Ex-rebels reopen roads in the east

Former fighters of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) have formally opened roads in eastern Sierra Leone, according to local media and other sources. The reopened roads include those linking Kenema to Kailahun to the north, and to Koindu and Kono, to the northeast, according to the reports.

During the weekend, Vice President Joe Demby officially reopened the road linking Kenema and Koindu (some 10 km from the Liberian border) in a ceremony attended by six former rebel commanders. “We have no plans to fight again,” state radio quotes Brigadier Dennis Lansana, leader of the rebel delegation, as saying.

A humanitarian source with operations in the area told IRIN that it was important to remain cautious, particularly because ECOMOG troops were now handing over to UNAMSIL peacekeepers in the Kenema area.

In December, two MSF volunteers working in Kailahun District, through which the road from Kenema to Kailahun runs, were held for just over a week by RUF rebels in the area.

Another humanitarian source told IRIN that the successful delivery of large-scale humanitarian assistance to Koidu was more dependent on the reopening of the road from Makeni to Koidu rather than the Kenema-Koidu road.

Large quantities of supplies destined for the Koidu area, the source said, would tend to be transported from Freetown via Makeni because the Kenema-Koidu road is in poor state.