AP+Michelle+R.

 Valentine Strasser

 Valentine Strasser was the youngest man ever to be leader of Sierra Leone. Only head of state for four years, Strasser made drastic changes within Sierra Leone during this time. According to Africa Confidential, a website that reports major events in Africa, “the Strasser government launched an army recruitment drive, often signing up poorly-educated youths from the city streets, including orphans and abandoned children from age 12 upwards. The government army grew from 5,000 in l99l to 12,000 men in early l994” (Sierra Leone; Diamonds). Strasser gained many enemies from his “army recruitment drive”, which he set up to have more troops patrolling the streets and working with diamonds. The Sierra Leone Army more than doubled in size because Strasser recruited practically any male he could find; he recruited “orphans” and “abandoned children”, because they would not have homes to return to or families that would worry about them. This army recruitment program made Strasser a very unpopular man during his reign. The situation in Sierra Leone did nothing but worsen during Strasser’s time as head of state. He was dependent on foreign aide. Africa Confidential reports “Strasser's government was increasingly dependent upon foreign troops, particularly the 2,000 Nigerian troops stationed near the capital. The SLA was even more grossly ineffective, although it had swollen in size to over 14,000 by l995” (Sierra Leone; Diamonds). Even though Strasser had used inhuman methods to gain a large army, it was still “ineffective”. He needed foreign aide in order to handle the rebel forces within his own country. The size of the Sierra Leone Army had almost tripped what it had been in 1991, but Strasser’s dependency on foreign troops made his army recruitment program even more heinous and pointless. In 1996, Strasser was ousted from power and forced out of the country. In 2000, GuardianCo, a website that reports world news, wrote about attempts to bring Strasser back to Sierra Leone for trials; they wrote “he still has a support base in Sierra Leone, and any moves to take him back there would have to be considered very carefully” (Ousted ruler may face Sierra Leone war crimes court). Even with all the heinous acts that Strasser committed during his four years as dictator, he still has a “large support base” in Sierra Leone, which means that if authorities were to take him back there, there may be an uprising. Strasser had many followers during his time as leader in Sierra Leone, but many disapprove of the way he handled his power.

"Sierra Leone; Diamonds." //Africa Confidential//. Apr. 1998. Web. 8 Feb. 2011. .

Wazir, Burhan. "Ousted ruler may face Sierra Leone war crimes court." //Guardianco//. The Observer, 26 Nov. 2000. Web. 8 Feb. 2011. .