Death penalty no more in Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone's president said he would sign the abolition of capital punishment, fulfilling a personal campaign pledge. Some 99 people in the country are currently sitting on death row.

Published : Jul 24, 2021 12:52 IST

Sierra Leone's 1991 constitution had allowed the use of the death penalty for aggravated robbery, murder, treason and mutiny.

Sierra Leone's 1991 constitution had allowed the use of the death penalty for aggravated robbery, murder, treason and mutiny.

Lawmakers in Sierra Leone voted on July 23 to abolish the death penalty, becoming the latest African country to ban the practice. Sierra Leone's 1991 constitution had allowed the use of the death penalty for aggravated robbery, murder, treason and mutiny.

After the vote, capital punishment will now be replaced with life imprisonment or a minimum 30-year jail term. The move to end the death penalty will affect some 99 people who were sitting on death row as of June 2021.

'An affront to civilized society'

Although no execution has been carried out in Sierra Leone since 1998, with death sentences often commuted, the country had frequently come under fire from rights groups for not completely abolishing the practice. "Today, I have fulfilled a governance pledge to permanently abolish the death penalty in Sierra Leone. I thank citizens, members of Parliament, development partners, and rights groups that have steadfastly stood with us to make history," President Julius Maada Bio said on Twitter.

The diamond-rich former British colony has been ravaged by poverty and a 1991-2002 civil war that claimed 120,000 lives. In 2006, a truth and reconciliation commission set up to investigate the conflict had called for abolishing the death penalty, saying it was "an affront to civilized society."

Death penalty in decline in Africa

According to Amnesty International, some 108 countries across the world had completely abolished the death penalty by the end of 2020, while 144 had abolished it in law or in practice. Two other countries in Africa abolished the death penalty recently; Malawi banned it in April this year, while Chad ended the practice last year.

In practice, capital punishment is on the decline in Sub-Saharan Africa, with recorded death sentences falling by 6 per cent, from 325 in 2019 to 305 last year, while executions were down 36 per cent, falling from 25 in 2019 to 16 in 2020.

jcg/sri (AFP, Reuters)

Sign in to Unlock member-only benefits!
  • Bookmark stories to read later.
  • Comment on stories to start conversations.
  • Subscribe to our newsletters.
  • Get notified about discounts and offers to our products.
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment