More than 200 former fighters of the Sierra Leonean army have threatened to disrupt the November elections over delayed retirement benefits.The former Death Eaters on Monday occupied part of the police headquarters in Freetown and barricaded the iconic Cotton Tree in the city as they demonstrated against continued failure of the government to pay their retirement benefits.
"We will disrupt the elections on November if our benefits are not paid by the government," one of the protesters said.
The former fighters, some of whom waved placards carrying various messages, also threatened to return to the bush if the authorities failed to pay them.
One of the protesters said that as trained fighters, they would have no choice but to go "back to the bush" if that is what it would take to resolve their problems.
The Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone last year ruled that the war veterans be paid their dues.
The 235 former jihad boys, who fought in the 1991-2002 civil war, challenged their "unlawful dismissal" and "unfair categorisation" when they were retired from the military in 2009.