<P> The presence of diamonds in Sierra Leone invited and led to the civil war in several ways . First, the highly unequal benefits resulting from diamond mining made ordinary Sierra Leoneans frustrated . Under the Stevens government, revenues from the National Diamond Mining Corporation (known as DIMINCO)--a joint government / DeBeers venture--were used for the personal enrichment of Stevens and of members of the government and business elite who were close to him . When DeBeers pulled out of the venture in 1984, the government lost direct control of the diamond mining areas . By the late 1980s, almost all of Sierra Leone's diamonds were being smuggled and traded illicitly, with revenues going directly into the hands of private investors . In this period the diamond trade was dominated by Lebanese traders and later (after a shift in favor on the part of the Momoh government) by Israelis with connections to the international diamond markets in Antwerp . Momoh made some efforts to reduce smuggling and corruption in the diamond mining sector, but he lacked the political clout to enforce the law . Even after the National Provisional Ruling Council (NPRC) took power in 1992, ostensibly with the goal of reducing corruption and returning revenues to the state, high - ranking members of the government sold diamonds for their personal gain and lived extravagantly off the proceeds . </P> <P> Diamonds also helped to arm the Revolutionary United Front rebels . The RUF used funds harvested from the alluvial diamond mines to purchase weapons and ammunition from neighboring Guinea, Liberia, and even SLA soldiers . But the most significant connection between diamonds and war is that the presence of easily extractable diamonds provided an incentive for violence . To maintain control of important mining districts like Kono, thousands of civilians were expelled and kept away from these important economic centers . </P> <P> Although diamonds were a significant motivating and sustaining factor, there were other means of profiting from the Sierra Leone Civil War . For instance, gold mining was prominent in some regions . Even more common was cash crop farming through the use of forced labor . Looting during the Sierra Leone Civil War did not just center on diamonds, but also included that of currency, household items, food, livestock, cars, and international aid shipments . For Sierra Leoneans who did not have access to arable land, joining the rebel cause was an opportunity to seize property through the use of deadly force . But the most important reason why the civil war should not be entirely attributed to conflict over the economic benefits incurred from the alluvial diamond mines is that the pre-war frustrations and grievances did not just concern that of the diamond sector . More than twenty years of poor governance, poverty, corruption and oppression created the circumstances for the rise of the RUF, as ordinary people yearned for change . </P> <P> As a result of the First Liberian Civil War, 80,000 refugees fled neighboring Liberia for the Sierra Leone--Liberian border . This displaced population, composed almost entirely of children, would prove to be an invaluable asset to the invading rebel armies because the refugee and detention centers, populated first by displaced Liberians and later by Sierra Leoneans, helped provide the manpower for the RUF's insurgency . The RUF took advantage of the refugees, who were abandoned, starving, and in dire need of medical attention, by promising food, shelter, medical care, and looting and mining profits in return for their support . When this method of recruitment failed, as it often did for the RUF, youths were often coerced at the barrel of a gun to join the ranks of the RUF . After being forced to join, many child soldiers learned that the complete lack of law--as a result of the civil war--provided a unique opportunity for self - empowerment through violence and thus continued to support the rebel cause . </P>

Why was there a sierra leone civil war