Kafumba Konneh

Sheikh Kafumba F. Konneh (* 20th century ; † July 20, 2015 in Monrovia ) was a Liberian representative of Islam and a representative of the Muslim minority in his country. He was head of the National Muslim Council of Liberia and represented the approximately 670,000 Muslims in Monrovia. Kafumba Konneh was also a founding member of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to deal with the incidents of the civil war in Liberia.

Life

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Kafumba Konneh was born in Nimba County . After finishing school , he trained as a clergyman and Islamic legal scholar, then studied administrative law and worked in public administration as a district administrator and justice of the peace in his home country, Nimba County.

During the civil wars that began in 1980 and the time of state collapse under the governments of Presidents Samuel K. Doe and Charles Taylor , Konneh fought to ensure that the religious and political rights of Muslims were respected; he was elected Secretary General and Managing Director of the Liberian Muslim Union and was Chairman of the National Muslim Council of Liberia .

As part of a group of religious leaders of various faiths, Konneh helped found the Interfaith Mediation Committee at the start of the Liberian Civil War in 1990. The efforts of this group led to the military intervention of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the creation of an observer group sent to Liberia, the so-called Monitoring Group ECOMOG . These activities made Konneh a target for those involved in the civil war.

After his election as Liberian President, Charles Taylor tried to split the National Muslim Council of Liberia by building up and supporting an opposing candidate - Alhaji Jakiray Taylor. He was elected president of the organization, but died unexpectedly after a short term in office. As a result of these conflicts, two warring camps formed in the National Muslim Council of Liberia : the supporters of Kafumba Konneh on the one hand and the group of former Taylor supporters around Alhaji Kromah.

After the end of the civil war, Charles Taylor's power was broken and the parties to the civil war and the other authorities represented in Liberia agreed on a political and legal reappraisal in order to enable a new beginning. Konneh was a member of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission as the senior representative of the Liberian Muslims . His participation there was questioned by Alhaji Kromah in November 2006 because Konneh had formulated radical Muslim positions that contradict the aims of the commission in several previously published articles in The Muslim World League Journal . He was therefore asked by the chairman of the TRC to refute these allegations.

As a result, Kafumba Konneh was no longer recognized as the main representative of the Liberian Muslims. In July 2010 new allegations of corruption , abuse of office and election fraud were brought against him. The UNMIL command in Sinkor was asked to request a commission of inquiry from President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf .

literature

• Kafumba F. Konneh: Liberian Civil War: Declared Intentions and Hidden Agenda (II) . In: The Muslim World League Journal . (23) Issue 12. Makkah al-Mukarramah, Saudi Arabia 1996, Features, p. 44-48 .

Individual evidence

1. ^ Liberia: Shiekh Kafumba Konneh Is Dead - 'Unfortunate Loss for Liberia . In: allafrica.com , July 20, 2015, accessed July 23, 2015.
2. ↑ Liberia . In: Joanne Maher (Ed.): Europa World Yearbook . tape 2 . Taylor & Francis Group, 2004, ISSN  0071-2302 , Religions Section, p. 2647-48 .
3. ↑ ^{a b} Kafumba Konneh. (No longer available online.) In: Truth and Reconciliation Commission (online portal). Archived from the original on October 31, 2010 ; Retrieved January 26, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
4. ↑ Abdoulaye W. Dukule: A conversation with Sheikh kafumba konneh. The Perspective, November 21, 2001, accessed January 26, 2011 . 
5. ^ Country Information and Policy Unit: Liberia. Country Report, April 2004. UNHCR, April 2004, p. 16 , accessed August 1, 2010 (English, 6.15 The United States State Department Religious Freedom Report 2003): “After Charles Taylor became President, he effectively divided the National Muslim Council by working behind the scenes to seed the Council with his loyalists. Specifically, to undermine the independence of the Council, President Taylor sponsored the expulsion of Sheik Kafumba Konneh as Chairman and engineered the subsequent appointment of Alhaji Jakiray Taylor as Chairman, one of his loyalists within the country's Islamic Community. Alhaji Jakaity Taylor's position has been vacant since his death in late April. The National Muslim Council of Liberia remains divided between Taylor's supporters and Sheik Kafumba Konneh's supporters. In his capacity as Chairman of the National Muslim Council, Sheik Kafumba Konneh joined the Inter-Religious Council of Liberia (IRC), a well-known organization led by Archbishop Francis that has tried to coordinate peace efforts between the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) and rebels and the government, as Vice President. He has retained that position on the Inter-Religious Council (IRC) despite losing the Chair of the National Muslim Council. " 
6. ^ Forum for the Establishment of a War Crimes Court in Liberia. (No longer available online.) Voice of Liberia, Aug 21, 2008, archived from the original on June 28, 2010 ; accessed on January 26, 2011 (English): “Attached dossier of atrocities refuting Alhaji Kromah's claims; and the need for Sheikh Kafumba Konneh's immediate expulsion " Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
7. ↑ Mustapha Shafi: Business and Politics in the Muslim World. Liberia: Tension Clouds National Muslim Council. (PDF; 33 kB) 2010, accessed on January 26, 2011 (English).