Sierra Leone sexual violence: What difference did the national emergency make? - BBC News

Despite Sierra Leone declaring sexual violence a national emergency, perpetrators are rarely punished.

1 day agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingBy Tyson Conteh & Tamasin FordBBC Africa Eye, Makeni & LondonSierra Leone's President Julius Maada Bio took the bold step of declaring a national emergency over rape and sexual violence in 2019. Five years on, BBC Africa Eye explores whether survivors of attacks are getting justice.

Warning: This article contains details some readers may find upsetting.

In the city of Makeni, a three-hour drive east of Sierra Leone's capital, Freetown, a young mother sits outside her home with her three-year-old daughter.

Anita, which is not her real name, describes the day in June 2023 when she found her toddler with blood dripping from her nappy.

"I worked for this woman, and she gave me an errand that Saturday morning to go to the market," she says, explaining that she then left her child with her employer and her 22-year-old son.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-68898467

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