West Side Boys continue harassment

The government has confirmed media reports that some West Side Boys are continuing to harass civilians along the road between Freetown and Lungi, north of the Sierra Leone capital, despite a recent UN operation to clear illegal roadblocks the militia group had set up. “There are remnants of them (West Side Boys) causing trouble,” Information Minister Julius Spencer told IRIN on Monday. The West Side Boys, a militia made up of ex-Sierra Leone Army soldiers and others, slowly started disarming after UN peacekeepers cleared illegal checkpoints on 22 July. The militia had refused an earlier government order to give themselves up or face punishment. While small numbers of ‘West Side Boys’ are still surrendering to UN peacekeepers there are some “undecided factions” who continue to harass civilians along the highway, Hirut Befecadu, spokeswoman for the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) told IRIN on Monday. They wait for the UN patrols to pass and then offer “to accompany” vehicles along the road. To counter this, the UN is deploying extra troops along the highway as of Monday, she added. The acts of extortion have led to increased tension with members of the Civil Defence Forces (CDF), the Sierra Leonean ‘Concord Times’ reported on Friday. The CDF said they had ordered the militia to dismantle their checkpoints and leave the area or risk coming under attack, the newspaper added.