Makeni, Sierra Leone – Five years after President Julius Maada Bio declared a nationwide emergency over rape and sexual violence, BBC Africa Eye investigates whether or not survivors like Anita, a younger mom in Makeni, are really receiving justice.
In 2019, following a surge in public outrage, the federal government launched more durable laws to fight sexual offenses, considerably rising penalties for perpetrators, particularly in circumstances involving youngsters.
Anita’s horrific expertise in June 2023 underscores the continuing challenges. She recounted a harrowing day when she returned from an errand to seek out her toddler bleeding and in misery, having been raped by a 22-year-old man who was presupposed to be caring for the kid.
Despite fast medical consideration and her efforts to hunt justice, the perpetrator stays at giant, with police unable to apprehend him a 12 months after the incident.
This case exemplifies the difficulties in implementing the brand new legal guidelines. Despite the institution of a Sexual Offences Model Court in Freetown to fast-track trials and the rise in rape sentences to a minimal of 15 years—or life if involving a baby—precise progress on the bottom seems gradual.
Police statistics present a decline in reported circumstances of sexual and gender-based violence, from over 12,000 in 2018 to simply over 10,000 in 2023, a lower of just about 17%. However, the efficacy of those measures in delivering justice stays questionable.
The Rainbo Initiative, a nationwide charity working with survivors, reported that in 2022 solely 5% of the two,705 circumstances it dealt with progressed to the High Court.
One vital impediment is the dearth of assets for regulation enforcement, similar to transportation, which hampers their capability to arrest suspects successfully.
In Makeni, Assistant Superintendent Abu Bakarr Kanu, who leads the Family Support Unit (FSU), disclosed that they obtain about 4 circumstances of kid sexual assault every week.
The FSU’s functionality to handle these circumstances is critically hindered by logistical points, reflecting a broader drawback of useful resource allocation within the combat towards sexual violence.
The scenario in Sierra Leone highlights a essential hole between legislative progress and sensible enforcement, illustrating the complexities of addressing deeply entrenched problems with sexual violence inside the group.
Despite the federal government’s efforts to strengthen legal guidelines and judicial processes, the truth for a lot of survivors and their households is a protracted battle for justice.
https://www.africanexponent.com/sierra-leone-struggles-for-justice-in-cases-of-sexual-violence-despite-new-laws/
