"Deadlock" was still the by-word as government and rebel negotiators vacillated over terms for bringing the country's eight-year civil war to a peaceful conclusion. A further special plea from their Togolese hosts led to a thaw in relations between the two sides and hopes were again raised on Tuesday (15 June) of a possible breakthrough. Said Foreign Minister Koffigoh: "While we feared continued deadlock, there is a glimmer of hope...The discussions are going well".

   Both sides have decided to consult their respective bases about the rebels' share of power in a future national unity government, as well as the conditions surrounding the deployment and role of the pro government Nigerian-led ECOMOG intervention force following the cease-fire that went into effect on May 24. (AFP)

   Reliable sources have contacted this site to say that there are rebels who are prepared to give up fighting for the sake of peace but that they have no confidence in the Government of President Kabbah, especially the SLPP Party hawks, to protect them. The soldiers are believed to be mainly former soldiers of the disbanded Sierra Leone Armed Forces. They have predicated their intention to surrender on being allowed back to serve in the army. (From our own sources)

   RUF/AFRC junta forces  freed 11 children and one adult female whom they kidnapped during the rebel invasion of the capital in January. The cease-fire that came into effect on 24 May provided for the release of all non-combatants and other prisoners behind both enemy lines. The captives were handed over at Okra Hill about 38 miles from Freetown.

The managing editor of the Independent Observer, Mr Jonathan Leigh who went into hiding following Ecomog troop raids on his paper's offices has finally emerged and handed himself to the authorities. Six other journalists arrested at the time have also been handed over by Ecomog to the police.  The vice president of the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ) accompanied Leigh when he surrendered to the police.  The Commissioner of Police James Kanyako promised him fair treatment. Ecomog troops claimed that during their raid they found two pistols, seven AK-47 rifles, three grenades, 10 anti-aircraft cartridges and 10 pistol magazines. They also claimed to have discovered documents implicating the clandestine National Independent Journalists Association (NINJA). Sceptics have suggested that the circumstances of the Ecomog "find" bore the hallmarks of a "malicious planting job".

   UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and former Irish President, Mrs Mary Robinson, is paying an official two-day visit to Freetown on June 24. She will be accompanied by Ex President Quett Masire of Botswana. The aim of their mission is to assess the human rights situation in Sierra Leone and express support and solidarity for victims of human rights abuses in the country.

   A round the clock roll call of missing persons on state radio has been initiated to track down the whereabouts of particularly thousands of children who disappeared after the January invasion.  Freetown is abuzz with speculation that a further gesture, this time with the liberation of 200 children, is imminent. According to UNICEF around 60 percent of children kidnapped are girls.

The RUF's spokesman Mr Omrie Golley has accused the government of two cease-fire violations in a telephone conversation with the AFP news agency. He said the breaches had taken place along the Sierra Leone-Guinean border near the city of Koindu in Eastern Sierra Leone, about 155 miles from Freetown where Guinean troops were amassing in preparation for "a large offensive against the RUF". He said that the second breach took place when Ecomog Commanders entered the rebel-held area of Loko Masama and forcibly abducted 14 of their armed personnel. This contradicted a claim early this week that fourteen ex-junta soldiers had arrived in Freetown as part of a confidence building initiative. The soldiers whose arrival in Freetown is not disputed had, according to Golley been lured and then abducted by Ecomog troops.  The soldiers were led by a Captain Mohamed Kargbo who, according to the earlier counter report, allegedly told the Concord Times newspaper in Freetown "We are committed to peace, we are talking about cease-fire, we want everlasting peace."

  A workshop on Sierra Leone to be held in Togo's capital, Lome, on 21 and 22 June by the London-based Centre for Democracy and Development has become an issue of controversy. Both its timing and the list of invited delegates have become matters of bitter recrimination. Many people see it merely as an attention seeking exercise and as a side show to the negotiations currently taking place in that country. Furthermore many are asking "why now?" and "why in Togo?" because they say it is an unwelcome distraction from the main issue at hand, namely the peace talks between the Government and the Allied Rebel Movement which need the undivided attention, and concentration of the minds, of the negotiators. But even more contentious is the list of those who have been invited to attend. It has been described as just another opportunist romp. According to sources quoted in Freetown the workshop's conclusions will eventually be touted as representative of the views of all Sierra Leoneans.  Neither Focus on Sierra Leone nor the several sources close to this paper have been contacted by the organisers.