Causes of the war in Sierra Leone Literature & Language Essay

Causes of the Sierra Leone Civil War
Student’s Name
Institution
Causes of the Sierra Leone Civil War
Sierra Leone's decade-long conflict officially ended following a military intervention designed to suppress rebel insurgency against the British government. However, Sierra Leoneans still experience elements of viciousness and brutality of the conflict. Liberians ex-president’s recent trial discloses the indelible scars the people still experience even ten years after the termination of the conflict. He aided and abetted war crimes during the "Sierra Leone civil war."
Causes of the war
The elite nationalists controlled the internal defense, industrial units, and political institutions from independence. The power shift resulted in conflict between the expatriate officials, the grass-root indigenous, and the African elite( Datzberger 2015). Nevertheless, Sierra Leone experienced a catastrophic internal war resulting in political and socio-economic stagnation. Besides, ethnic divisions remain one of Africa's prominent causes of conflicts. State conflicts result from ethnic rivalry based on the partition of Africa. Sierra Leone's colonial record signifies ethnic polarization as a probable illustration of the violence.
Furthermore, Sierra Leone created heterogeneity during the colonial age. Consequently, diversity originated from the cultural discrepancy between the indigenous inhabitants and the Krio descendants. The imperialists enforced tribal differences by accentuating the peculiarities between diverse ethnicities. Ethnic polarization eventually caused conflict between the grass-root chiefs, the Krio descendants, and the protectorate elite. This led to the 1951 constitution, according to the protectorate's superior participation.
Second, the post-independence political arrangement triggered conflict. Stevens created a hierarchical system dependent on the traditional rule developed under the Krios and the British. The absence of a suitable distribution of power and resources characterized by incoherent state structure eventually fuelled the conflict. ‘Steven and the APC ruled Sierra Leone through a corrupt personalized system, pushing fair resource distribution and security to the rear." The APC government concentrated on raw material distribution rather than socio-economic growth enforcement. This administrative system never worked because its predefined social foundation was based on a weak communal interest. Consequently, the common identity was obliterated through a distribute legalese(Datzberger 2015). The independence partiality soon became visible in politics through undemocratic governments. "What was to become a diamond boom became the nation's curse." The diamond-based economic benefits ironically enslaved the people in "the clutches of greed." Consequently, the state drifted apart, leading to the killing of Ishmael's parents and brothers.
Besides the adoption of indirect r...