*ECOWAS Condemns Reported Arms Plot to Disrupt Sierra Leone’s Stability
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Sierra Leone has declared a nationwide curfew after gunmen attacked a military barracks in the capital, Freetown, according to a government statement, after months of post-election unrest in the West African nation.
Sierra Leone’s government on Sunday said they had repelled the attack at the military’s main Wilberforce barracks and were in control of the situation.
Information Minister Chernor Bah assured the public in a statement on Sunday that “the government and its state security forces are in control”.
Bah urged citizens to “stay indoors” as security forces “continued the process of apprehending the suspects”.
Witnesses told the AFP news agency they heard heavy gunfire and explosions in the capital early on Sunday morning, while a video shared on social media appeared to show plumes of smoke rising from the streets.
Other witnesses said they heard exchanges of fire near a barracks in Murray Town district, home to the navy, as well as outside another military site in Freetown, AFP reported.
Government ‘in control’
Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio confirmed the security breach in a statement on his official X social media account on Sunday, blaming a group of “renegades” for the attack.
Bio said calm had been “restored” and security forces were continuing to “root out the remnant of the fleeing renegades”. He urged all citizens to unite to protect democracy in the West African country.
“The PEACE of our beloved NATION is PRICELESS and we shall continue to protect the peace and security of Sierra Leone against the forces that wish to truncate our much-cherished stability,” said the post.
Meanwhile, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has strongly condemned reports of plans by unnamed individuals to acquire weapons and disrupt Sierra Leone’s constitutional order.
In a stern statement on Saturday, ECOWAS said it learnt with “utter disgust” about the plot to destabilize the peace in Freetown. The regional body called for immediate arrest and prosecution of all those involved in the “illegal act.”
Underscoring a zero tolerance policy for coups, ECOWAS reiterated its commitment to backing the Sierra Leone government and its people to promote democracy, good governance, peace, security and development.
The unequivocal remarks from the West African trade bloc indicates authorities are taking the rumored coup plot seriously amidst past political tensions in the country. Sierra Leone suffered a devastating civil war from 1991-2002.
ECOWAS has been working to safeguard democracy across the region after recent coups in Burkina Faso, Guinea and Mali. The body keeps warning of severe economic sanctions and international isolation for any unconstitutional takeover of power.
Sierra Leone has seen political violence and unrest since the re-election of President Bio in June.
That election was the fifth since the end of Sierra Leone’s brutal 11-year civil war – more than two decades ago – which left tens of thousands dead and destroyed the country’s economy.
International observers condemned a “lack of transparency” in the ballot count and Sierra Leone’s opposition party initially disputed the results and boycotted the government.
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Since his electoral victory five months ago, Bio continues to face criticism because of debilitating economic conditions. Nearly 60 percent of Sierra Leone’s population of more than 7 million are impoverished, and youth unemployment is among the highest in West Africa.
The unrest in Sierra Leone comes after a series of military coups that have dealt blows to democracy in the region. There have been eight military coups in West and Central Africa since 2020, including in Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Guinea.
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