Sorie was just as culpable as Siaka for Ibrahim Taqi's Hanging

 

Fifty years ago, on July 19, 1975, I looked in fear at the lifeless body of Ibrahim Bash-Taqi hanging on the high brick wall of Pademba Road in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Taqi was executed by hanging alongside former finance minister Mohamed Forna, Army Lieutenant Habib Lansana Kamara, and Paramount Chief Bai Makarie N'silk at Pademba Road.

The turmoil began after a disputed election in 1967, which led to a military coup that overthrew Sierra Leone's civilian government following independence.

This military rule lasted just over a year and ended with another coup that reinstated Siaka Stevens, whose All People's Congress (APC) had won the 1967 elections.

Between 1968 and 1969, tensions grew between the APC and the opposition Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP), which had governed from 1961 to 1967.

Dissatisfaction increased among some APC members, leading to the formation of the National Democratic Party (NDP). This party fueled opposition against the APC through newsletters and meetings.

A crisis erupted later when two cabinet ministers resigned from the government.

Another new party, the United Democratic Party (UDP), emerged, composed of former NDP members and new dissidents within the government ranks.

Violent clashes broke out between supporters of the APC and UDP in various parts of the country.

The government's response included banning the UDP, declaring a state of emergency, and arresting most of the UDP's leaders. Writs of habeas corpus were denied, and many detainees were held without trial.

Ibrahim Bash-Taqi, who was the brother of a cabinet minister, was a strong supporter of the APC and was arrested in 1970.

He was held without charges for years before being executed in July on orders from Siaka Stevens, president of the Republic of Sierra Leone, and Sorie Ibrahim Koroma, vice president and prime minister.