| Tinga Seisay | |
|---|---|
| Consul General to the United States | |
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Preceded by | Ahmed Tejan Kabbah |
| Succeeded by | C.O. Bright |
| Deputy Commissioner of Police | |
| Preceded by | Bambay Kamara |
| Succeeded by | Bambay Kamara |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 22, 1928 Mokorewoh, Moyamba, Sierra Leone |
| Nationality | Sierra Leonean |
| Occupation | Diplomat, Chairman, HIC |
| Religion | Christianity |
Samuel Tinga Khendekha Seisay (born 22 August 1928) is a Sierra Leonean pro-democracy activist and diplomat.[1]
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Born to a prominent political family, Seisay was educated at the prestigious St. Edward's Secondary School. He began his career as a law enforcement officer after graduating from the Police Training School at Hastings. After several years with the Sierra Leonean police force, Seisay departed for Europe to continue his studies. A gifted student, Seisay was accepted at the Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden where he read engineering and took his bachelors degree. While he was a student, Seisay had a life changing meeting with Martin Luther King in Stockholm which deepened his interest in nonviolent activism.
Seisay earned a masters degree in political science at Long Island University. He is a PhD candidate at The New School in New York.[1][2]
In 1967, Seisay founded the Sierra Leone Ex-Police Officers Association. He was elected as their representative to the Civilian Rule Committee, that was going to restore civilian rule in Sierra after the military government of Andrew Juxon-Smith. In 1968, Juxon Smith's government was overthrown in the Sergeants' Coup. Seisay was then appointed Deputy Commissioner of the Sierra Leonean Police Force by the ruling junta. Seisay proved to be most efficient in this post especially considering the difficult political climate and skillfully helped manage the transition.
Seisay was initially tapped to serve as Sierra Leone's Ambassador to Egypt but was instead appointed Consul General to the United States. He was stationed in New York where he served for six years.[3][4] He worked to secure educational scholarships for Sierra Leonean students in various fields, primarily education.[1]
Under his leadership, the Sierra Leone Consulate became financially self-sufficient. Seisay also served as Dean of the Consular Corps.[1]
He sat on the Fifth Committee of the United Nations General Assembly for several years.[1][5][6]
After Steven's declared a one-party state, Seisay's cousin John Amadu Bangura staged an unsuccessful military coup. Bangura was executed for treason. Seisay became an opponent of the Stevens government.[2] He left his post as Consul General and began to protest the decline of democracy in Sierra Leone.[7] He publicly criticized the Steven's regime in the New York Times.[7]
Seisay then went into self-imposed political exile, from which he advocated non-violent resistance.[2] Among his allies were his older brother Solomon G. Seisay, Director of Prisons, and former Prime Minister Albert Margai until Margai's death in 1980.[2] Seisay aided Sierra Leoneans who fled from persecution to get political asylum in the United States. In 1987, Seisay's political exile ended when Joseph Saidu Momoh became President of Sierra Leone.
Seisay became an executive in the private sector. Based in the United States, he continuing to work internationally and remained devoted to the cause of re-establishing democracy in Sierra Leone. In the early 1960's, he married a member of the Swedish aristocracy and they raised their family in Westchester County, New York.
He has lectured at several universities, including Dartmouth, and published a number of articles and op-eds most notably in West Africa and Christian Science Monitor.[2]