VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL

• Code of Virginia
• Virginia Administrative Code
• Constitution of Virginia
• Charters
• Authorities
• Compacts
• Uncodified Acts
• RIS Users (account required)

SEARCHABLE DATABASES

• Bills & Resolutions
  session legislation
• Bill Summaries
  session summaries
• Reports to the General Assembly
  House and Senate documents
• Legislative Liaisons
  State agency contacts

ACROSS SESSIONS

• Subject Index: Since 1995
• Bills & Resolutions: Since 1994
• Summaries: Since 1994

Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.

2022 SESSION

• history | pdf | print version

HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 48 Commending the Republic of Sierra Leone.

 

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 28, 2022

 

WHEREAS, the Republic of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa with a vibrant history, celebrated the 60th anniversary of its independence in 2021; and

WHEREAS, archaeological findings indicate that Sierra Leone has been continuously inhabited for thousands of years and has been home to many diverse African cultures; and

WHEREAS, Sierra Leone traces the origins of its name to the 15th century, when Portuguese explorer Pedro de Sintra, the first European to sight and map the area around what is now the capital city Freetown, referred to the range of hills around the harbor as “serra lyoa” or “lion mountains”; and

WHEREAS, the nation of Sierra Leone grew around the port of Freetown, where European traders exchanged manufactured goods for ivory and enslaved people; and

WHEREAS, in 1787, a group of freed slaves traveled from England to Sierra Leone hoping to form settlements; other settlers arrived from Nova Scotia and Jamaica, and the groups were governed by the Sierra Leone Company until 1808, when the country became a British colony after the abolition of the British slave trade; and

WHEREAS, throughout the colonial era, the residents of Sierra Leone sought increased political rights and justice from both the British and local chiefs, and in the 1950s, a coalition of local leaders joined together to negotiate a new constitution; and

WHEREAS, Sierra Leone gained independence from the United Kingdom on April 27, 1961, and became a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, an association of former British territories; and

WHEREAS, Sierra Leone supported self-determination in several other African nations and has played a significant leadership role in modern African geopolitics and cultural advancement; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, That the Republic of Sierra Leone hereby be commended on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of its independence; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the representatives of the Republic of Sierra Leone as an expression of the House of Delegates’ admiration for the country’s rich history and contributions to other African nations.