The Vice-Chairman of the Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone (HRCSL), Victor I. Lansana has noted that the Commission has been at the forefront of calling on successive governments for a repeal of this law, through recommendations in its annual State of Human Rights Report.
He made the statement in a press conference held on 28th July 2021 at the Commission’s Conference Room in Freetown.
While he congratulates the government for taking this bold step, he noted that Sierra Leone has joined 119 civilized and progressive nations around the world to abolish the death penalty from their law books.
He however, noted that the repeal should not be an invitation to lawlessness and therefore called on Sierra Leoneans to be law abiding and support law enforcement agencies in order to maintain law and order in the country.
Commissioner Victor Lansana said the HRCSL will continue to engage the government to make sure that the Second Optional Protocol of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) is ratified.
Commissioner, Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone, lawyer Simitie Lavaly, disclosed that the abolition of the death penalty is one of the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC).
She also disclosed that Sierra Leone is the 23rd country in Africa to abolish the death penalty in its constitution. She revealed that she had been doing several appeals for those who are already on death rolls, but noted that the burden to appeal has been taken away in that regard
