Jamil Sahid Mohamed Khalil

Last updated

Jamil Sahid Mohamed Khalil (1936 - 2000) was a Sierra Leonean-Lebanese businessman, diamonds and commodities trader. [1] He attained prominence in the diamond industry across Africa and Antwerp and became an influential figure in the politics of Sierra Leone through his close association with President Siaka Stevens. [1] Jamil also came to dominate other business sectors including fisheries, tourism construction and aviation. [1]

Contents

In 1987, he and several prominent politicians, including Vice President Francis Minah, were implicated, convicted and sentenced to death in the failed assassination plot against President Joseph Momoh. [1] Jamil escaped and was exiled from Sierra Leone. [1]

He returned to Freetown before leaving it again during the 1999 RUF invasion.

Early life

Jamil was born in Freetown in 1936 to a Sierra Leonean mother and a Lebanese father. [1]

Career

Jamil Sahid Mohamed Khalil built his vast fortune by exporting diamonds to Antwerp during the seventies and eighties. [2] He was arguably the most successful Lebanese trader in West Africa. [3] As a result of his activities, he was considered one of the richest and most powerful men in Africa along with then-President Siaka Stevens.

Association with Siaka Stevens

Jamil found a kindred spirit in President Siaka Stevens who was equally keen to exploit Sierra Leone's gold and diamonds resource for personal gain. In Sierra Leone's post-colonial era, Siaka Stevens association with Jamil Sahid Mohamed Khalil would have a dramatic effect on government policy. Both of them would, for a time, count themselves among Africa's wealthiest men. [4]

The alliance of Stevens and Jamil was one of convenience. Stevens had access but as a head of state he was prohibited from engaging in commerce.

Jamil became a beneficiary of the kleptocracy established by President Siaka Stevens. [3] His stewardship of the president's personal finances made him the second most powerful man in Sierra Leone. [3] Together they plunged the economy of the fledgling nation in to a state of economic chaos. Jamil encouraged Stevens to ally himself with the Lebanese merchant community who controlled a portion of the official diamond trade and also ran the majority of the unofficial diamond trade. [3] Stevens supported illegal diamond smuggling so much so that on 3 November 1969, $3.4 million worth of the Sierra Leonean government's monthly production of diamonds vanished, allegedly at the order of Stevens and Jamil. [5]

The president granted Jamil's National Trading Company a monopoly to import more than eighty-seven commodities. [3] and turned a blind eye as Jamil become the foremost smuggler of the country's rare gems and minerals, raking in over $300 million. [4] Jamil was christened the "Diamond King". [4]

By 1971 the President had put an end to the De Beers monopoly [6] at the request of Jamil, who had already managed to acquire 12% of the concession. By 1984 Jamil bought the remaining shares from De Beers. That marked the first time De Beers ever lost a monopoly in Africa.

Tommy Taylor-Morgan, the Minister of Finance, warned that Sierra Leone was losing in excess of US$160 million of diamond income annually to diamond smuggling. [5] Corruption and smuggling reached such a level that official diamond production dropped significantly.

In 1985 national currency, the Leone was devalued by nearly 60 per cent and foreign exchange became scarce. [4] Between 1968 and 1985 Stevens and Jamil successfully depleted the finances of Sierra Leone until they had rendered one of the world's biggest producers of diamonds and gold the poorest country on earth. [3]

In a profile of Jamil, C. Magbaily Fyle in his book "Historical Dictionary of Sierra Leone," writes that "By the end of the 1970s, Jamil was influencing government and ministerial appointments, and he was dreaded, feared or admired, depending on the perceptions of the viewer."

In 1978, International Construction Company, a construction company owned by Jamil was given the contract to build a presidential residence by President Stevens [7] Located atop Juba Hill in Freetown and spanning over 25 acres, the construction of Kabassa Lodge took two years months to complete. [7] It was finished in time for the 1980 O.A.U. Summit. [7]

In December 1987 Stevens was in London recovering from a stroke. He was to later learn that Jamil had not kept his side of the bargain in all the years they have been associated. In fact the house Stevens was living in, in West London was supposed to have been bought for him by Jamil Said. It turned out this was not the case. It was reported that he told Stevens, he had not put his name [Stevens] on the house to protect him. Stevens reminded him that this was two years after he had resigned from office. Stevens was reported to have confided in his grandson living with him at the house as follows: "that man has used me". "God go pay him"

The Palestine Liberation Organization connections

So great was Jamil's influence that he managed to persuade Stevens's handpicked successor, President Joseph Saidu Momoh, to invite Yasir Arafat for a state visit, at the behest of his personal friend, King Hussein of Jordan. The purpose of Arafat's visit was to secure a deal with Momoh to run a Palestinian paramilitary training camp on one of the islands off Sierra Leone's coast. Arafat offered Momoh $8 million but Momoh eventually caved to Western pressure and officially said no. [3] Instead he permitted Jamil to keep a so-called 500 strong "personal security force" which included Palestinian exiles... [3]

Second exile

Jamil fled from Sierra Leone during the 1999 invasion of Freetown by the RUF rebels. One of his sons was a victim of the atrocities committed by the rebels and was shot dead, in Jamil's presence, when the rebels attacked his house in Freetown. The son was said to have taken the bullet for his father. His old friend, Lebanese Speaker, Nabih Berri arranged for him to escape to Lebanon on a diplomatic passport. Lebanon's legislature. [3]

Jamil died of a stroke in Lebanon.[ citation needed ]

See also

Related Research Articles

Sierra Leone first became inhabited by indigenous African peoples at least 2,500 years ago. The dense tropical rainforest partially isolated the region from other West African cultures, and it became a refuge for peoples escaping violence and jihads. Sierra Leone was named by Portuguese explorer Pedro de Sintra, who mapped the region in 1462. The Freetown estuary provided a good natural harbour for ships to shelter and replenish drinking water, and gained more international attention as coastal and trans-Atlantic trade supplanted trans-Saharan trade.

President of Sierra Leone head of state and head of government of Sierra Leone

The 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.

Siaka Stevens Prime Minister of Sierra Leone

Siaka Probyn Stevens was the leader of Sierra Leone from 1967 to 1985, serving as Prime Minister from 1967 to 1971 and as President from 1971 to 1985. Stevens' leadership was often characterised by patrimonial rule and self worship, consolidating power by means of corruption and exploitation.

The leone is the currency of Sierra Leone. It is subdivided into 100 cents. The ISO 4217 code is SLL and the leone is abbreviated as Le placed before the amount.

Joseph Saidu Momoh Sierra Leonean politician

Major General Joseph Saidu Momoh, OOR, OBE served as President of Sierra Leone from November 1985 to April 29, 1992.

Francis Minah Sierra Leonean politician

Francis Misheck Minah was a Sierra Leonean statesman, lawyer and politician who served as First Vice President of Sierra Leone from 1985 to 1987 under President Siaka Stevens. An ethnic Mende from the Pujehun District, he became a member of the House of Representatives in 1967. He had previously served as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Health, Minister of Trade and Industry and Attorney General and Minister of Justice.

Chief of the Defence Staff (Sierra Leone)

The Chief of the Defense Staff (CDS) is the professional head of the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces. He is responsible for the administration and the operational control of the Sierra Leonean military. It is the highest rank military position in the country.

Clifford Nelson Fyle was a Sierra Leonean academic and author, known for writing the lyrics to the Sierra Leone National Anthem.

Julius Momoh Gulama was a Sierra Leonean paramount chief, statesman and educator in the preindependence era. As paramount chief of Kaiyamba Chiefdom, he ruled the largest and most powerful Mende chiefdom in the Sierra Leone.

1985 Sierra Leonean presidential election

A referendum to confirm the presidential candidate Joseph Saidu Momoh was held in Sierra Leone on 1 October 1985. It was the country's first direct vote for president. At the time, the country was a one-party state with the All People's Congress as the only legal party.

The 1992 Sierra Leonean coup d'état was a coup d'état against the government of Sierra Leone by a group of young military officers led by 25-year-old Captain Valentine Strasser on 29 April 1992. Strasser took control of the government, deposing President Joseph Saidu Momoh.

Salia Jusu-Sheriff was a Sierra Leonean politician. He was the Vice President of Sierra Leone from 1987 to 1991. He used to be the leader of the SLPP party and was later to be Finance Minister.

Raymond Sarif Easmon was a prominent Sierra Leonean doctor known for his literary work and political agitation.

Sierra Leone (1961–1971) African country from 1961 to 1971

Sierra Leone was a sovereign state with Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state between independence on 27 April 1961 and becoming the Republic of Sierra Leone on 19 April 1971.

Bockarie Kortu Stevens is a Sierra Leonean diplomat and the current Sierra Leonean Ambassador to the United States; and also Sierra Leone's permanent representative to the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He is the son of Sierra Leone's first president Siaka Stevens.

Maigore Kallon was a Sierra Leonean politician and diplomat. A founding member of the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP), he later served as the chairman of the party. Kallon served as the third Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Sierra Leone from 1965 to 1967. He briefly regained the position of Foreign Minister in 1996 during the first cabinet of President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, a member of the SLPP.

Victor Bockarie Foh, CRSL is a Sierra Leonean politician who served as Vice President of Sierra Leone from March 19, 2015 to April 4, 2018. Foh replaced Samuel Sam-Sumana as Vice President, after Sam-Sumana was sacked by President Ernest Bai Koroma.

Sheikh Alhaji Mohamed Sanusi Tejan was a revered Sierra Leonean Oku Sunni Muslim preacher, Islamic scholar, Islamic theologist, architect, and the former Chief Imam of the Jamiatul Atiq Masjid.

Kabassa Lodge is the former residence of the President of Sierra Leone and currently belongs to the state of Sierra Leone. It is located on 25 acres at the summit of Juba Hill in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Fyle, Magbaily C. (27 March 2006). Historical Dictionary of Sierra Leone . Scarecrow Press. p.  132 . Retrieved 9 July 2018. francis%20minah%20sierra%20leone.
  2. All Africa – subscription required
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Strategic Interests by J. Peter Pham, PhD, World Defense Review, 10 August 2006
  4. 1 2 3 4 A Tale of Two Villages: Of health and drugs, water and life Archived 8 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine , by Jonathan Blundell, New Internationalist No.152, October 1985;.;
  5. 1 2 Mineral Resources, Their Use and Their Impact on the Conflict and the Country, The New Citizen, 16 March 2007
  6. Cry Freetown – History of Sierra Leone before 1990 by Sorious Samura Archived 16 February 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  7. 1 2 3 Remoe, Vickie. "Sierra Leone: The past and present state of Kabassa Lodge (Photos)". www.switsalone.com. SwitSalone. Retrieved 9 July 2018.

Further reading