The co-pastor of Resurrection Covenant Church (formerly Cuyler Covenant) www.rescov.org in Chicago returned last week from a two-week trip during which he participated in the international monitoring of Sierra Leone’s first free parliamentary and presidential elections since the end of country’s civil war five years ago.
The August 11 elections went smoothly, with little disruption, according to news reports. A runoff between the top two finishers will be held sometime in September.
Promoting a healthy democracy will help the nation to achieve the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals (MDG), www.un.org/millenniumgoals
Phillips says. The eight goals range from decreasing extreme poverty by half to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education by the target date of 2015. The goals form a blueprint agreed to by all the members of the United Nations and the world’s leading development institutions.
The United Nations reports that most people in Sierra Leone live on less than two dollars a day. Tens of thousands of people were killed in the civil war that lasted from 1991 to 2002, and more than two million people—about one-third of the population—were displaced.
Phillips traveled to Sierra Leone as co-chair of Micah Challenge USA www.micahchallenge.us, which is part of a global evangelical Christian organization that focuses on issues of justice and poverty. Micah Challenge Sierra Leone invited the organization to help monitor the elections.
Monitors reported any questionable activity, including voter intimidation or fraud. Watching the counting of the paper ballots was “tedious” but an incredible experience, says Phillips, who adds he saw no irregularities in the process. The United Nations reported that the elections were largely free of problems.
The Micah Challenge groups as well as others did more than monitor elections, however; they provided education about democratic process. Among the lessons were “It’s OK to have a friend who voted differently than you,” Phillips says. He adds that the two largest parties are each closely identified with two major tribes.
“It’s such a young democracy,” Phillips says. Still, the people are confident that the elections can make a difference, he adds. Eighty-five percent of the eligible voters went to the polls.
Phillips preached at a local church the day after the elections and says he was inspired by the faith of the people for their future. The trip to Sierra Leone was his second. He traveled there last year with Covenant World Relief (CWR) to determine the best way for the denomination’s relief and development arm to assist the country. CWR currently provides funding to two health clinics there.
Phillips says international work “helps me to stay connected to something larger than the neighborhood. It also gives me a lot of energy.”
