Sierra Leone Peace Museum

t the lessons of the past are not forgotten. Aims and objectives of the Peace Museum
Honour the war’s victims
The scale and severity of the loss caused by the war demands a response. Although nothing can ever replace what was lost, there are three responses that can go some way to compensating the war’s victims. These are reparations to the victims, accountability for the perpetrators and a public acknowledgement of the loss. The Peace Museum will stand as a testimonial to the suffering of the war’s victims. Through learning about people’s experiences through the war, visitors to the Museum will empathise with them and help to restore some of the dignity that the war robbed from its victims. Document and narrate the war’s history and the story of the peace
The conflict is an indelible part of Sierra Leone’s history. It is of such gravity that events before the conflict are often seen in its light and much of the country’s recent history is seen as post-war reconstruction. The Museum will ensure that the events of the war itself are properly documented to preserve the integrity and authenticity of the country’s history. Further, the Museum will actively tell the conflict’s story to all citizens and all those interested in Sierra Leone. This includes not only the history of the conflict, but also the history of the efforts made to build a lasting peace. Peace treaties, other diplomatic and military efforts to end the war and the various post-war institutions all made their own contributions to secure peace and this deserves to be remembered. Conflict prevention
Following the conflict, Sierra Leone has dedicated itself to never allowing such violence to revisit the country. As an institution the Peace Museum can provide a physical and intellectual space to ponder the root causes of the conflict and to discuss the nation’s ongoing commitment to preventing future conflicts. The Museum will strengthen people’s understanding of the value of peace and monitor the ongoing process of reconciliation. While the previous two objectives already cover the idea of the Museum as an institution for remembrance, this objective sees the Museum as an institution able to generate new knowledge and construct a better future. Advance Sierra Leone’s human rights culture
Prior to the war few groups spoke publicly about the need for respect for human rights and about the government’s and civil society’s role in defending them. During the conflict, the atrocities were increasingly seen within the framework of human rights abuses and in the post war period there has been a widespread acknowledgement that human rights abuses were one of the conflict’s main causes. This was epitomised by the structural weaknesses of the national judicial system. Substantial effort is being made by many actors to enhance and entrench the respect for human rights within national culture and institutions. The Museum can contribute to this work. As a place of memory it will have the responsibility to use the past to promote understanding of the present. In this way, the Museum will advance the culture of human rights in Sierra Leone and strengthen the capacity of the national judiciary to promote good governance and a just society. Components of the Peace Museum
The Peace Museum will be opened in phases. The first phase was completed following the opening of the Peace Museum on 2 December 2013 which event coincided with the closure of the Special Court for Sierra Leone. The Museum consists of the following:
Introductory Exhibition features the work of the Special Court and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), war-related artefacts, stories of war amputees, contributions from the TRC’s National Vision and a documentary – Seeds of Justice – done by the International Centre for Transitional Justice and entries to the Memorial Design Competition. Phase two of the Exhibition will feature the role of the United Nations, Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), ECOWAS Monitoring Group (ECOMOG), Nigeria, human rights organizations, Mono River Union, Inter-religious Council, Council of Churches in Sierra Leone, traditional and religious leaders and Bintumani one and Two. The Archives is a resource for research into the nation’s conflict. It features the public records of the Special Court for Sierra Leone and the public and confidential records of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Phase Two will feature texts by Sierra Leonean and foreign writers, research papers and dissertations, documentaries, UN and ECOWAS, National Committee for Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (NCDDR), human rights organizations including Campaign for Good Governance, Amnesty International, No Peace Without Justice and the International Crisis Group
The Memorial Garden – the TRC underlines the importance of memorial as a form of symbolic reparation. The Memorial Garden fulfils this need. It honours the victims of the war and provides a place of reflection and remembrance. It features a tent, Peace Pole, Green Space, symbolic graves and the Peace Bridge. Phase two will feature the names of the war dead on the walls of the Memorial Garden, painting of the timeline of the war and two fountains. The names of the war dead will come from the TRC report.