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Showing posts from September 29, 2016

Legal Aid mediates between crop and cattle farmers in Port Loko

Legal Aid mediates between crop and cattle farmers in Port Loko The Executive Director of the Legal Aid Board, Ms. Fatmata Claire Carlton-Hanciles has called on stakeholders in Port Loko District to come up with home grown solutions to the problem between cattle herders and crop farmers in the district. She made this remark while addressing aggrieved parties and stakeholders including five paramount chiefs, the Chairman of the Port Loko District Council, the President of the National Framer Federation and the District Director of Agriculture in Masiaka on Tuesday, 27 September 2016. ‘For some of these cases, the answers are not in the courts,’ Ms. Carlton-Hanciles told her audience. ‘We will work with stakeholders to promote peace and security in the community.’ Ms. Carlton-Hanciles pointed out that the Board does not have lawyers to provide legal assistance to all those who qualify for legal aid. ‘This is why we will be training paralegals from the community in the near futu

Legal Aid mediates between crop and cattle farmers in Port Loko

Legal Aid mediates between crop and cattle farmers in Port Loko The Executive Director of the Legal Aid Board, Ms. Fatmata Claire Carlton-Hanciles has called on stakeholders in Port Loko District to come up with home grown solutions to the problem between cattle herders and crop farmers in the district. She made this remark while addressing aggrieved parties and stakeholders including five paramount chiefs, the Chairman of the Port Loko District Council, the President of the National Framer Federation and the District Director of Agriculture in Masiaka on Tuesday, 27 September 2016. ‘For some of these cases, the answers are not in the courts,’ Ms. Carlton-Hanciles told her audience. ‘We will work with stakeholders to promote peace and security in the community.’ Ms. Carlton-Hanciles pointed out that the Board does not have lawyers to provide legal assistance to all those who qualify for legal aid. ‘This is why we will be training paralegals from the community in the near fu

Legal Aid meets Kenema stakeholders

Legal Aid meets Kenema stakeholders By Santigie Kamara The Mayor of Kenema City, Joseph S Kaifala, has on Tuesday 26 th September 2016 showered praises on the role of Legal Aid Board in Sierra Leone, adding that they are making it possible for those who could not afford to hire the service of a lawyer to access justice. Mayor Kaifala made this disclosure to the indigenes of Kenema and it immediate environs while serving as the Chairman of the occasion at the District Council Hall during an engagement Legal Aid Board had with stakeholders in that part of the country. He informed the gathering that the Legal Aid Board is one of the greatest opportunities the government of President Koroma has done for those who could not afford to hire the services of a lawyer. Mayor Kaifala informed the gathering that quite a considerable number of people in Kenema City and beyond lost their cases in the court of law because in the past, they could not afford to hire the services of legal

MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR

As a Lawyer who has practiced in Sierra Leone before joining the international tribunal, the Special Court for Sierra Leone, I have seen firsthand how accused persons had to endure countless adjournments and months on remand due to lack of legal advice and representation.

My experience working with the Sierra Leone Legal Aid Board since its establishment in May 2015 has broadened my understanding of the depth of the challenges plaguing the formal and traditional justice systems.

I have visited overcrowded prisons and police cells around the country. I have seen many accused persons literally abandoned in prison either because they cannot secure a bail or have not been with an indictment. Some have spent more time in remand than the maximum sentence for the crimes they are alleged to have committed. I have seen victims of domestic violence, rape and discrimination on the basis of gender resort to divine intervention because they cannot afford the cost of accessing justice.

I have seen powerful self-styled local lawyers run the show in the local/traditional courts and in the process abuse the rights of people and the Local Court Act 2011.

We have engaged and canvassed the views of agencies in the justice sector, Parliamentarians and non-governmental organizations. The interest in and expectations of the organization are heartwarming but also breathtaking.

This is what drives our commitment to deliver on our mandate to make justice accessible to those who have been left out because they are poor. For a start, we will deploy Paralegals in Police Stations in the capital and the 149 chiefdoms in the country to monitor Local Courts to ensure their activities are consistent with national laws and international human rights standards. Also, we will hire 100 Lawyers to provide free legal services to our clients.

This is without doubt a tall order considering the organization is new and the resources at its disposal are far from being adequate. We are convinced with support from the government, donors and well-wishers we can make a world of difference in the lives of ordinary people and in the process contribute to restoring much needed confidence in the justice system.