Tim Butcher, a journalist who, during his time as Africa Bureau Chief for the Daily Telegraph newspaper, covered the wars in both Sierra Leone and Liberia, provided an insightful and engaging on Monday evening at the Royal Scottish Geographic Society meeting in Aberdeen. The subject of his talk was that of his new book, “Chasing The Devil”, which he has subtitled, “The Search for Africa’s Fighting Spirit” and which describes a recent journey he took through Sierra Leone and Liberia.

His journey had two very different reference points. Firstly he wanted to retrace the steps taken by Graham Greene and his cousin Barbara who journeyed through the two West African countries in the mid-Thirties (resulting in Greene’s first travel book, Journey Without Maps). Secondly he wanted to reflect on, and perhaps come to terms with, his own experiences during the civil wars that devastated both countries during the 1990s and early 2000s and which he reported on extensively for the Telegraph. During this time he suffered the loss of two colleagues who were killed in an ambush, and had a price put on his head by the Liberian regime led by Charles Taylor. On his return in 2009, seven years after hostilities ended, he wanted to discover more of the people and the land and compare how the country was now, to how it had been prior to the war when the Greene’s encountered it.

Butcher spent some time at the beginning describing the background. Both Sierra Leone and Liberia were established as free states and were populated by freed black slaves who were taken, or travelled themselves, from the cities of Britain and America during the nineteenth century. In the case of Liberia, which was established by an American organisation, the arriving peoples dubbed themselves Americo-Liberians and quickly worked to establish the Republic of Liberia along the coast. Inland however there was a strong indigenous population (comprising some sixteen ethnic groups) and between these two groups there was increasing mistrust and hostility. Though the Firestone plantation, which exploited one of the best rubber reserves in the world to produce tyre’s for American cars, offered some jobs during the early twentieth century, the economy of the country has never really taken off and a majority of the population live in deep poverty.

The journey through Sierra Leone, starting from the capital, Freetown, was conducted quickly, mainly using public transport. It was at the border with Liberia that the real journey, by foot, began. Over the course of a month Butcher covered 350 miles through rolling hills covered in secondary rainforest, dense undergrowth and palm trees. With two companions, one a Liberian, they moved from village to village, falling into step with the rhythm of the country. The staple food of Liberia is unsalted rice, which they ate each evening without variation. By day they walked with and spoke to the local people, learning more about the difficulties of life in a country where the child mortality rate is around 40%. Unhindered by the air conditioned Landcruisers which the aid workers use to travel around, they were able to get closer to the true people of Liberia, encountering hospitality and friendship at many villages.

Later however, against this portrayal of a country with a strong will to survive, Dr. Butcher touched on the “devils” referred to in the subtitle of his book. These are shaman-like figures, some good, some bad who are powerful figures within each village. Many do not let themselves be seen by westerners. Butcher was of the opinion that their divisive influence, which in the worst cases has led to ritual human sacrifice and murder, were driving apart communities which otherwise could co-operate to improve living conditions and develop the country’s struggling economy. He also remarked that this phenomena was not limited to Western Africa but had also been seen in Uganda and South Africa. The Greene’s encountered this deeply routed cultural trait during their own journey in 1935.

Dr Butcher’s style was extremely engaging, weaving together the story of the walk with humorous anecdotes and pieces of socio-cultural history which tied together his reasons for taking the journey, and explained some of what he had learnt. His photos, at times greatly moving, added to my understanding of the people and places he described and superbly illustrated the very enjoyable talk.