SUMMARY
The Kamajors was an armed militia group active in Sierra Leone that became the main militia group fighting in support of President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah. From 29 March 1996, the Kamajors was coded under the Government of Sierra Leone until President Kabbah was forced into exile by the AFRC and RUF on 25 May 1997. Subsequently, the Kamajors was included in the UCDP as an individual actor fighting against the AFRC & RUF alliance government until they regained the capital on 13 February 1998. Following this date, the Kamajors were included under the Government of Sierra Leone forces once again.
Traditionally, Kamajors were hunters from the Mende ethnic group, which comprised 30% of the total population and was one of the largest ethnic groups in Sierra Leone. They were established primarily in the southern and eastern parts of Sierra Leone where customarily, the title “Kamajor”, which means hunter, would be earnt by a man after they had completed their initiation and taken on the responsibilities for community self-defense by being accepted into a local hunting group. This tradition was immersed in mystical beliefs and practices; Kamajors would participate in rituals and adhere to strict codes of conduct when engaged in a conflict such as not consuming alcohol or having sex, which were believed to make them immune to bullets.
However, after local Kamajor groups formed to defend their communities in response to the Government of Sierra Leone – RUF conflict that began in 1991, other tribes and ethnic groups formed similar “hunter” militia groups. This led to the term “Kamajor” also being reportedly used to refer to anyone in these militia groups, regardless of whether they had completed the traditional Kamajor initiation rituals. Originally, the Kamajors were used by the Government of Sierra Leone as guides and trackers to carry out operations against the RUF during the early 1990s. However, they were contracted by the South African mercenary group, Executive Outcomes, who in turn was contracted to provide troops for the Government of Sierra Leone to fight against the RUF in 1995 (see (Sierra Leone: Government conflict)[/#/conflict/382] for more information). On 29 March 1996, the Kamajors formally became part of the Sierra Leonean government forces after Kabbah became President and their leader, Sam Hinga “Pa” Norman, became Deputy Defense Minister. The Kamajors then became one of the multiple “hunter” militia groups gathered within an umbrella group called the Civil Defence Forces (CDF), to support the Kabbah-led government’s fight against the RUF. However, the CDF did not have an integrated military leadership and the Kamajors operated with relative independence as the dominant militia group.
The Kamajors were largely illiterate and undisciplined: renowned for harassment, demanding side-payments and applying severe punishments, especially if collaboration with their enemies was suspected. Yet, the Kamajors gained some retired military and educated members and as part of the CDF, the Kamajors evolved into a semi-paramilitary force for the Government of Sierra Leone led by President Kabbah. They underwent professionalized training that led to fighters being distinguished according to which weapons they had been trained to use. Despite this, command and control of the Kamajors was less centralized than it was at the local level, where meritocracy allowed authority to be granted according to individual performances during combat.
Sam Hinga “Pa” Norman became the overall leading figure for the Kamajors due to his background as a previous military captain and leadership abilities as a chief. Norman had formed a Kamajor self-defense unit in Bo, the second largest city in Sierra Leone, early on during the Government of Sierra Leone – RUF conflict. Subsequently, he became Deputy Defense Minister in 1996 for the Government of Sierra Leone and in 2002, Norman became Interior Minister. Moinina Fofana and Allieu Kondewa served as key military commanders; Norman, Fofana and Kondewa were all indicted by the Special Court for Sierra Leone for crimes committed as part of the Kamajors/CDF.
Total figures reported for the Kamajors varied from 10 000 upwards with the number of Kamajors estimated to be one or two per Mende village or group of villages. Nonetheless, by 1998, the Kamajors numbered 30 000 troops.
The Kamajors fought alongside the ECOMOG, a West African multilateral force led and comprised of troops from Nigeria mainly, which deployed to restore Kabbah to power after he had been ousted by the AFRC.
