The Full Petition Letter: Foreign Aid Ban, Travel Ban Key to Concerned Sierra Leoneans’ Demand
By Abu Shaw
Following is the full petition letter from Concerned Sierra Leoneans CSL that was presented to the United Kingdom government on Monday, July 17, 2023.
Concerned Sierra Leoneans UK made history after successfully mobilising and executing the July 17, 2023 protest much to the chagrin of the illegitimate regime of Julius Maada Bio. Hundreds of Sierra Leoneans from all walks of life converged in Elephant & Castle near Tabernacle Church in south London as early as 8 am where the protesters assembled and prepared themselves to march across London until Parliament Square to hand over the petition letter which highlighted the fraudulent June 24 elections. Captivating speeches were made as calls for the restoration of democracy and counting the people’s votes in Sierra Leone grew louder. At 12 midday, the protesters chanting “Save Our Democracy in Sierra Leone” marched to the perimeter of Downing Street where six selected Sierra Leoneans i.e. three ladies and three gents were given the noble job to present the petition letter to No 10 Downing Street, the home and office of the UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. (Photo: The six CSL reps, standing in front of Downing Street after presenting the petition letter.
After completing the rigorous bodily searches at the main entrance, more thorough than the airport searches, the petitioners including Madam Nyamacoro Sarata Silla; Ya Martha Forna; Fatima Kamara; Mr Momodu Stevens; Mr Amadu Koita Malako; Abu Shaw, editor, and publisher of theorganiser.net entered the compound of No 10 towards the famous black door escorted by a friendly police officer. There, the petition letter was presented, and pictures of the presentation were taken. It was a timely petition in Downing Street as information confirmed that the summer recess for politicians was about to commence. Reports say the UK government has promised to reach out to Concerned Sierra Leoneans possibly in September 2023 for further tete-a’-tete. Coordinator of the march Mr Momodu Stevens, the grandson of late President Siaka Stevens confirmed that PM Rishi Sunka will engage with Concerned Sierra Leoneans after their recess. (Photos: Protesters on July 17, 2023).
Droves of determined Sierra Leoneans, mostly women and ladies, including their daughters, and nieces joined the historic protests from the meeting point at Elephant & Castle all the way to Parliament Square and later to Downing Street. The chanting grew louder for democratic governance in Sierra Leone as protesters gallantly marched in London as vehicles sounded their horns in support of the protests. It was truly amazing to also see lots of old faces and prominent social media activists like Mr Imran Turay, popularly known as Imran T, who was attired in a military outfit likened to a revered Major General. Mama Salone, a popular social media activist also graced the occasion. Media activist Cash Box of PLM was also present. Best video editor Kelzo of Laybelley News was there to capture the best images and interviews. This is the summary of what Concerned Sierra Leoneans presented to No 10 Downing Street on July 17, 2023, during the massive protests against the illegitimate SLPP administration of Julius Maada Bio. (Photos: Protesters on July 17, 2023).
Concerned Sierra Leoneans wrote thus – We are asking that the UK government, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and James Cleverley (Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Affairs of the United Kingdom), intervene urgently in this matter and review the election process that took place on the 24th of June in its entirety and take the necessary actions following that review. We also ask that all data pertaining to the elections be reviewed by an independent body. We recommend that a travel ban be placed on key personnel of the Bio administration, their families, and close associates. And an embargo or restriction on foreign aid placed on them. And immediate freezing of their foreign bank accounts and assets. We are also asking the UK government to explore using the new sanctions that target individuals and entities that violate human rights in Sierra Leone to impose sanctions on members of the Sierra Leonean government, military, and police forces involved in any human rights abuses. Deploying sanctions would provide accountability for and serve as a deterrent to anyone involved in violations of human rights anywhere. Read the full petition letter thus –
CONCERNED SIERRA LEONEANS Twitter:@CLeoneans Facebook: Concerned sierraleoneansuk Tel: +44 (0) 7405 294 347 Email:[email protected] 5th July 2023.
PETITION to the UK government from Concerned Sierra Leoneans living in the UK.
We strongly believe that there is clear evidence to support the litany of allegations, both nationally and internationally, that the Sierra Leone Presidential election on June 24, 2023, was rigged by the Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone (ECSL) to favour the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) and candidate Mr. Julius Maada Bio. The evidence of this has been made available to all key personnel who were present in Sierra Leone during the election, on all social media platforms by credible international observers, for example, the Chief Observer, Member of the EU Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) to Sierra Leone, Ambassador to the American Embassy, British Embassy in Sierra Leone, representatives from ECOWAS, ECOMOG, US Foreign Relations Committee, etc.
The EU EOM has confirmed that “the ECSL lacked clear, timely, and comprehensive communication with the broader public, creating uncertainties and reducing stakeholders’ trust in the election process”. There was a lack of transparency and responsiveness to the legitimate concerns of disenfranchised voters, candidates, political parties, observers, and international partners, and therefore the election was not a free and fair one. Despite all the concerns that were raised by the opposition party, The All People’s Congress (APC), and the citizens of Sierra Leone in relation to the transparency of the election process, it was clear that ECSL did not address these issues. Evidence from the international community in tandem with The National Electoral Watch (NEW) provided their response, which shows that the process was flawed and the results were not credible. These issues were highlighted by the election observers through press conferences and letters addressed to ECSL and Mr. Julius Maada Bio, as the results announced do not reflect the will of the people.
There is widespread evidence that election boxes were filled with completed ballot papers even before any votes were cast in them. There were ballot papers that were found that were already completed in favour of Mr. Julius Maada Bio. Some polling stations were not opened on time, and voters were refused to vote even though they had arrived hours earlier to cast their votes and were in the queue before the polling time expired. Some of the ballot boxes were not compliant as they were opened, and some had non-identifiable or broken seals on them.
The ECSL is supposed to be an independent body charged with the responsibility of conducting credible, free, and fair elections, but this has not been the case in this election process, as the Foreign Relations Committee has further confirmed that “If the Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone is an independent body concerned solely with conducting a free, fair, transparent, and credible election, then it must release disaggregated polling station results for Sierra Leoneans and the world to see”. This needs to happen as the results and reconciliation forms (RRFs) were collated at various stages at all the polling stations.
The RRF’s data and input should have tallied with the results that Mr. Mohammed Konneh (ECSL, Chief Electoral Commissioner) announced, and all the information put on the forms by ECSL should have been projected on a screen for observers to see. This did not happen, and observers were not allowed to see what was inputted into the system by ECSL at the final stages. Consequently, Mr. Julius Maada Bio was declared the winner by ECSL without providing a full breakdown of the votes from the election results. Sierra Leone is now a country on the edge.
A country that went through a decade of civil war in which some of the worst crimes against humanity were committed is today at a crossroads. In light of this, Mr. Julius Maada Bio has attempted to retain power at all costs and has now reverted to the brutality that permeated their four years of military rule between 1992 and 1996. It was during that period that extrajudicial executions took place, and he has been named in The Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s report as one of the perpetrators of those heinous crimes.
In light of the latter, we demand that the security forces In Sierra Leone remain apolitical and that an independent public inquiry be set up to investigate their past and current atrocities, human rights abuses, and intimidation currently taking place in Sierra Leone against citizens of the opposition parties who are being targeted for not voting for the SLPP. The will of the people has been denied due to the outcome of the just concluded elections, and the people of Sierra Leone (both at home and abroad) want an inquiry to be held for the people that have been unlawfully killed.
Democracy is the will of the people for the people and by the people that has been taken from the people. The democratic governance of the people of Sierra Leone has been tarnished, and this is a huge concern for democracy all over the world. We, Concerned Sierra Leoneans living in the United Kingdom and in the Diaspora, now call on you to intervene and restore our democracy. The recently concluded elections were tainted with massive corruption and an electoral body that is partial with no regard to the 1991 constitution of Sierra Leone.
We are asking that the UK government, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and James Cleverley (Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Affairs of the United Kingdom), intervene urgently in this matter and review the election process that took place on the 24th of June in its entirety and take the necessary actions following that review. We also ask that all data pertaining to the elections be reviewed by an independent body. We recommend that a travel ban be placed on key personnel of the Bio administration, their families, and close associates.
An embargo or restriction on foreign aid to be placed on them. Immediate freezing of their foreign bank accounts and assets. We are also asking the UK government to explore using the new sanctions that target individuals and entities that violate human rights in Sierra Leone to impose sanctions on members of the Sierra Leonean government, military, and police forces involved in any human rights abuses. Deploying sanctions would provide accountability for and serve as a deterrent to anyone involved in violations of human rights anywhere.
There is deeply concerning video evidence of the police force and army in Sierra Leone currently engaging in illegal activities and human rights abuses, and there have also been reports of police firing and killing citizens who have been protesting peacefully about the current situation. The United Kingdom and international partners must act now if we are to avoid another bloody civil war in Sierra Leone.
Sincerely yours,
CONCERNED SIERRA LEONEANS UK
CC. The Rt Hon Rishi Sunak MP, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Rt Hon James Cleverly MP, Secretary of State for Foreign,
Commonwealth and Development Affairs of the United Kingdom
The Rt Hon Andrew Mitchell MP, Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office) (Minister for Development and Africa)
The Rt Hon Neil Coyle MP, Labour MP for Bermondsey and Old Southwark
The Rt Hon Keir Starmer MP, Leader of His Majesty’s Opposition
The Rt Hon Harriet Harman MP, Harriet Harman MP, Labour MP for Camberwell and Peckham
The Rt Hon David Lammy MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Affairs of the United Kingdom
Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State
Alice P. Albright, CEO of MCC
Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the IMF
Ursua von der Leyen, President of the European Commission.
