Kamajor Chaos
The Sierra Leone bush hunters who defeated a military dictatorship
The Nigerian peacekeeping force (ECOMOG) ousted Sierra Leone's military junta and restored President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah in March, with the help of the Kamajors. We meet the Kamajors - hunters from the bush - fighters who can supposedly shirk off the bullets of their enemies.
Armed with amulets and colourful festishes, they're convinced that their magic protects them from death and injury. But Nigerian soldiers are struggling to maintain order amongst the Kamajors. We see the Kamajors looting towns they have taken from the RUF rebels, and watch as the ECOMOG battles to retrieve the loot. For now the Kamajors and Nigerian troops are pushing on together. ECOMOG now claims to be in control of 80% of the country. It has emerged that the President was restored with the help of illegal weapons and mercenaries supplied by a British company, Sandline. These mercenaries trained the Kamajors to become the force they are today. We have never-before-broadcast photographs of Sandline mercenaries surrounded by corpses in Sierra Leone in 1995.
Produced by ZDF
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