| From Freetown, Sierra Leone. Volume 3B CHAPTER THREE
Women and the Armed Conflict in Sierra Leone Introduction 1. Sierra Leone sits on the beautiful west coast of Africa, facing out onto the Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and Liberia to the southeast. Sierra Leone consists of a hilly western peninsula and a hinterland abundant in diverse natural riches, including agricultural and mineral resources. Mountains rise to over 6,000 feet in the northeast, while the territory is blessed with plentiful rainfall that yields dense forest vegetation interspersed with swamps. It is a land of staggering natural scenery and personality. 2. Sierra Leone is made up of seventeen different ethnic groups, the largest of which is the Mende of the southern and eastern regions. The second largest is the Temne, followed by the Limba, both of which are dominant in the north. Other groups include the Kono in the east, the northern Koranko, the Mandingo, Loko, Susu, Fullah and Yalunka. Smaller groups include the Bullom, Sherbro, Vai, Gola and Krim, with the Kissi in the eastern hinterland. 3. In the eighteenth century, the abolitionist campaign led to the decision in Britain to relocate freed slaves to Sierra Leone. The British government purchased land from a Temne King in order to settle freed slaves on and around the western peninsula. This new community took on the name “Freetown” and its population became known as Krios. In 1808, the British created the Crown Colony, centred on Freetown and its environs, and in 1896 made the outlying areas into a Protectorate. For over 150 years the British dominated all spheres of life in the country. It was during this period that the Freetown-based Krios advanced educationally and economically at the expense of the people in the hinterland. The Krios developed into a highly educated group of colonial subjects compared to their counterparts in the Provinces. 4. Sierra Leone celebrated its independence on 27 April 1961. However, stability and development were steadily undermined by a series of military coups and attacks on multi-party democracy. Siaka Stevens, who became Prime Minister in 1968, engaged in a systematic campaign to centralise power around his executive. Within ten years he had made himself the President of a One-Party Republic. During Stevens’ rule, corruption and nepotism became entrenched. Rampant unemployment and poverty, coupled with violent suppression of all dissent and opposition, led the population to despise and distrust its ruling elite. Persistent bad governance created the conditions for the outbreak of conflict. 5. The conflict in Sierra Leone, which lasted from 1991 to 2002, was particularly horrific because of the scope and severity of atrocities targeted at civilians. Its other defining feature was its chameleonic character, whereby many of the role players changed sides and allegiances against a background of complex military and political dynamics. The conflict was essentially self-destructive in nature: towns and villages were ravaged; crops and economic installations were destroyed; and a whole generation of Sierra Leoneans was displaced, brutalised and traumatised. 6. Women and girls became particular targets of malice and violence during the conflict. They suffered abduction and exploitation at the hands of the various perpetrator factions. Their vulnerability was deliberately exploited in order to dehumanise them and perpetrate against them the most gross of violations. They were raped, forced into sexual slavery and endured acts of great sexual violence. They suffered mutilations, torture and a host of cruel and inhuman acts. They were taken from their homes and villages by force. Refusal to comply with the demands of their captors often met with death. For those fortunate enough to escape, there followed displacement and separation from families. While some went into exile, many were housed in camps in Sierra Leone and in neighbouring countries. Shockingly, women and girls were not safe even in these camps. Humanitarian workers – meant to offer them respite and protection – also violated their rights. Women and girls were compelled to barter their bodies in order to survive and access aid to which they were rightfully entitled. Girls as young as 12 were forced to pay for aid with sex to secure assistance for their families. 7. Statistics pertaining to the numbers of women affected by the conflict in Sierra Leone remain a huge concern. In 2003, Human Rights Watch published a report in which they stated that as many as 275,000 women and girls may have been sexually violated during the war. 8. While peace has returned to Sierra Leone, many of the wounds still remain open. Women and girls still bear the scars, both physically and psychologically. Many have borne children from their horrific experiences. These children are a daily reminder of their pain and suffering. Many women and girls are shunned and punished by members of a society who refuse to acknowledge that it is their failures that led to this conflict and their failure to protect women and girls that has led to the plight they find themselves in today. Women and girls who were violated throughout the conflict are ostracised from society for giving birth to children of “rebels”. It is the price they continue to pay, even today. 9. The UN Secretary-General, in his Twenty-first Report to the Security Council on the UN Mission in Sierra Leone, has stated that “violence against women, including sexual exploitation, as well as discrimination against women in law and in practice and the low rate of participation of women and youth in the political and administrative affairs of the country needs to be addressed.” Mandate of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission
10. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (“TRC” or “the Commission”) was founded by an Act of Parliament in February 2000 and its Commissioners were inaugurated in July 2002. Section 6(2)(b) of the TRC Act mandated the Commission to restore the dignity of victims. In this context, there was a duty to afford “special attention to the subject of sexual abuse”. While women are not explicitly mentioned in the TRC Act, given that they were the overwhelming victims of sexual abuse, the Commission interpreted this provision to mean that it should pay special attention to the experiences of women and girls. 11. The Commission intends in this chapter to capture the experiences of both women and girls in respect of sexual violence, as well as their complete gendered experiences at a political, legal, health and social welfare level. While the majority of the women in Sierra Leone were victims, the Commission recognises that many women took on the role of perpetrators and / or collaborators, out of personal conviction or simply in order to survive. 12. While the National Commission for Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (NCDDR) recorded that 4,751 girls entered the DDR process, actual estimates of female combatants are said to be much higher. Dyan Mazurana and Kristopher Carlson, for example, estimate that 12,056 of 48,216 child soldiers were girls. In their report they note that 44% of the girls they interviewed claimed to have received basic military and weapons training. The UN Secretary-General has also acknowledged that “women combatants did not adequately benefit from the disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration programme, particularly because the fast-tracking of the cantonment period resulted in a loss of focus on special programmes intended for women”. He reported that “no provision was made for female camp followers, most of whom had been abducted by the combatants.” 13. While women played a strong role in peacemaking, only two women attended the negotiations that led to the signing of the Lomé Peace Agreement in 1999. Nonetheless women are increasingly playing a more prominent role in the public life of Sierra Leone. 14. The Commission, primarily through the testimonies it received from women and girls, seeks to find answers as to why such extraordinary violence was perpetrated against women. Did the origins lie in the cultural and traditional history of Sierra Leone, where women were afforded a subservient status to men? Did the low status of women in socio-political life make them easy targets? Or is it because men still perceive women to be chattels, possessions belonging to them, symbols of their honour, making them the deliberate targets of an enemy determined to destroy the honour of the other? The answers probably lie somewhere in a combination between all of these factors. 15. The Commission believes that it is only when the legal, social and political system treats women equally that they will realise their full potential. Women must be given full access to economic opportunities, which allow for their complete, holistic development. They must be able to participate freely in both public and private life. Developing robust accountability mechanisms for those who perpetrate gender-based crimes is a necessary part of this evolution, in order to ensure that women are never again dehumanised the moment the rules of society break down. TRC POLICY AND METHODOLOGY 16. The TRC in Sierra Leone boldly confronted the task of dealing with its special mandate in respect of sexual violence by formulating policy and determining a methodology to reach as many women and girls as possible in order that their experiences could be documented. In formulating policy, the Commission was driven by several imperative needs: to protect the victims; to engender an atmosphere of trust in the Commission; to observe issues of confidentiality; to create a safe environment for women; and to ensure that women and girls would not be “retraumatised” or “revictimised” in the process. 17. The Commission decided, at the outset, that women, particularly those who had suffered rape and sexual violence, should make their statements to women statement-takers who would be trained specifically to deal with accounts involving rape and sexual violence. The Commission also decided that women themselves should have the option of deciding whether their statements should be regarded as confidential in terms of the provisions of the Act. 18. Once policy was formulated in respect of women and girls, the Commission had to consider how to implement this policy in the various aspects of its operations: raising awareness of the Commission’s mandate; statement-taking; hearings; report writing; findings; reparations; and recommendations. 19. In the “barray phase” – when Commissioners and staff held public meetings in local “barrays”, which are equivalent to town halls – the TRC reached out especially to women, women’s groups and agencies dealing with women, sensitising them to the aims and objectives of the Commission’s work. The Commission made it clear that it intended to “mainstream” gender in all its activities, that it would deliberately recruit women to be trained as statement takers and that it would welcome suggestions and assistance from agencies dealing with women and girls. At the outset, the Commission made an effort to recruit women into senior staff positions. In addition, it ensured that more than 40% of the statement-takers were women. 20. The Commission arranged for the training of all statement-takers on issues of rape and sexual violence, as well as helping them to cope with trauma. Two training sessions dedicated to this purpose took place in Bo and Kenema. In order to prepare the statement-takers as comprehensively as possible, the Commission also provided guidelines on how to deal with women who had suffered sexual abuse. In summary, these guidelines directed statement-takers to ensure the following conditions: i. That statement-taking should always be on a one-to-one basis;
ii. That the presence of husbands and fathers should be discouraged during statement taking, unless insisted upon by the statement-giver; and iii. That as a rule of thumb, when dealing issues of rape and sexual violence, female statement takers should take the statements. This policy did not preclude a preference being expressed by statement giver that she was willing to make her statement to a male statement-taker. 21. The Commission trained its statement-takers to explain to women who were victims of sexual violence that they should be asked whether or not they would be willing to appear at a TRC hearing. The Commission also made it clear that if a woman preferred, she could appear at a closed hearing to give her testimony. The Commission advised that women should at all times be at liberty to choose for themselves the circumstances in which they testified. 22. Once training had taken place, the TRC embarked upon a pilot phase in December 2002, which saw statement-takers deployed to the various regions. The Commission was pleasantly surprised to discover that women and girls had come out in large numbers to participate in the statement-taking process during the pilot phase. At that early stage, however, women ex-combatants did not turn out in large numbers. 23. While the Commission held public hearings for all witnesses who chose to participate, including women who had suffered violations that were not sexual in nature, it was also decided that there should be special hearings for women and girls who had been sexually violated. These special hearings were “closed”, which meant that members of the public were not allowed into the hearings venue. Accordingly, the Commission adopted a special hearings procedure. 24. The Commission decided that these hearings would be held in camera and would be presided over and attended only by female Commissioners and staff. The Commission through its reconciliation unit provided trained counsellors who would brief and debrief the women and girls who appeared at these special hearings. These counsellors also met with witnesses before their appearances at other hearings. The counsellors and staff members responsible for the hearings would go through the statements previously given by the witness to refresh the memory and ensure consistency. 25. Counsellors would also sit beside witnesses while they were giving testimony and provide assistance to them if they needed it. Immediately after each hearing, the counsellors would debrief and counsel each witness. Women Commissioners would explain to the women and girls who were to testify about what the process entailed and why their testimony was needed. They would then attempt to draw out the totality of each witness’ experiences. If witnesses lost their composure or broke down completely, the Commissioners would assess the situation and would either adjourn the hearing to allow the witness to regain composure or counsel them until they indicated that they were ready to resume their testimony. 26. The Commission was intent on ensuring that victims would be treated with respect and dignity during hearings. Witnesses who appeared during the closed hearings were provided with food, drink and medical assistance whenever they needed it. They were also provided with transport to and from the hearings venues and, where necessary, overnight accommodation. 27. The Commission had expected that most women who were willing to testify would choose to do so in camera. Surprisingly this was not the case, particularly in the rural areas, where women wanted the community to hear their stories. Many women volunteered to testify in public. As far as girls under 18 years of age were concerned, the Commission employed a policy that all testimony would be given in camera and that mechanisms would be found to have this testimony heard without making identities public. Of course there were also many women who were content to make written statements only to the Commission and who chose not to appear before any hearings. Their statements were also of immense value to the Commission. 28. The TRC Legal and Reconciliation Unit worked quite intensively with witnesses and a number of counselling agencies in Sierra Leone. The unit provided witnesses with referrals to counselling agencies where appropriate. The reconciliation unit also ensured that follow-up sessions were provided by trained counsellors after the hearings. Counsellors visited the witnesses later in their homes and completed questionnaires that dealt with the impact and consequences of appearing before the Commission. 29. An event of great significance for the Commission was the session of Special Thematic Hearings on Women, which took place in Freetown from 22 to 24 May 2003. This session started with a march through some of the main streets in the city centre of Freetown, culminating at the hearings venue. The march was led by the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs, accompanied by staff of the Ministry, women activists, Commission staff, many women’s organisations and hundreds of supporters. The Minister of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs, Dr. Shirley Gbujama, then formally opened the Special Hearings session. 30. During the TRC Special Thematic Hearings on Women, the Commission received submissions from a number of women’s groups, UNIFEM and other donor agencies. Testimony was heard from women who had suffered sexual violations. The Commission was careful to protect the identities of the women who gave testimony. While both male and female Commissioners were present, it was only the women Commissioners who asked questions. Partnership with UNIFEM 31. The Commission entered into an important partnership with the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), which led to the launch of the “Initiative for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission” under UNIFEM’S Peace and Security Programme. The initiative made available training for Commissioners, staff and UNIFEM’s NGO partners. UNIFEM also assisted the NGO community to make submissions on issues affecting women. 32. UNIFEM became involved in mobilising women’s groups in Sierra Leone to participate in the Commission’s activities by making submissions to the Commission, assisting with the hearings, providing witnesses to the Commission and attending the hearings. UNIFEM also spearheaded the organisation of the march through Freetown and provided funding for some of the items used in the Special Hearings, including refreshments. UNIFEM provided two international gender consultants to assist the Commission and women’s organisations both with writing the report and formulating the recommendations.
Partnerships with women’s organisations
33. The Commission was keen to establish a working relationship with all of the women’s groups in Sierra Leone when it began its work. A number of consultations took place where issues affecting women were discussed, providing valuable input for the Commission’s work. Women’s organisations also made an important contribution to the work of the Commission by calling upon the women of Sierra Leone to support its work. 34. The Commission is deeply grateful to UNIFEM, the Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs and to all the agencies and women’s groups for their assistance in realising its mandate as set out in the founding Act. THE STATUS OF WOMEN BEFORE THE CONFLICT WOMEN AND EDUCATION 35. Culture and tradition in Sierra Leone have in the past prevented women, particularly women in the rural Provinces, from accessing education. The practice in rural societies within Sierra Leone, where most people live below the poverty line, is usually to favour the education of men and boys at the expense of women and girls. Such traditional favouritism of males led to a great disparity existing between men and women in education prior to the war. 36. The Analytical Report on the 1985 Census confirmed that in 1985, 91.5% of all females in Sierra Leone aged five years and older were regarded as illiterate. While the average illiteracy level for the whole country for females exceeded 90% in all the districts, Kambia and Koinadugu were the worst at 97.7%. The illiteracy level for females in the Western Area was the lowest, at 68.7%. The 1985 report also confirmed that out of a total of 1.32 million of females aged five years and older, 1.02 million and 0.01 million had completed primary and secondary school respectively. 37. The National Action Plan for Development made an analysis of the 1984 GCE ‘O’ level results and found that out of 641 entrants, 25% were females. It also noted with dismay the high rate of female school dropouts. Reasons advanced for this state of affairs included the general lack of access to schools, as 80% of people lived in rural areas whilst most schools were concentrated in the urban areas. The Western Area, including Freetown, housed the majority of schools despite its relatively small area of territory and its residents therefore fared somewhat better than those in the rest of the country. 38. The Government of Sierra Leone had not “mapped” its schools in the Provinces efficiently or appropriately, which resulted in the location and establishment of many schools far away from the most needy rural communities. The great distance that children had to travel from their homes to get to school discouraged many parents and guardians from sending their children and wards to school. Such reluctance appears to have affected the enrolment and attendance of girls more so than boys, which has contributed to the particularly low level of education of women in the regions. 39. According to the Analytical Report on the 1985 Census, of the four major administrative regions, the North showed the lowest levels of school attendance, attainment and literacy in English. The statistics were accompanied by an observation that perhaps school education was relatively unattractive in the Northern Province, due in part to the perceived influence of Islam in the region. 40. Cultural and economic factors are also cited as contributing factors to the low levels of educated women. The economic crisis that Sierra Leone experienced in the 1980s meant that as resources became scarce and priorities were set, most families chose to educate their males rather than their women and girls. This preference is common in many African societies, where families believe that by educating their men they will support their own kin, whereas by educating their women they will benefit the families those women marry into. Women and girls are usually kept at home to attend to household chores, which, for a large number of them, is also preparation for early marriage. 41. The historical prevalence of early and forced marriages in Sierra Leone has also played a role in the decisions of parents on whether to educate their girl children or withdraw them from school, further compounding the illiteracy level of women. The high levels of illiteracy among women in Sierra Leone before the war have greatly disadvantaged them, particularly in the public arena. Women have been unable to participate fully in many sectors of public life and therefore have never mustered enough power to change the lives or social status of women for themselves. 42. High levels of illiteracy have also had implications at a political level, where women and women’s issues have generally been relegated to the back burner. There has always been a great lack of awareness of the need for women to participate in issues affecting their lives, even among women themselves. It was therefore relatively easy for successive governments before the war to ignore issues affecting women and girls. The low level of female participation in formal education has had negative consequences in terms of economic viability, politics, health and social welfare level for women. WOMEN AND POLITICS 43. A paradox exists in Sierra Leone in the realms of women and politics: some women have been political pioneers, whilst the vast majority have languished on the sidelines. This paradox has its origins in the history of how women in Sierra Leone became involved in politics. At the end of World War I, women of Krio origin, born in the Colony, made their voices heard in the political arena. At the same time, in the Protectorate, a few women wielded political power by becoming Paramount Chiefs or Section chiefs. In Freetown, women of Protectorate extraction, e.g. Mende and Temne, served and still serve as both Section and Tribal Headmen. 44. The activities of those first, feisty women politicians in the Colony resulted in some landmark events. In 1938, Constance A. Cummings-John became the first woman to stand for office in Freetown in the municipal elections, which she went on to win. In 1951, the Sierra Leone Women’s Movement (SLWM), a non-political representative organisation, was established. Its goals were “to improve the status of all Sierra Leonean women, whether born in the Colony or in the Protectorate, and to seek female representation on government bodies concerned with education, social welfare and the economy.” Due to the formation of this group, in 1954, one of the founding members, Mabel Dove, became the first woman in West Africa to be elected to the legislature. The SLWM had a broad base of membership, with about 2,000 members from the Colony and about 3,000 from the Protectorate. The movement has been described as the only mass-based organisation in the 1950s that actively worked to unite all ethnic groups within its structure and to inculcate a common national identity among Sierra Leoneans. 45. Women made real progress in the political arena, which resulted in some of them holding political office in the 1950s in Sierra Leone. In the process certain politicians made history that impacted on a world beyond Sierra Leone. In 1958, three women – Constance Cummings-John, Lena Weber and Stella Ralph-James – became members of the municipal council while, in 1960, one woman was elected Deputy Mayor of Freetown and another, Nancy Koroma, was elected Mende Headman in Freetown. 46. Women personalities continued to make their voices heard on political issues in Freetown right through to the time of independence, despite the fact that the vast majority of women were excluded. In the 1957 election, despite the apathy shown by most women, four women did contest for election under the auspices of the SLPP and the two contesting seats in the Colony won. It is instructive to note that neither of these two women ultimately took up their seats in Parliament, due to election petitions filed against them. Nevertheless, the same election of 1957 saw the first and, eventually, the only woman to become a Member of Parliament in that term, Madam Ella Koblo Gulama, a Paramount Chief. She also became the first female Minister in Sierra Leone, although she was never in charge of any specific Ministry. Two women (Constance-Cummings-John and Etta Harris) were also made delegates to the constitutional talks that resulted in Sierra Leone’s independence, having petitioned the then government against their exclusion from the talks. The petition, which was organised by the SLWM, resulted directly in the inclusion of women at the constitutional talks. 47. Upon achieving independence, women were shocked when the men failed to share positions of power equitably. According to the historian LaRay Denzer: “Naturally,
[women] expected to reap the reward of their loyalty and service [by]
obtaining party support for election and campaigning, appointments to
decision making bodies and government committees, and reforms in
discriminatory laws. Instead, they were shunted aside as male leaders
monopolised the spoils of office. By and large, male leaders defaulted
in their commitments to their female colleagues.”
48. In spite of this kind of resistance, Cummings-John became the first black African woman to govern a capital city on the continent in 1961. Alongside Cummings-John, notable women political leaders of this era included Adelaide Casely Hayford, Stella Thomas Marke, Edna S. Elliot-Horton, Lorine E. Miller, Lottie Black, Mabel Dove, Nancy Koroma and many others. 49. After independence and undeterred by the fractious political climate that ensued over the years, some women continued to forge on in politics, with interesting results. During the reign of the APC Government of Siaka Stevens, another women’s organisation, the National Congress of Sierra Leone Women (NCSLW), headed by Nancy Steele, was formed based on a Marxist approach. This organisation enjoyed some measure of success but lost relevance as the APC became more and more distanced from the population and was eventually ousted from power. 50. Among its other accomplishments, the NCSLW raised the level of women’s political consciousness and encouraged the appointment of women to high office. This continued momentum resulted in five women gaining office in Freetown City Council in 1975. In 1977, a woman again became the Mayor of Freetown. Also, from the Provinces, a woman Paramount Chief named Madam Honoria Bailor-Caulker represented Moyamba District in Parliament. 51. Another women’s organisation, the Women’s Association for National Development (WAND), was established in 1987. A non-political movement, the stated main aim of WAND was: “To ensure the participation of women in all aspects of the life of the nation.”
52. During APC rule under Siaka Stevens, no woman held a Ministerial position, although women were members of the party’s central committee. This situation improved slightly during President J. S. Momoh’s tenure, with three women holding positions as Deputy Ministers. 53. While some women in Sierra Leone, especially the Krios, became deeply involved in politics quite early on in the post-independence period, it was much later that women from the Provinces were able to join the bandwagon. The Krios, on the whole, were better educated than those in the outlying areas and that disparity applied to Krio women as well. Their exposure to education led to their clear understanding of the need for women to be involved in the political process. Their links internationally meant that they were also exposed to the growing debates in the world on issues such as the suffrage of women, the abolition of slavery, the rise in African nationalism and the struggle for independence. 54. Women in Freetown had enjoyed access to various levels of education from as early as 1787. Their counterparts in the Provinces had access to only one secondary school, which was established in the 1940s. Women in the Provinces, mostly uneducated and affected by poverty, lacked awareness of their political rights and did not participate in any political activities. In short, women in the Colony enjoyed a head start on women in the Provinces in terms of both education and politics. 55. Tradition and culture also played its own role in inhibiting women in the Provinces from playing a role in politics. While it is true that women could be made Paramount Chiefs in some of the Provinces, their accession only took place on a hereditary basis. The prevailing system did not create any awareness of the need for women to participate in the political affairs of the day. Women in the Provinces have traditionally had a lower status than men and have not occupied any positions of genuine power other than those exceptions mentioned above. It was therefore much more difficult for women in the Provinces to break down traditional barriers and access political power as it would impact on the existing power structures in society. 56. The Krios, descended from an “immigrant culture,” did not have any such entrenched traditional belief systems that barred women from political participation. The Krios had come to Freetown to express their desire for freedom in all spheres of life. The culture of independence that they brought with them facilitated the participation of Krio women in modern politics. 57. Ironically of course, the voices of Krio women did not translate into more power for women more generally, or a greater awareness of the needs of women. While women had some token representation in government from the time of the nationalist era to the outbreak of the war, women politicians constantly struggled against the indifference or the outright opposition of their male colleagues. Even in the final deliberations for self-government, male leaders would have ignored them had the women not raised a public outcry. According to one of the foremost female political activists of the time: “This pattern of unthinking
oversight [from men] occurred repeatedly. Many savvy women abandoned
active political work once they realised the paucity of rewards.”
58. Such was the prevailing situation before the conflict. While politics all over the world is a male-dominated field at the best of times, undoubtedly the inherently patriarchal nature of politics has exacerbated the exclusion of women. Sierra Leone is of course no exception. The participation of women in politics on a mass scale in Sierra Leone was largely limited to the provision of moral support, the raising and collection of party funds, voluntary labour and the organisation of catering or entertainment in their various political parties. Women leaders were often lent the somewhat patronising sobriquet “Mammy Queen”, indicating their aptitude in stereotypically “maternal” roles. 59. Needless to say such activities did not improve the position of women. They were still relegated to background positions after elections and as such could neither wield power nor benefit from the government when eventually it was constituted. Given the low numbers of women in positions of power, the much needed “critical mass” of women leaders who could have made a difference was non-existent. 60. In the Provinces a strong cultural belief existed that “women should be seen and not heard”. Of course, economics played a part in marginalising women. More importantly, though, attempts by women to agitate for political positions or to improve the quality of their lives were often thwarted because they were largely seen by the male members of society and by political parties as being in contradiction to the traditional role that women were expected to play. THE LEGAL STATUS OF WOMEN 61. Throughout the history of Sierra Leone, including the post-independence period before the war, women have not enjoyed equal status with men. To a large extent, the laws of Sierra Leone are discriminatory against women. While Sierra Leone is governed by a constitution that prohibits the promulgation of discriminatory laws, women are not protected in the areas that affect them most, such as marriage, divorce and inheritance. 62. Examples abound of discriminatory laws: for example, the Matrimonial Causes Act 1960, which covers divorce and maintenance for married women; the Administration of Estates Act, which governs inheritance and the distribution of a deceased’s estates; or the Citizenship Act 1973, which allows a Sierra Leonean husband to confer Sierra Leonean citizenship on his foreign wife, children and grandchildren but does not permit a Sierra Leonean wife to do likewise. The laws cited here were all originally adopted from English law. The cruel injustice is that they have long since been repealed in England and persist only in the Sierra Leonean legal system, to the great detriment of the country’s women. 63. The absence of progressive legal reform in Sierra Leone has resulted in the continued application of discriminatory laws and leaves women largely unprotected. Rape continues to go largely unpunished. Legislation is necessary to protect women adequately from all forms of violence, particularly domestic and sexual violence. 64. Customary law, which is largely unwritten and applies to the majority of the population, also discriminates against women, precluding them from enjoying equal status or rights with men. In the area of inheritance, traditional customary law regards women as “chattels” to be inherited. In other areas, women are regarded as minors in need of guardianship from a male family member. While the law provides that the application of customary law should not offend the principles of equity, natural justice or fairness, its application and impact on women is usually unfair. 65. In the sphere of marriage, women have been denied equal rights with their spouses. Their subordination does not change on termination of marriage. Historically, laws did not provide a minimum age for marriage that was universally applied throughout the country and did not preclude the common practice of early marriage. Unequal power relations between spouses characterised marital relationships to the detriment of women. The contributions women made towards the family were scarcely taken into account during the marriage or at its termination. 66. Although women have provided the bulk of the agricultural labour force, they have never owned land and whatever user rights they had under the land tenure system were lost upon the death of their husbands. Such user rights are vulnerable during war and even more so when reconstruction begins in the post-conflict period. Land ownership is a necessary means of generating wealth for women, since land can act as collateral when seeking loans from commercial banks. Women’s lack of economic power contributes to their vulnerability and to the “feminisation” of poverty.
THE ECONOMIC STATUS OF WOMEN 67. Economic opportunities for women in general were at best limited prior to the war, given that the persistent economic decline from the 1960s affected every Sierra Leonean irrespective of gender. According to a report from the Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs in 1996, the country’s performance had been one of long-term decline. Between 1965 and 1973 Sierra Leone registered an annual average real growth rate of over 4%, which declined gradually to 1.8% between 1974 and 1984. From 1984 onwards, the growth rate became negative until 1994, when it registered at 2%. Only in 1995 did growth briefly leap up to 10%. 68. Contemporary studies indicate that women bear the impact of an economic crisis more than men do. The inevitable rise in unemployment generally puts already marginalised women at a great disadvantage. Austerity measures result in fewer resources and usually translate into increased workload for women so as to garner more resources. Such a situation does not allow room for gender equality or improved conditions, as women are primarily engaged in the struggle for survival. Hence the phenomenon known as the “feminisation” of poverty. It has an especially stark impact on women in the rural areas. 69. Women before the war constituted the majority of the rural labour force. They made vital contributions to the economy. They have always played a substantial role in the sustenance of the family. Women provided more than 60% of farm labour for food production, processing and distribution. It is indeed telling that while women were engaged in subsistence farming and provided the labour force for cash crop production, men had greater access to ownership and control of cash crop production. 70. Women have traditionally engaged in low-income activities such as petty trading. A Labour Force Survey conducted in 1988 and 1989 revealed that 69% of petty traders were women, whereas 86% and 67% of men were service personnel and professional / technical workers respectively. While many worked as traders, women did not record substantial growth in their economic activities as a result of inadequate skills, low educational status, low economic power and lack of access to substantial credit facilities and property. The disparity between the economic status of women and men has often resulted in economic dependency by women. Women become overly reliant on men for the provision of their needs. In many instances, men exploit this dependency to consolidate control over women, thus further perpetuating their poverty. WOMEN AND HEALTH 71. Before the onset of the war, less than half of the population had access to basic health services. This travesty was attributed mainly to the unfavourable economic climate that Sierra Leone was experiencing. The cuts in spending in areas such as health and education invariably affected women disproportionately. According to a submission to the TRC from a group of women’s NGOs, decreases in public health spending and, in some cases, structural adjustment contributed to the deterioration of public health systems. The submission further stated that privatisation of health-care systems without appropriate guarantees of universal access to affordable health care, further reduced health-care availability. Women have long experienced unequal access to basic health services as well as different and unequal opportunities for the protection, promotion and maintenance of their health. 72. In the face of this plight, the Pan African Women’s Association (PAWA) Sierra Leone used the platform of International Women’s Day in 1992 to complain about the hardships women were enduring under the Structural Adjustment Programme. They cited limited access to health-care facilities, especially in the rural areas, as well as the exorbitant costs attached to what little health care was available. 73. Due to early and forced marriages in Sierra Leone, early sexual activity was commonplace. Many young girls therefore started child bearing early and were exposed to risks and complications arising out of early pregnancy and childbirth. Coupled with high illiteracy levels and a lack of awareness, these women and girls could not access adequate healthcare for themselves in such circumstances. 74. Traditional practices also impacted on the health of women in the period before the war. Practices such as venerating women because of their child-bearing capacities and encouraging them to increase the number of children they bear have put their health at risk so as to satisfy societal standards. The status of a woman is enhanced by motherhood, which pressurises many women into frequent child bearing, complete with its attendant health problems. Tradition and culture have also prohibited women from enjoying reproductive and sexual rights often through a lack of awareness of these rights. In those instances where they do know of them, they are not able to exercise them. Women do not have the power or the choice to refuse sex. They have no control, in most instances, over their bodies. 75. Escalating poverty, coupled with cultural practices such as giving the most nutritious part of the food to the man, resulted in poor intake of nutrients for women, jeopardising their health and their ability to bear healthy children. 76. The dismal economic situation, poor medical facilities and lack of access to the few existing health facilities put women at risk even before the war started. This situation was only to be compounded during the war years. THE SOCIO-CULTURAL STATUS OF WOMEN 77. Cultural practices and traditional beliefs relating to women have “socialised” some Sierra Leoneans into stereotyping the role of women. The effects of “socialisation” on perceptions of gender identity and roles are of great significance because they continue to impact on behaviour throughout one’s life, including in the way that one interacts with the opposite sex. The outcomes of the socialisation process are exhibited in the attitudes and behaviour of members of society in all aspects of life including gender identity and roles. 78. In this regard, the social and cultural factors that have determined societal perceptions and attitudes towards women in Sierra Leone can be examined against the background of the violations they have suffered. Socio-cultural mores
79. Sierra Leone society is made up of seventeen different tribes or ethnic groups, who mainly follow the Islamic faith and indigenous belief systems. The country also has a significant Christian population. Given the predominance of Islam, the Islamic way of life generally colours people’s social or cultural mores. This is particularly true for the ethnic groups located in the northern part of the country, where the adherents of indigenous religions equally bring their own belief systems, which before the advent of Islam and Christianity were the dominant belief systems of the people. 80. Sierra Leone’s social and cultural mores are a blend of Traditional or Indigenous, Islamic and Christian belief systems, all being buffeted by a Western value system. Many of these cultural beliefs are examined in order to understand how women are treated in Sierra Leone in certain circumstances and to determine whether any such treatment had correlation to the conflict. Considerations of women’s sexuality
81. Virginity is revered across ethnic lines and is of considerable importance for a women and her family. Virginity was used to determine the status of not only a mother and her daughter but also that of the family. If a girl was found not to be a virgin, the shame fell on her mother and ultimately her family as her behaviour was thought to be a measure of the extent to which the prevailing social mores had been instilled in her. Thus the virginity of a woman “belonged” to the family and constituted the honour of the family. Consequently, a woman’s sexuality rested on her being a virgin until marriage. In many of the ethnic groups in Sierra Leone, the honour of the family “name” rested on the issue of virginity. 82. In some cultures in Sierra Leone, a woman’s sexuality was linked to her association to a man. In the Mende worldview, for example, every woman must be affiliated to a man if she is to find acceptance in the community. This insistence is rooted in the belief that a woman’s prayer goes to God through a man. Consequently, a woman without a man is not considered to be “complete” by other members of the community. 83. Today, the values around virginity have changed somewhat and no longer carry as much significance as they did in the past. It can be argued that a new value system has emerged. Women are no longer beholden to their communities and families to uphold their chastity. Ironically, virginity has become a casualty of war due to the atrocities women suffered in the conflict. Appropriate ages for marriage and sex
84. For women and girls, there is no official age for marriage in Sierra Leone. Traditionally among some ethnic groups, a girl is considered of marriageable age when she has attained puberty (i.e. she has developed breasts and started menstruating) and has been initiated into the women’s secret society. Therefore girls as young as twelve, providing they met these conditions, were eligible for marriage. The entrenched nature of tradition helps to explain why early marriages were and still are practised routinely by some ethnic groups in the country. Today though, some women and girls make their own decisions concerning marriage and sex independently. 85. The abductions and use of young girls and women as bush wives and sex slaves by armed groups during the war could be attributed to the traditional beliefs that governed this issue prior to the war. Some of the armed groups did not consider it an aberration to rape young women or use them as sex slaves. A testimony to the Commission from a girl child who went fishing with other children and was captured during the conflict illustrates this point: “I was a small girl and could hardly
recall or have the experience of what was going on around me at that
time… Unfortunately I and my sister were captured. At Mende Boima, I
remained to be under the guardianship of Morrie Sellu who later
sponsored my initiation into the Bondo society. He turned me into his
wife afterwards…”
86. It is useful for several reasons to examine how Sierra Leonean society has traditionally dealt with sexual offences. Dealing with rape and other acts of sexual violence
87. Sexual offences in Sierra Leone are usually dealt with by recourse to traditional means of resolution, or occasionally legal channels. Certain figures in the affected community, such as chiefs, community elders, relatives and family members, typically come together to form a dispute resolution group. 88. One mechanism available is the use of fines. Among the Mende, Temne, Limba, Kono, Mandingo, Kissi, Loko, Sherbro and Koranko ethnic groups, the levying of fines on male culprits is one of the primary means of addressing sexual offences. If the woman victim is married, the fine imposed on the male culprit is known as “woman damage” among the Temne and Loko. 89. Another means of resolution is the resort to physical punishment, whereby a culprit is beaten in retribution. The Fullah, Mandingo and Susu ethnic groups practice such punishments. In the case of the Mandingos, the culprit is tied up even as adjudication is in progress. 90. Marriage between the man and the woman is another means through which some ethnic groups deal with sexual offences, especially if the offence is rape. The Fullah and Mandingo groups are known to conduct such marriages. It is important to reiterate that the marriage in question is imposed or forced. 91. Another method of addressing sexual offences is by performing purification rites. The Kono and Yalunka are among the tribes that perform purification rites, which are seen as an act of “cleansing” the sexual offence committed. 92. Legal channels require that the perpetrator of a sexual offence is reported to the police for investigation and possible prosecution. In many instances, the matter is “settled” by the police without referred to court. 93. Aside from traditional or legal means, religious leaders are also known to adjudicate in such matters. The Creoles and Sherbros sometimes call upon their religious figureheads to intervene in dealing with sexual offences. 94. All of these solutions depend on the acts of sexual violence having been “publicly” declared. In a society where silence around sexual violence holds sway, the notion of a “public declaration” is problematic. In addition, fear of shame, ostracisation, stigma, bureaucracy the disappearance of witnesses and a lack of financial capacity to take a case forward all militate against the victim making the violation known publicly. Hence out-of-court settlements are common. A pervasive “culture of silence” around rape and other acts of sexual violence tends to discourage women and girls from coming forward. 95. Despite the existence of a number of mechanisms to address sexual violations, most of them continue to go unreported or undeclared. In addition to the culture of silence there has emerged a culture of impunity, which enabled the armed groups to sexually violate women during the conflict with no thought or fear of accountability. Society’s reaction to sexual violations is generally lukewarm and rather passive. It remains to be seen whether there will be successful prosecutions of those who have committed rape and other acts of sexual violence during the conflict. Dealing with violence at the level of the family
96. Violent behaviour within the family in Sierra Leone is usually also surrounded by a “culture of silence”. Displays of violence in the family are considered “normal”, at least up to a particular “point”. The determination of that “point” is interpreted idiosyncratically – only if and when the “point” is passed can intervention be expected. Most interventions still emanate from within the community, employing mediation most of the time to address the offending behaviour and its implications. 97. It is generally considered an aberration by the wider society to involve “outside parties”, such as the police or social welfare services, in mediation sessions. Violence in the family is considered a private problem and more often than not people are encouraged to settle the dispute in-house, or with adjudicating bodies, even when these matters are taken to “official” establishments. Acts of assault are rarely dealt with by courts and are usually resolved by the agencies or persons involved. The chastisement of wives and / or members of their families
98. Amongst all ethnic groups in Sierra Leone, it is accepted practice for husbands to chastise or beat their wives or female relatives. Under customary law, a husband has the right to “reasonably chastise his wife by physical force”. Tellingly, significant numbers of women believe that it is appropriate for men to beat their wives. During a study of gender-based violence by the NGO Physicians for Human Rights, more than half of the women interviewed agreed with the view that a man has the right to beat his wife. How has Sierra Leonean society responded to domestic violence in the past?
99. While it is customary for a man to be able to beat his wife or daughter, it is not acceptable for such an act to become habitual. It is generally agreed among ethnic groups that an overtly violent man is abhorrent. In the past, different ethnic groups had developed ways and means of dealing with such a person. Responses could range from moral persuasion, the levying of a fine, or a warning, which could be both public and private, to the offender being asked to leave the community. Amongst the Krios, pressure could be put on the person, through such institutions as “lodge societies” (fraternal societies) of which the person was a member, or the church. Peer pressure also played its role in reining in such a person. As noted above, it has been common for a culture of silence to prevail in respect of domestic violence in Sierra Leone, as it is considered undue interference when “outsiders” attempt to intervene. It is only when such behaviour becomes “uncontrollable” that an intervention is seen as unavoidable and some remedying action takes place. 100. According to Rehn and Sirleaf, the extreme violence that women suffer during conflict does not arise solely out of the conditions of war, but is directly linked to the violence that exists in women’s lives during peacetime in the society in question. The authors state that “throughout the world, women experience violence because they are women.” They mostly attribute this situation to women’s lack of political rights and authority. They conclude by stating that: “Because so much of this persecution goes largely
unpunished, violence against women comes to be an accepted norm, one
which escalates during conflict as violence in general increases.”
101. Domestic violence as well as sexual violence is usually condoned or tolerated particularly in traditional societies. This is usually because of unequal power relations. In addition, conditioned by culture and status to be subservient to men, some African women especially the rural and poor ones have less safety mechanisms to combat violence leading to an acceptance of violence in the society. 102. A contributory factor is the ingrained perception held by many African women that complaining to persons or authorities may lead to the exposure of “family secrets”. This perpetuates the culture of silence around domestic and sexual violence. During conflict periods the usual safety mechanisms no longer function and violence spirals out of control. It has a direct effect on women and girls who bear the brunt of it.
103. The prevalence of an existing culture of violence in Sierra Leonean society and the silence that surrounds it may explain in part the brutality experienced by women during the conflict period. If violence existed against women at a time when there were some, albeit insufficient safeguards for women in place, the moment they were removed, the level of violence escalated. The contempt in which women were held prior to the conflict also exacerbated the way they were treated during the war. A report concluded in Freetown in 1998 found a correlation between the culture of condoning domestic violence in Sierra Leone and the prevalence of violence in general. In one of its conclusions the report stated that: “It is perhaps not
surprising that a culture that has spawned such apparently high rates
of war-related sexual violence also suffers from high rates of domestic
partner abuse.”
104. It is clear that women did not enjoy a high status in Sierra Leonean society before the war. Regrettably, the subordination of women has not changed up to the present day. It is a prognosis corroborated by Dr. Shirley Gbujama, the Minister of Social Welfare, Gender and Children Affairs, speaking in Freetown in October 2003: “The low status of women is steeped in deep cultural
tradition. In traditional Sierra Leonean society, the wife and children
are at the mercy of the family. Women have little control or influence
over decision-making. Certain socio-cultural practices provide the
leading cause of gender disparity and the inferior status of women as
evidenced by [such factors as]: high fertility rates; high infant and
child mortality rates; high adult female illiteracy rates; exclusion of
women from receiving certain services and instruments in rural areas
such as land, extension services, credit and farm inputs; and the
disproportionate amount of the workload in agriculture (estimated at
60-80%) allocated to women.”
NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL LAW PERTAINING TO WOMEN IN SIERRA LEONE WOMEN AND NATIONAL LAW IN SIERRA LEONE 105. The following section explores the national laws in Sierra Leone that impact on the rights of women, as well as the relevant international law. The Commission sets out to review whether the existing legal regime has a positive or negative effect on the rights and lives of women and girls. The 1991 Constitution
106. The laws of Sierra Leone, as defined in Section 170 of the 1991 Constitution, comprise the Constitution itself, along with laws made by or under the authority of Parliament, statutory instruments, the existing law and the common law. The common law includes the English common law and customary law. Customary law, which is largely unwritten, means those rules and regulations that are applicable by custom to particular communities in Sierra Leone. Customary law is also defined as any rule, other than a rule of general law, having the force of law in any chiefdom of the Provinces. The application of customary law must not be repugnant to equity, natural justice and good conscience. 107. Chapter II of the 1991 Constitution details the fundamental principles of State Policy one of which is safeguarding the rights of vulnerable groups such as women. The fundamental principles however do not confer any legal rights and are not enforceable in any court of law. Notwithstanding the fact that they lack the force of law, they are fundamental in the governance of the State and Parliament is under a duty to apply them when making laws. 108. Section 15 of the Constitution provides for a bill of rights guaranteeing fundamental human rights and freedoms of the individual irrespective of sex. This provision represents an important guarantee and should, appropriately understood, be a basis for challenging laws that discriminate against women. Furthermore, Section 27 of the Constitution provides that no law shall contain any provision that is discriminatory, either of itself or by its effect, and prohibits discriminatory treatment by any person acting by virtue of any law or in the performance of the functions of any public authority. Section 171(15) of the Constitution provides that the Constitution shall be the supreme law and that any other law found to be inconsistent with any provision of the Constitution shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be void and of no effect. 109. The Constitution however nullifies much of the promise of the equality provisions in Section 27(4)(d) by making an exception to the prohibition of discriminatory laws with respect to laws dealing with marriage, divorce, inheritance, or other interests of personal law. The effect of these exceptions is to shield the laws that apply throughout Sierra Leone that most discriminate either of themselves, or in their effects, or both, against women. Consequently, all of the most significant laws that are discriminatory against women still apply, rendering the equality provision in Section 15 seriously flawed and ineffective. 110. In addition, by prohibiting discrimination by persons in the public sector only, the Constitution appears to permit persons in the private sector to pursue discriminatory policies against women in important areas of their lives, including employment and promotion. With regard to the area of protection from violence, Section 15(a) of the Constitution provides for the right to life, liberty and security of person, while Section 20 provides that no person shall be subject to any form of torture or punishment or other inhuman or degrading treatment. These express constitutional provisions ought to provide a basis for the Government to protect and promote the rights of women to be free from violence and ensure that its laws, policies and programmes reflect these provisions in practical terms. 111. While the Constitution prohibits specific discrimination based on sex, there are certain exceptions or “claw back” clauses that particularly affect women. Section 27(3) defines discrimination as follows: “In
this section the expression “discriminatory” means affording different
treatment to different persons attributable wholly or mainly to their
respective descriptions by race, tribe, sex, place of origin, political
opinions, colour or creed, whereby persons of one such description are
subjected to disabilities or restrictions to which persons of another
such description are not made subject, or are accorded privileges or
advantages which are not accorded to persons of another such
description.”
112. The definition of discrimination includes “according privileges or advantages, which are not accorded to persons of another description”. This definition poses a serious challenge to women: on the one hand, they may challenge laws that discriminate against them because their male counterparts are not subject to the same laws; on the other, they do not appear to have the means to redress the historical legacies of gender imbalance on the same basis. 113. Paradoxically, the Constitution outlaws positive discrimination or affirmative action that may sometimes be necessary for the achievement of equality for all individuals, especially women. Section 27(4)(g), which appears to include affirmative action, is vague and remains to be tested or brought for interpretation in the Supreme Court. Constitutional provisions that readily allow laws, measures or policies temporary or otherwise are very necessary as a basis to redress the historical imbalance that exists in the society. Examples of such provisions can be found in other African constitutions. 114. Notwithstanding the equality provision in the 1991 Constitution, the majority of women in Sierra Leone do not enjoy equal status with their male counterparts. Aspects of statutory laws grounded primarily in English law adopted in Sierra Leone and influenced to a great extent by customary and Mohamedan law are still discriminatory against women. 115. Customary law, as practiced in certain communities, clearly discriminates against the interests of women in areas such as marriage, inheritance, property rights and political participation. These laws and practices are a challenge for the enjoyment of women’s rights, their advancement in the family and contribution to the political, economic and social development in Sierra Leone. Women are the victims of many forms of violence, yet the legal system does not provide adequate remedies to protect women and punish their violators. Traditional and cultural mores perpetuate gender stereotyping and greatly impact on the legal framework and practice relating to women. Different marriage systems applicable in Sierra Leone
116. There are four types of marriage systems in Sierra Leone: Christian marriage; Civil Marriage; Mohamedan Marriage; and Customary Law marriage. The Christian civil marriage and the Mohamedan marriage are required to be recorded by the Registrar-General in Freetown. Elsewhere, local courts sometimes register customary marriages. Currently, no minimum age of marriage is applicable throughout Sierra Leone. Under Mohamedan and Customary laws, even girls below the age of ten may be given in marriage. Early marriage impacts negatively on a young woman’s life by affecting her full development, particularly in terms of education, economic autonomy and physical and psychological health. Women’s reproductive health rights
117. The inferior status of most women, along with prevailing customs and traditions, makes it difficult for a woman freely to exercise her reproductive rights. There is barely any recognition for the right to plan one’s family, the right to freedom from interference in reproductive decision-making, or the right to be free from all forms of violence, discrimination and coercion that affect a woman’s sexual or reproductive life. 118. International treaties define the right to plan one’s family as the right to determine freely and responsibly the number and spacing of one’s children and to have the information and means necessary to do so. Governments are obliged to ensure that men and women have access to a full range of contraceptive choices and reproductive health services and that they have adequate information about sexual and reproductive health. These principles are linked to the right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right to privacy. 119. Maternal mortality is a deprivation of the right to life and Government has a responsibility to improve its health-care system so that women can enjoy safe motherhood. There is also a need for the enactment of laws relating to marital rape, which must include an offence of knowingly infecting a partner with HIV / AIDS. Presently in Sierra Leone, marital rape is not classified as a crime. Women’s rights to property and land ownership
120. Land ownership in the Western Area is based on English property laws from prior to 1925 and allows for individual ownership. In the Provinces, land ownership is governed by Chiefdom Councils and allows only for group ownership. Equal land ownership and inheritance laws and practices are necessary to achieve sustained development in any country. In post-war Sierra Leone, they are also essential for women’s economic, social and political survival. The argument for land ownership for women is not only one based on personal need, family security or national development; it is also a question of basic human rights. Women can acquire land through purchase, but often lack resources to do so. Most landowners acquire land through inheritance, and because of discrimination in the laws of inheritance that apply throughout the country, far fewer women than men own land in Sierra Leone. Inheritance rights
121. Inheritance rights become problematic where intestacy arises. While individuals can make a will under the different systems of personal law, in reality only a small fraction of the population make a will. The individual’s “personal law” governs inheritance in Sierra Leone. This is determined by a person’s ethnic origins, as a “native” from the Provinces, or as a “non-native” from the Western Area, or as a Muslim and not by his place of current residence. Inheritance is governed by three different sets of laws: customary law; Mohamedan law; and one set of statutes, which applies to persons who are not Mohammedans or whose personal law is not customary law. The inheritance rules of distribution discriminate against women under each of the three different laws. The Administration Of Estate Act
(Chapter 45 of the Laws Of Sierra Leone 1960) 122. The Second Schedule in the Administration of Estates Act provides for rules of distribution for the property of deceased persons, where customary law or Mohamedan laws do not apply. The Rules provide that, on the death of a wife, the husband is entitled to all of her property. On the death of a husband, the wife is entitled to one-third of the estate and the children are entitled to the remaining two thirds of the estate. If the husband has no children, the wife will be entitled to half and the other half shall be divided among the husband’s nearest relatives or next of kin. The Act does not provide for unmarried couples living together to benefit from the estate of their respective partners. Inheritance under customary law
123. The rules of inheritance under customary law vary from one ethnic group to another. Widows do not have inheritance rights in some ethnic groups; indeed some groups regard a widow as a chattel and part of the estate to be inherited by the deceased’s elder brother, or in his absence his eldest son. In Mende customary law a widow cannot inherit the husband’s estate. In the case of P. C. Bongay v Macaulay (1920-26), the court supported the position that a woman cannot have any interest in land as of right, or acquire land through her husband. This discrimination is quite anomalous, as the Mende women are allowed to become Chiefs and hold other leadership positions in society. 124. Similarly in Temne customary law, the widow is not entitled to any interest in the house where the married couple lived, although the husband’s family may compensate a wife who has contributed towards the building of the house. Under traditional customary law the husband inherited the deceased wife’s entire property whether or not the deceased wife had any children. In modern times, the inheritance practice appears to be evolving to allow the wife to have a share of her husband’s estate. Nonetheless, a son receives a larger share than the wife. Daughters also receive a lesser share than sons. Inheritance under Islamic law
125. The property of a Muslim who dies without leaving a will is distributed according to the Holy Quran. Section 9(2) of the Muslim Marriage Act of the Laws of Sierra Leone 1960, provides that only the eldest son or eldest brother of the Official Administrator can take out letters of administration to administer the deceased estate. Wives, sisters and daughters i.e. the female members of the family are thereby deprived of a similar right to take out letters of administration to administer the deceased property. This is still the case even when the deceased is a woman and she is the sole owner of property. 126. While the Act makes no provision for the distribution of the estate of a deceased person, it does allow the Official Administrator who holds the letters of administration to consult the tribal headman of the deceased, to ascertain the law governing the distribution of the estate. The Act gives the deceased sons and eldest brother the right to administer the estate of the deceased without providing the rules they should follow in distributing the estate, thus there are instances where wives and daughters have been deprived of any share in their deceased husband or father’s estate. There are rules of distribution in the fourth chapter of the Quaran-Sura-tul Nisa applied by some Muslim communities, but its application give men more inheritance rights than women. This Act has the widest application in the country but because it does not contain any provisions guiding distribution it is seriously flawed. It is not surprising that the distribution of a deceased’s estate usually impacts negatively on women and are hardly challenged. 127. The different rules of distribution under each of these legal systems allowing men better inheritance rights than women are a clear discrimination on the basis of sex. The application of these rules sometimes exposes widows to forceful eviction without consideration to their contribution to the assets acquired during marriage. They also contravene a cardinal right of equality in marriage and at its dissolution. They also affect the children of the deceased who may be deprived of care and education as a result of these inheritance rules. 128. In instances under customary law where the deceased brother inherits the wife and then forces her to marry him. This practice deprives women of their right to freely choose who and when they wish to marry, and is repugnant to “equity, natural justice and good conscience.” As in the case with other African societies, the daily struggle, contribution and effort of women in Sierra Leone is often overlooked and not given any monetary value. Ghana is one very positive example of a country in the same sub-region as Sierra Leone that has made several attempts to amend its laws on inheritance. The importance of land ownership for women
129. The war in Sierra Leone created many female-headed households. However, women still experience great difficulty in accessing housing. While many women have the resources to rent a house, landlords refuse to rent their houses to women unless a man carries out the negotiations. Many war widows complain of being forced out of farmlands that belonged to their husbands. Law reform law particularly in the area of property and inheritance rights is important to redress the grievances of these widows. This problem is even more prevalent in the rural areas where land held by the Chiefdom Council in trust for their community is allocated mainly to male family heads. 130. The Commission notes that most land allocation projects carried out by government or traditional authorities in Sierra Leone still tend to benefit men more than women. 131. Land ownership is needed to enable women to achieve economic empowerment. Land is needed not only for agriculture, a sector in which women make up the majority of the workforce, but also to be used as collateral for loans. In the Western Area, if the names of the couple are on the title deeds of the property acquired during marriage, they are regarded as joint owners. Neither party can convey or transfer the property to the detriment of the other. However in cases where the property is only in the name of the husband, the wife is disadvantaged, as she cannot challenge a sale or gift of that property to a third party. 132. Given the present increase of single mothers and female-headed households because of the war, land is desperately needed to enable women to achieve economic empowerment and provide for their families. Women can have the same access to credit as men if they are landowners, because land can be used as collateral for a loan. The courts in Freetown regularly impose presentation of title deeds as a condition when granting bail to accused persons for certain offences, thus making it difficult for any woman to secure bail for her relatives or herself because she does not own property. Securing greater access to land for women through legal reform in the areas of inheritance and land allocation, particularly after the war, is a pressing priority. Divorce
133. The Matrimonial Causes Act of 1960 provides for divorce, judicial separation and restitution of conjugal rights for persons married under the Civil or Christian Marriage Act. The grounds for divorce are cruelty, adultery or desertion, which are matrimonial offences requiring a higher standard of proof and based on the guilt or innocence of either party to the marriage. Divorce proceedings are very expensive and time-consuming. Most women do not apply for divorce because they lack the means to do so and the rules themselves are discriminatory against women. Thus men – who may not necessarily be the innocent party in the marriage – institute most divorces. 134. Divorce under customary law is very difficult to obtain because of the multiple variations in the laws of the different ethnic groups and the diverse grounds on which divorce can be obtained. The husband may terminate the marriage unilaterally, driving the wife from the matrimonial home or returning her to her parents. Either party to the marriage may also initiate divorce proceedings in the local court or an arbitration tribunal. 135. Under Mohamedan law, Muslim religious leaders usually grant divorces. However, a husband can also divorce his wife simply by saying “I divorce you” three times in Arabic; a wife in contrast cannot end a marriage nearly so easily. A wife under customary and Mohamedan law encounters additional barriers if she initiates divorce proceedings and must satisfy the religious leader or arbitration tribunal due to issue her with a divorce certificate that her application is approved by her spouse. The division of property upon separation and divorce creates unequal rights between the spouses. The division of property during dissolution of any of the three forms of marriage is not mandatory and the non-financial contribution of the wife is never taken into account. Domestic violence
136. Under Sierra Leonean Law, there is no specific legislation to prosecute domestic violence. However domestic violence may be prosecuted under the common law, for example as murder or manslaughter if it leads to death, or under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 if it results in assault or wounding. In the past prosecutors have demonstrated reluctance to prosecute such offences where they take place in the home and are committed by a partner or acquaintance, incorrectly interpreting them to be matters of a private nature. While the police or family members can sometimes mediate on such matters, a resolution in favour of the victim is seldom arrived at. Indeed, the odds are stacked against the victims because so few of them have alternative accommodation or support mechanisms to turn to in the event of crisis; temporary shelters for victims are non-existent. 137. Where a woman is physically abused by her partner and makes a report, the perpetrator is rarely called to account and the woman is encouraged to return home to where the crime was committed. At best the perpetrator may be invited to the police station and warned not to repeat the crime, after which both parties then return to the same violent situation. Such dismissive treatment of domestic violence perpetuates a culture of impunity, where violators go completely unpunished. 138. There are frequent reports in Sierra Leone of violence that has resulted in death, permanent disability or serious injuries to women. In each such case, the woman’s right to health, liberty and security of person, as well as her right to physical integrity, are severely undermined. In a case where a woman dies as a result of physical injury inflicted by her partner, despite having made multiple reports to the police, the Government should be held accountable for having breached its duty of care to protect its citizens’ human rights. 139. Once a violation is proved, the Government has an obligation to provide a legal remedy to stop the violation, punish the violators or compensate the victim or both. If the violation occurs as a result of a discriminatory law or customary practice, or as a result of the absence of a protective law, then one part of the remedy should be to seek legal reform or the passage of a new law to improve the observance and protection of the right in question. Sexual and gender-based violence
140. The horrific and brutal experiences of women during the war make it necessary to examine whether the laws of Sierra Leone offer adequate protection in relation to sexual and gender-based violence. In 2001, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) conducted a population-based assessment of the prevalence and impact of sexual violence and other human rights abuses among internally displaced persons in Sierra Leone. PHR found that internally displaced women and girls in Sierra Leone suffered an extraordinary level of rape, sexual violence and other gross human rights violations during the country’s civil war, with half of them indicating that their contact had been with the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) forces. Rape
141. Rape is an offence under the common law in Sierra Leone, defined as having sexual intercourse with a woman without her consent, by force, fear or fraud. While rape is in theory punishable as an offence throughout Sierra Leone, it has always been under-reported and relatively few prosecutions of rape or crimes of sexual violence have taken place. Victims have been reluctant to report sexual crimes for fear of stigma. Many victims are suffer intimidation and are thus prevented from reporting crimes or insisting on the prosecution of their perpetrators. In addition, there is often little incentive to pursue an onerous prosecution in a judicial system that is not conducive to “just” outcomes. 142. The rules of procedure in Sierra Leone’s courts, which require corroboration and cross-examination by formidable defence lawyers, discourage women from instigating legal proceedings. Such a perceptibly hostile environment in the courts has often had the consequence of making victims, most of them without legal representation, feel that they are responsible for the crime they have suffered. Even where cases are reported, most of them end up not being prosecuted, as those responsible for prosecution prevail upon the victim to settle the matter out of court. The approach of the police and judicial officers suggests that they regard rape and other gender-based crimes as lesser crimes not worth prosecuting. Protection Of Women And Girls Act
(Chapter 30 Of The Laws Of Sierra Leone 1960) Procuring Girls and Women for Prostitution within and without Sierra Leone 143. Under the Protection of Women and Girls Act, any person who procures or attempts to procure a girl or woman under 21 years who is not a common prostitute or of known immoral character to have sex with another person within or without Sierra Leone commits a crime and shall be imprisoned for a period not exceeding two years. Any person who uses threats or intimidation to do such an act commits a crime and shall be imprisoned for the same period. The Act does not define a “common prostitute” or a “person of known immoral character”, which means the provision is too open to abuse and denies adequate protection to women and girls. 144. Sexual offences that are linked with the “moral character” of the victim are not gender sensitive and are a violation of the right to be free from sexual violence and the right to physical integrity. Perpetrators can escape punishment by alleging that the victim is a prostitute or a woman of immoral character. The punishment of two years’ imprisonment under this Act is inappropriate and unlikely to deter offenders from committing such crimes. In particular, in view of the widespread rape and sexual slavery that characterised the conflict in Sierra Leone, there is a high risk that victims of the conflict who attempt to prosecute rape or crimes of sexual violence in peacetime may be challenged and dismissed because of their experiences during the war. 145. The complex provisions of the general law have been misinterpreted to the detriment of minors who have been raped or sexually assaulted, resulting in perpetrators being charged with unlawful carnal knowledge of a child, for which the sentence is lighter than rape. Another area of concern is the need for corroborating evidence relating to these offences, which is extremely unlikely considering their nature and the circumstances in which they are typically committed. Until recently there was only one police doctor in Freetown who was competent to provide medical services to victims and furnish the courts with the requisite medical reports. The police and judicial officers remain outwardly reluctant to prosecute sexual offences and the legal system that is supposed to serve women remains unfriendly to them. Sexual offences under customary law
146. During the conflict, women were targeted by the different perpetrator groups and systematically raped and sexually violated. Rape was used as a weapon of war to dominate and humiliate women to undermine traditional cultural values and community relationships. Women and girls were raped and sexually attacked in front of their families, mothers, fathers, husbands and children, as a means of heightening the crime against them, torturing their loved ones and terrorising the community. 147. Under traditional customary law, the consent of the woman or girl for the purposes of sex is immaterial. If a girl is raped or indecently sexually assaulted, her parents can bring an action under customary law for compensation. If the girl is a virgin the amount of compensation includes “virgin money”. The same situation applies where the offender is a prospective husband of the victim. If the girl is married her husband can bring an action for compensation commonly referred to as “woman damage”. The fact that communities were in no position to demand compensation for these crimes when they were committed against women and girls during the war has further degraded the status of women. There is no doubt that the reduction of a sexual offence from a heinous crime to a mere action for damage money has contributed to the low status that women occupy in traditional society. Access to justice for women facing sexual violence under general law and under customary law
148. Women victims of sexual violence in Sierra Leone face considerable challenges in seeking to achieve justice. Some of the problems they face are as follows: i. The prevailing culture of silence;
ii. Reduced sentencing for offenders; iii. Difficulty in getting a conviction as a result of the strict evidentiary requirements of proof; iv. Short staff and institutional inefficiency in the law officer’s department; v. Absence of legal aid for women; vi. Absence of laws on marital rape; vii. A woman’s consent to sex is not considered to be an issue of legal relevance under customary law; viii. Laws on evidence and procedure on crimes of sexual violence are not gender sensitive; and ix. Absence of temporary shelters for victims of sexual or domestic violence. Application of National Law to Violations during the Conflict
149. Women suffered a multiplicity of violations during the war, including abduction, forced recruitment, detention, forced displacement, forced labour, assault, torture, forced drugging, amputation, forced cannibalism, forced cannibalism, rapes, sexual slavery, sexual abuse, extortion, looting, destruction of property and killing. Many of these violations constitute crimes under Sierra Leone’s criminal law. Torture, forced drugging and amputation may be prosecuted as assaults under the Offences Against the Persons Act 1861. The killing of women may be prosecuted as murder or manslaughter. Detention may be prosecuted as false imprisonment. The acts of extortion, looting and destruction of property may be prosecuted under the Larceny Act 1916 or the Malicious Damage Act. The national laws of rape under the common law, indecent assault and procuring for prostitution could be applied to crimes of sexual violence committed during the war. 150. While it is reassuring to know that such crimes can technically be prosecuted under national law, it will not happen because of the amnesty provisions in the Lomé Peace Agreement of 1999. Notwithstanding this amnesty, the existing criminal justice system would in any case be totally inadequate to handle cases of this nature. It is further highly unlikely that a criminal justice system that fails to deal properly with crimes of this nature during peacetime could be in a position to prosecute crimes against humanity and war crimes. A major problem for victims is the fact that the evidentiary burden is high and the onus is on the victim to offer corroborating evidence. 151. In addition, the crimes of rape, unlawful carnal knowledge, indecent assault, abduction for immoral purposes and procurement for the purposes of prostitution as provided for in the national law are primarily based on a notion of crimes against the honour, dignity and chastity of the victim, her family or the community. The existing criminal laws are totally inadequate when dealing with crimes of this nature that occur during a conflict situation, as they focus on a narrow definition of morality that would further stigmatise and traumatise the victim. 152. On 23 February 2003 the Sierra Leone Parliament established a Standing Committee for Human Rights and related issues to promote respect for human rights in Sierra Leone. If this Committee is to succeed in its mandate, it will have to pioneer and lobby for legal reform to promote and protect women’s rights. A relevant consideration in its work must be the application of national law to sexual violations that may occur in a future conflict situation. WOMEN AND INTERNATIONAL LAW IN SIERRA LEONE A brief overview of the international instruments on women and the level of their incorporation in Sierra Leone national law
153. The ratification and incorporation of international human rights instruments into national law is crucial to the advancement of women’s rights as it is imposes on states an obligation to interpret national law in a manner consistent with the state’s international or legal obligations. International human rights standards can be regarded as the minimum standards of protection, which all systems of national laws should strive to attain. 154. Sierra Leone became a member of the United Nations in 1961 and ratified most of the major human rights instruments. Sierra Leone is a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Covenant on Economic Cultural and Social Rights (ICECSR), the Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), the Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRC), the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. A general overview of the major international instruments
155. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognises the right to life liberty and security; the right to be free from sex discrimination; the right to marry and found a family; equal rights for women as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution; the right to be free from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; and provide that marriage shall be entered with the free and full consent of the intending spouses. 156. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, also guarantees the right to life; to liberty and security of the person, to privacy; to be free from sex discrimination; to marry and found a family; to not be forced to enter marriage without the free and full consent of the intended spouses; to equality of rights and responsibilities of spouses as to marriage during marriage and at its dissolution; to be free from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; to be free from medical or scientific experimentation without free consent and to public health, medical care, social security and social services. It also provides that governments must establish a minimum age for marriage and make the registration of marriages in an official registry compulsory. 157. The ICECSR, the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) are also instruments that recognise: the right to life; to privacy; to be free from sex discrimination; to the highest attainable standard of physical health; to health care services; to decide on the number and spacing of their children and to have access to the information and means to do so; to the elimination of discrimination against women in all matters relating to marriage and family relations; and to be free from sexual violence, abuse, exploitation, prostitution and trafficking. 158. These instruments require Government to commit itself to develop preventive health care, guidance for parents and family planning education and services; prenatal and postnatal and to ensure access to information, counselling and services concerning family planning; to appropriate services to ensure safe pregnancy; Government undertakes to eliminate traditional practices prejudicial to the health of children. The African Charter on Human And People’s Rights 159. The African Charter on Human and People’s Rights entered into force in October 1986. Article 18 (3) of the charter states that “the state shall ensure the elimination of every discrimination against women and also ensure the protection of the rights of women and the child as stipulated in international declarations and conventions”. By this Article, the African Charter has incorporated all of the international declarations and conventions that relate to women. There is a protocol on the Rights of African Women approved in July 2003 that offers wide protection for the rights of women. Sierra Leone needs to ratify this protocol, which will allow the rights provided in it to be enjoyed in Sierra Leone. The Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) 160. Article 1 of CEDAW defines “discrimination against women “ to “mean any distinction, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field”. 161. Article 2 of CEDAW requires Governments to pursue all appropriate means and without delay a policy of eliminating discrimination against women and to embody the principle of equality of men and women in their constitutions or other appropriate legislation and to ensure that this principle is practically realised. Governments are further called upon to adopt appropriate legislation and other measures including sanctions prohibiting discrimination against women by any person organisation or enterprise and to repeal all laws that constitute discrimination against women. 162. Article 5(a) of CEDAW provides that State parties shall take all appropriate measures to modify the social and cultural patterns of conduct of men and women, with a view to achieving the elimination of prejudices and customary and all other practices which are based on the idea of inferiority or superiority of either of the sexes or on stereotyped roles for men and women. CEDAW also prohibits dismissal on the grounds of pregnancy, maternity leave or marital status. 163. Article 4 of CEDAW requires states to adopt temporary special measures aimed at accelerating equality on a practical basis between men and women, which shall not be considered as discrimination under the Convention and which shall be discontinued when the objectives of equality of opportunity and treatment have been achieved. Other provisions of CEDAW are focussed on education, employment, health care, equality before the law, same legal capacity in contracts, administration of property and choice of residence. |
