By Lansana Gberie
Ambassador Peter Alfred Penfold, who has died aged 79, was so deeply attached to Sierra Leone that it was almost certainly the last foreign country he visited from his Oxfordshire home. He arrived in late November 2022 and stayed for weeks. It was one of dozens of visits to Sierra Leone since his zeal in service of the country led to a premature end of his long diplomatic career, in 2000.
This one attracted media attention because Mr. Penfold, accompanied by the British High Commissioner Lisa Chesney, presented elegant portraits of dozens of Paramount Chiefs in Sierra Leone which he had commissioned to the National Museum in Freetown. He saw himself as one of them: he had been crowned Pa Komarabai – Chief of Chiefs – in northern Sierra Leone in recognition of his remarkable role in helping defeat the brutal rebel junta, the Armed Forces Ruling Council (AFRC), and restoring democracy in 1998.
We had dinner during that trip in 2022: he had been my friend and mentor for around 20 years. His pleasure at his being honoured as a grand Chief was undiluted: he liked to appear on occasion in the traditional gown carrying a very distinguished walking stick. He was even more deeply committed to supporting the Blind School, the main focus of his many visits to Sierra Leone. He published a children’s book, Joe Abu Goes to School, to help raise funds for the Blind School, in addition to countless other activities he supported.
Mr. Penfold was not one given to half measures: his commitment to any cause was total. I worked with him closely in mobilizing support for Chief Hinga Norman, for whom Mr. Penfold had acquired a strong affection because of the staunchness of his determination to resist and oust the AFRC. When Chief Norman was indicted by the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone, Mr. Penfold went into action in defence of Norman, including testifying in his behalf at the court in Freetown and persuading General Sir David Richards, now Baron Richards of Herstmonceux and formerly Britain’s Chief of Defence, to similarly testify. Richards had been the commander of British forces in Sierra Leone whose decisive action in 2000, coordinated with Penfold, saved Freetown from falling into the hands of murderous rebels again.
To the end Mr. Penfold regarded all those he interacted with and liked during his service as UK’s High Commission in Sierra Leone (1997-2000), and especially during the struggle to oust the AFRC and restore the elected government of President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, as comrades.
He was always the first to alert me to the death of any of them. When former Chief Justice Desmond Luke passed in February 2021, the email alert to me came from Peter. The last email alert about another comrade from that struggle came to me from Peter on 20 March 2021. It read: “Dear Lans, First Desmond, and now Joe Demby. I am losing all my close friends and colleagues. Stay safe. Best wishes, Peter.” It is heartbreaking rereading this email: one of the marks of advancing age is that one gets to mourn the death of one’s close friends way too often, driving home a premonition of one’s own mortality.
In Ambassador Penfold’s death, Sierra Leone has lost its staunchest foreign friend, benefactor and defender. I will miss his amiable company and very wise counsel very dearly.
Copyright © 2023 Politico (04/10/23)
