By Thomas Dixon
FREETOWN, March 19, (232News) – Madam Eleanor Thompson, one of the facilitators for Defense for Children International (DCI) two days training for legal Practitioners revealed in Freetown that out of 3339 sexual assault cases only 123 were successfully prosecuted in 2020.
“In 2020, only 132 out of 3339 sexual assault cases which is 4% were committed to the high court and only 123 cases were successfully prosecuted,” she noted.
Madam Thompson explained that the pervasive and persistent challenges such as poor investigation, weak evidence, compromising, lack of reporting among other were responsible for such figures.
She mentioned that the sexual violence can be domestic violence-if the sexual abuses or sexual harassments occur in a domestic relationship, the penalty is Le 5, 000,000 or 2 years imprisonment or both.
She noted that sexual offences like rape deliberately penetrating the vagina, anus or mouth of an adult age 18 years and over without the other’s consent are all crimes.
That the indecent touching another person without consent in a sexual manner or forcing that other person to touch you in a sexual manner is also a violation, adding that indecently having or attempting to have sexual activity with someone whom he/ she knows to be a close family relation whether half or full blood is a sexual offence.
She noted that the sexual offences act provides for special measures for vulnerable witnesses, which includes children in sexual offences matters and that when they are testifying, the court must take one or more of the following measures: use of a screen or other arrangements to prevent the witness from seeing the defendant, presence of a support person of the witness’s choosing seating with the witness when he/ she is giving evidence among others.
Executive Director Defense for Children International Sierra Leone, Abdul .M. Kemokai said that they have engaged on a project which is about protecting the girl child-the project was designed to provide opportunities for access to justice for adolescent girls who are victims of sexual violence.
He said that they have couple of activities designed within the project and that includes providing legal assistance to victims, pointing out that they also engage in lots of advocacy especially monitoring the proceedings, trying to identify the gaps and challenges and bringing together stakeholders, judges, magistrates, prosecutors, FSU, in order to look at the gaps and trying to see on how they can address the issues.
That another important component of the project is really to bring in the interest of lawyers especially young lawyers or law students who may likely go into human rights work or if they are not likely, they will want to grow their interest in human rights work.
He added that they are looking at how they make use of international and regional matters to hold government responsible or accountable for not adhering to some of the treaties that they have signed regarding the protection of children.
