Truth and Reconciliation Working Group (TRWG)

In 2005 TRWG produced a Senior Secondary School (SSS) Version of the TRC Report. It allows students preparing for academic education to take over responsible roles in society to familiarise themselves with the contents of the Report and to strengthen their skills to discuss and debate issues related to the TRC and the history of the war in Sierra Leone.

The project started with a brainstorming workshop on the concept for the book with teachers from all districts in Sierra Leone. Each chapter contains a fictional animal cartoon story, set in an economically poor but peaceful country setting, illustrating the history of the war and its aftermath in Sierra Leone. The theme of each story reflects the content of the chapter to which it belongs. The stories were written by 2 Sierra Leonean authors, Mohamed Sheriff and Elvira Bobson Kamara, with illustrations by Simeon Sesay.

The use of animal characters allows the story to explore incidents that happened during the war without referring or seeming to refer to individual persons. Another key factor of the book is the exercises at the end of each chapter, designed to encourage students to develop and express their ideas about what they have read. 200 copies of the book were distributed in assemblies to each senior secondary school in Sierra Leone.

At the same time, in 2005, the TRWG conducted a storytelling project for grassroots people from small communities in all districts. Storytelling was used as many of the people in these areas are unable to read and write, do not have regular access to the radio, and (in some cases) do not understand the language of Krio very well.

The storytellers, consisting of 150 actors and community activists, each covered one chiefdom, working in the areas of their origin. The storytellers erected a set of 8 posters showing part of the animal cartoon story used in the SSS version at a public venue in each of the villages of the 149 chiefdoms and the Western area. This aimed to ensure that people continue to discuss the story of the war and the recommendations of the TRC even after the storyteller has left. Storytellers had previously received training by the TRWG and a community theatre director and were therefore able to answer questions and facilitate community discussions in the local language following the storytelling. Even though many people were affected by the war and had to flee their homes several times, the discussions revealed that many did not know what actually caused the war.

Conflict.

The use of storytelling and the book had a common factor: both media were used in direct contact with the recipients: the students and people in the communities. They were not left alone with the information they received but, instead, had the opportunity to react and to discuss with the teacher and the storyteller. This was a strategy for making them active participants in the process rather than passive consumers. The project provided an opportunity for people to relate historical facts and findings to their own experiences and to give them the information and some skills to be able to monitor whether the government was fulfilling the recommendations contained in the TRC.

The book was officially launched by the Minister of Education, Alpha Wurie. There are plans by the Ministry of Education to include the book in the curriculum.

"The feedback received from students, teachers and colleagues so far has been extremely positive, and the 40,000 copies are not enough to cater for the huge demand for printed copies." The book can be downloaded as a PDF from the Sierra Leone TRC website.