In all fairness, I must also state that I know many an honest and hard working Sarahule, and it is definitely unfair to lslap a label on an entire people because of the dealings of perhaps a few dishonest group. I did not even know this term was one that meant Sarahules. Jabou Joh In a message dated 1/18/01 5:53:07 AM Eastern Standard Time, [log in to unmask] writes: << MIne your words, It is very irresponsible to label the maraka's( saraholes) as greedy at this time around. They are comparatively better if one look at the more corrup Lebanes who shared most of the blame with the Westz for the tourbles in Senegal. The Lebanese are on record for hijacking the Government of Mommoh with their "brown evelopes" and corrupt practices. The Lebane contributed some 6 billion Dollars drained from bloody Sierral Leone Diamond to finace reconstruction of Lebanon. The Marakas are Africans who have been involved in Sierra Leone since the 1960s and did not only sought diamonds but also integrated into the Siera Leonean society: the inermarried with many Sierra leoneans. The evidences can be seen in Gambia and else where to day. Furthermore, they accommodated many Sierra leoneans in distresse who came to The Gambia for refuge. The latest example involves Former Sierra Leone President Valentine Strasser, who after being played like a football by British and Gambian authorities, was rescued by Bassirou Jawara, a Prominet Maraka hotelier and Bussinessman, who made his money in Sierra Leone. So it is very unfair to label the Marakas as "greedy" without properly researching into their activities. Their philosophy for record purposes reads "respect for others, hospitality and Solidarity" Regards Messers Mamau Tage Bubacarr Sankanu >> Jabou Joh President MAAC World Traders Tel.-(615) 646-9784 Fax-(507) 262-1590 [log in to unmask] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask] if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------