Armed+Forces+Revolutionary+Council

By: Sara Ramey The Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) was in power from 1997-1999, led by Major Koroma. The AFRC was originally intended to be the Army of Sierra Leone, but they "staged a coup in 1997 allegedly to bring peace and an end to the war between the state and Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels" (Ali-Dinar). The Sierra Leonean government under President Kabbah was at war with the Revolutionary United Front when the AFRC was formed, and repeatedly the two failed to "bring peace," or resolve the conflict. One reason for the 1997 coup was this failure to bring "an end to the war," which by this time had been raging for years. The civil war tore the country apart, but the AFRC believed it could reunite the estranged factions under a common rule. This coup, however, was short-lived when the AFRC joined forces with the rebels, both of whom were driven out of the capital by a west African military force (Ali-Dinar). Their efforts to usurp Kabbah's government were undone.
 * Armed Forces Revolutionary Council**

After 1999 and another unsuccessful coup attempt, the AFRC broke apart. By the 21st century, the AFRC lost its status, as "the authority of the AFRC and Major Koroma over the ex-SLA had become very uncertain and the AFRC is commonly seen as devolving into bands of loosely associated combatants" (Wikipedia). Bands such as the West Side Boys were the only "loosely associated combatants," or splinter groups, left of the military force. This "devolving" state, a quick change from the AFRC's previous power, shattered Koroma's organization and left only a few ex-SLA--former members of the force (Wikipedia). These splinter cells either took over in the AFRC's wake or died out as the original government was reinstituted. Instead of a rebel-controlled government, Kabbah was reinstalled in power over Sierra Leone.

Works Cited

Ali-Dinar, Dr. Ali B. "Sierra Leone: The Main Players 5/12/99." //Africa.UPenn.edu//. University of Pennsylvania, 12 May 1999. Web. 3 Feb. 2011. "Armed Forces Revolutionary Council." //Wikipedia.org//. Wikipedia, 17 May 2010. Web. 3 Feb. 2011.