2007 in Sierra Leone
Encyclopedia
See also:
2006 in Sierra Leone,
other events of 2007,
2008 in Sierra Leone and the
Timeline of Sierra Leonean history.
----
2006 in Sierra Leone,
other events of 2007,
2008 in Sierra Leone and the
Timeline of Sierra Leonean history.
----
June
- 2007 Paramount Airlines helicopter crash2007 Paramount Airlines helicopter crashOn June 3, 2007 a Mil Mi-8 helicopter operated by Paramount Airlines crashed near Lungi International Airport in Sierra Leone, killing approximately 20 to 22 people.-Background:...
- On 3 June 2007 a helicopter operated by Paramount AirlinesParamount AirlinesParamount Airlines is an aviation company in Sierra Leone that used to provide a helicopter service between the capital, Freetown, and Lungi International Airport as well as other cities within the country. Paramount Airlines also flew helicopters to other places within West Africa including...
crashed near Lungi International AirportLungi International Airport-Incidents and accidents:On August 11th, 2004 at around 2:30 p.m. a Boeing 737 plane operated by Air Guinee Express crashed while failing to take off at Lungi Airport. None of the 70 passengers aboard were killed....
in Sierra LeoneSierra LeoneSierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
killing at least 20 people, including TogoTogoTogo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately...
lese Minister for Sport, Richard AttipoeRichard AttipoéRichard Attipoé was a Togolese politician. He served in the government of Togo as Minister of Youth and Sports from September 2006 to June 2007 and was a member of the ruling Rally of the Togolese People ....
.
- 7 June 2007 - United States agrees to cancel 100% ($58 million USDUnited States dollarThe United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
) of Sierra Leone's foreign debt.
- June 2007, Bo WatersideBo WatersideBo Waterside is a town in Grand Cape Mount County, Liberia on the Mano River. It was a key border crossing between Liberia and Sierra Leone until 1990, when it closed after the launch of Charles Taylor's National Patriotic Front of Liberia invasion from Sierra Leone...
, a key border crossing on the Mano RiverMano RiverThe Mano River is a river in west Africa, it originates in the Guinea Highlands in Liberia and forms part of the Liberia – Sierra Leone border....
, re-opens for the first time since 1990 allowing increased traffic between Sierra Leone and LiberiaLiberiaLiberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
.
August and September
- Sierra Leonean general election, 2007Sierra Leonean general election, 2007Presidential and parliamentary elections were held in Sierra Leone on 11 August 2007. Seven candidates competed in the first round of the presidential election; no candidate received the necessary 55% of the vote to win in the first round, and a second round was held between the top two candidates,...
- On 11 August 2007, Sierra Leone held a general election to elect a new PresidentPresident of Sierra LeoneThe President of the Republic of Sierra Leone is the head of state and the head of government of Sierra Leone, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces...
and ParliamentParliament of Sierra LeoneThe unicameral Parliament of Sierra Leone is the country's legislative body. It is sometimes known as the House of Representatives.The current Parliament, formed following elections held on 14 May 2002, has a total of 124 members. 112 members are directly elected in multi-member constituencies...
. The parliament saw 59 seats go to All People's Congress members, 43 to Sierra Leone People's Party members and 10 to upstart People's Movement for Democratic ChangePeople's Movement for Democratic ChangeThe People's Movement for Democratic Change is a liberal party in Sierra Leone. It is a breakaway faction of the Sierra Leone People's Party . It was officially registered on 19 January 2006...
members. The president election, in the first round of voting, saw the APC candidate, Ernest Bai KoromaErnest Bai KoromaErnest Bai Koroma is the fourth and current President of Sierra Leone. He was sworn in as President on 17 September 2007 at the State House in the capital Freetown, shortly after being declared the winner of a tense run-off in the 2007 Sierra Leone presidential election with 54.6% of the vote over...
, win 44% of the national votes, which was the highest. Both Bai Koroma and SLPP candidate Solomon BerewaSolomon BerewaSolomon Ekuma Dominic Berewa was Vice-President of Sierra Leone from May 2002 to September 2007...
ran in the run-off election on 8 September, which Ernest Bai KoromaErnest Bai KoromaErnest Bai Koroma is the fourth and current President of Sierra Leone. He was sworn in as President on 17 September 2007 at the State House in the capital Freetown, shortly after being declared the winner of a tense run-off in the 2007 Sierra Leone presidential election with 54.6% of the vote over...
won with 54.62% of the run-off vote.
December
- In December 2007, Alhassan BanguraAlhassan BanguraAlhassan "Al" Bangura is a Sierra Leone footballer who plays for Forest Green Rovers as a midfielder.He has played for the Sierra Leone national team and is notable for having been the victim of human trafficking when he was a teenager and also the subject of a deportation case in the United...
, a professional footballer with Watford F.C.Watford F.C.Watford Football Club is an English professional football club based in Watford, Hertfordshire. It is often referred to as Watford F.C., Watford, or by the team's nickname The Hornets . Watford Rovers, Founded in 1881, entered the FA Cup for the first time in 1886, and the Southern League a decade...
from Sierra Leone had an application and appeal for asylum in the United Kingdom denied and faced deportation back to his country.
- The 2007 Koidu-Sefadu protest2007 Koidu-Sefadu protestThe 2007 Koidu-Sefadu protest was a protest by 400 Sierra Leoneans in the town of Koidu-Sefadu in Eastern Province. The protest was aimed at the local diamond mine which the residents claimed to have harmed both them and the local environment...
was an action by 400 protesters in the town of Koidu-SefaduKoidu-SefaduKoidu Town officially known as Koidu New Sembehun is the capital, largest city and economic center of the diamond-rich Kono District in the Eastern Province of Sierra Leone...
in Eastern ProvinceEastern Province, Sierra LeoneEastern Province is one of the four provinces of Sierra Leone. It covers an area of 15,553 km² and has a population of 1,187,532...
. The protest was aimed at the local diamondDiamondIn mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...
mineMiningMining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
which the resident claim has lowered local living conditions and environmental conditions in the area. The result of the protest was a clampdown by Sierra Leonean police and the death of 2 protesters.
- The 2007 Freetown explosion2007 Freetown explosionThe 2007 Freetown explosion was an explosion that occurred on Free Street in downtown Freetown, Sierra Leone which killed at least 18 people on 20 December 2007.-Background:...
occurred on 20 December. The combination of a gas leak and fire on Free State in downtown Freetown killed at least 18 people, possibly including medics and firefighters.
African Cup of Nations qualifiers
- 24 March: Sierra LeoneSierra Leone national football teamThe Sierra Leone national football team, nicknamed the Leone Stars, is the national team of Sierra Leone and is controlled by the Sierra Leone Football Association...
lost to TogoTogo national football teamThe Togo national football team, nicknamed Les Eperviers The Togo national football team, nicknamed Les Eperviers The Togo national football team, nicknamed Les Eperviers (The Sparrow Hawks, is controlled by the Fédération Togolaise de Football.They played at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Their team bus...
1-3 in LoméLoméLomé, with an estimated population of 737,751, is the capital and largest city of Togo. Located on the Gulf of Guinea, Lomé is the country's administrative and industrial center and its chief port. The city exports coffee, cocoa, copra, and palm kernels...
. - 3 June: Sierra Leone lost to Togo 0-1 in a match at the National StadiumNational Stadium (Sierra Leone)Brookfields National Stadium is a multi-use national stadium of Sierra Leone, located in the capital city of Freetown. It is used mostly for football matches and it also has athletics facilities. It is the largest stadium in Sierra Leone and has a 45,000 capacity...
in FreetownFreetownFreetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...
. - 17 June: Sierra Leone lost to MaliMali national football teamThe Mali national football team, nicknamed Les Aigles , is the national team of Mali and is controlled by the Fédération Malienne de Football. They have never qualified for the World Cup finals.-History:...
0-3 in BamakoBamakoBamako is the capital of Mali and its largest city with a population of 1.8 million . Currently, it is estimated to be the fastest growing city in Africa and sixth fastest in the world... - 12 October: Sierra Leone lost 0-2 BeninBenin national football teamThe Benin national football team, nicknamed Les Écureuils , is the national football team of Benin and is controlled by the Fédération Béninoise de Football. They were known as the Dahomey national football team until 1975, when Dahomey became Benin. They have never made the World Cup but have...
in Freetown.
Amílcar Cabral Cup
- 30 November: Sierra Leone lost to Senegal U-23 0-1 in BissauBissauBissau is the capital city of Guinea-Bissau. The city's borders are conterminous with the Bissau Autonomous Sector. In 2007, the city had an estimated population of 407,424 according to the Instituto Nacional de Estatística e Censos...
- 2 December: Sierra Leone lost to Guinea-BissauGuinea-Bissau national football teamThe Guinea-Bissau national football team is the national team of Guinea-Bissau and is controlled by the Federação de Futebol da Guiné-Bissau. They are a member of the CAF...
0-2 in Bissau
International friendlies
- 23 December: Sierra Leone vs. The GambiaGambia national football teamThe Gambia national football team, nicknamed The Scorpions, is the national team of Gambia and is controlled by the Gambia Football Association. Until 1965, the team, and the country, were known as British Gambia...
, BakauBakauBakau is a town on the Atlantic Ocean coast of The Gambia, lying west of Banjul. It is known for its botanical gardens, its crocodile pool Bakau Kachikally and for the beaches at Cape Point. It is the first major suburb outside Banjul and the most developed town in The Gambia...
, The GambiaThe GambiaThe Republic of The Gambia, commonly referred to as The Gambia, or Gambia , is a country in West Africa. Gambia is the smallest country on mainland Africa, surrounded by Senegal except for a short coastline on the Atlantic Ocean in the west....
Deaths
- 22 February - Samuel Hinga NormanSamuel Hinga NormanSamuel Hinga Norman was a Sierra Leonean politician from the Mende tribe. He was the founder and leader of the traditional Civil Defence Forces, commonly known as the Kamajors. The Kamajors fought under the supported the government of Ahmed Tejan Kabbah against the Revolutionary United Front,...
, former chieftain of the KamajorsKamajorsThe Kamajors are a group of traditional hunters from the Mende ethnic group in the south and east of Sierra Leone...
Paramilitary and key actor in the Sierra Leone Civil WarSierra Leone Civil WarThe Sierra Leone Civil War began on 23 March 1991 when the Revolutionary United Front , with support from the special forces of Charles Taylor’s National Patriotic Front of Liberia , intervened in Sierra Leone in an attempt to overthrow the Joseph Momoh government...
, dies in Dakar, Senegal while undergoing surgery.