the side of the government, while Ukrainian mercenaries are assisting the various rebel groups in the country.

Father Puopolo believes that one of the difficulties in resolving the current conflict in Sierra Leone lies in the fact that those who control the war are outside the country. Many of them live in Guinea, California, and other places throughout the world. But he praises the work of the religious community, especially the Interreligious Conference of Sierra Leone, an organization made up of United Methodists, Pentecostals, Catholics, Muslims, and representatives of other religions in Sierra Leone, for working tirelessly to bring the warring parties to the negotiating table.

It is the belief of Father Puopolo that there are three ways to ensure a lasting peace in Sierra Leone, once there is a cessation of hostilities. Of paramount importance is a better communication system. Since, according to the father, 90 percent of the population is illiterate, FM radio stations need to be set up across the country to keep the population better informed. Furthermore, functional literacy enhancements programs throughout the country are desperately needed. Father Puopolo believes that if this had been done after the signing of the Abidjan Peace Accords between the rebels and the government in 1996, many of the rebels in the countryside would have laid down their arms.

A second way to ensure a lasting peace in Sierra Leone is to find ways of cutting supply lines. The international community needs to stop arms from reaching the rebels. Since it is believed that many of the fighters who are associated with the rebels are soldiers of fortune, the world needs to find ways of curtailing the activities of these mercenaries.

Third, says Father Pupolo, in addition to cutting supply lines to the rebels and improving the communication system inside Sierra Leone, the international community should fund an "Attitude Adjustment Program." This would include the financing of drug and alcohol projects, programs for conflict resolution, job rehabilitation, and peace camps.

March 15, 1998