President Koroma launches the Legal Aid Board
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| H.E. President Dr. Earnest Bai Koroma |
“This has been a long wait for
all of us. It is a commitment of my government and I am sure there is great
expectation out there.” With these few words, President Dr. Ernest Koroma
launched the Sierra Leone Legal Aid Board (LAB) while holding up the maiden
edition of the Board’s newsletter.
The ceremony took place on 19
December 2015 at the Miata Conference Centre, Youyi Building where hundreds of
civil society members drawn mostly from the Motor Drivers Union, Bike Riders
Association, Petty Traders Association and the Market Women Association had
converged to celebrate a new dawn in making justice accessible to the poor, and
to also say thank you to the Legal Aid Board. Members of these organizations
make up the majority of beneficiaries of the Board since it commenced
operations in May 2015.
President Koroma reminded his audience that the
establishment of the Legal Aid Board did not happen by chance. ‘On being
elected president and during campaigning for the Office, I made a firm
commitment to uphold the rights of every citizen’ he said. ‘This is provided
for in our Constitution which guarantees that every accused person has a fair
hearing within a reasonable time by an independent court’ This commitment, according
to the President culminated in the enactment of the Legal Aid Act 2012.
While acknowledging progress in
improving the Judiciary and other justice sector institutions including the
Correctional Service in ensuring access to justice is speedy, the President
underlined major challenges relating to the cost of accessing justice for
ordinary people. ‘Out there the circumstances of ordinary people are such that
it is impossible to afford the services of lawyers’ President Koroma said. ‘As a government that is committed to the
dignity of ordinary people, we have started taking steps towards addressing
this challenge. We are not there yet, but the efforts that we have made have
earned us some recognition in this year’s MO Ibrahim Index’.
The President expressed
satisfaction at the progress made since the Legal Aid Board started operations
in May 2015. He challenged all to commit publicly to the sustainability of the
Board and ensuring that it reaches the 149 chiefdoms in the country. ‘This is a
moment for all of us to commit to the sustainability of the great job that has
been started by the Board’ President Koroma said.
He further lauded the
collaboration between the Board and the Sierra Leone Bar Association (SLBA). He
called on members of the Association to also embrace the concept of the ‘Poor
man’s’ lawyer and encouraged them to provide support to people upcountry where
their services are also required.
The President underscored his
government’s continued commitment to providing support to the Board and
appealed to international development partners to do likewise.
The President had this warning to
those who would want to take advantage of the support of the Board and
therefore put themselves in conflict with the law: ‘The Board will provide
support within the law. Those of you who willfully break the law and expect
support, you will have to support yourself’.
The President had good news for
326 accused persons on remand since 2006 and some of who have not been served
with indictments. He called on the Board to work with the Chief Justice and the
Attorney General and Minister of Justice to bring the cases to a closure.
Statements were delivered by members of the Board namely Mr. Emmanuel
Shears-Moses who chaired the ceremony, the Chair and Executive Director of the
Board.
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| Mr. Emmanuel Shears-Moses, Board Member - Sierra Leone Legal Aid Board |
The Chair of the launch, Mr. Emmanuel Shears-Moses Esq. said the idea of a legal aid scheme gained currency when he became President of the Sierra Leone Bar Association. ‘At the time, many of us attended to matters for nothing’ he said.
He lauded the vision of the
President and his government in establishing the Board. However, he joined the
President to caution that legal assistance is not a license for people to take
the law into their own hands, noting that those who do will not be supported
with legal assistance. ‘The idea is,
those who have rights have their rights sustained and not trampled upon because
they cannot be represented’ Shears-Moses maintained.
He stressed that the Board will
ensure every chiefdom in the country enjoys justice. ‘We will train paralegals
in the near future who will handle matters at chiefdom level and work with
local court chairmen to ensure justice is equitably discharged’ he said.
Mr. Shears-Moses drew attention
to the plight of accused persons who have been languishing in custody for
crimes which fall under summary offences.
He lamented the fact that some of
these remand cases have spent more time in prison than the maximum penalty for
the offence they are alleged to have committed. ‘I know of a case were someone
spent six years at Pademba prison for a summary offence which according to our
laws the penalty cannot be more than five years’ he noted.
He stressed the importance of
finance in the legal aid scheme and therefore appealed for support from
government, non-governmental organizations, donors and individuals. He singled
out the Sierra Leone Motor Drivers Union for assisting the Board with providing
free transportation to various destinations for those who have been released by
the Courts.
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| Hon. Justice Adeliza Showers , Chairperson Sierra Leone Legal Aid Board |
The Chairperson of the Board,
Hon. Justice Adeliza Showers acknowledged support received from the Attorney
General and Minister of Justice, Hon Franklyn Kargbo in providing office space
for the Board on the first floor of Guma Building and to the Access to Security
and Justice Programme (ASJP) for rehabilitating, refurbishing and equipping it.
‘We are please with the steps taken to expand the Board’s accommodation
facility to the second floor of the Guma
Building
She underscored the Board’s
independence and non-profit nature as guiding principles in ensuring its
services are enjoyed by deserving low income Sierra Leoneans. She further noted
the Board intervenes in the following areas: criminal cases, Family issues,
child support, debt, land issues, domestic violence, rape and defilement,
juvenile offences, commercial driven disputes and community level problems.
Justice Showers stressed that a
functional scheme is essential in reducing the length of time suspects and
accused persons are held at police stations and detention centers and by
extension the prison population.
She noted that the lack of
financial means to seek legal assistance due to the absence of a well funded
national legal aid scheme poses a serious challenge to accessing justice
through the courts. She therefore emphasized that the need for a well funded
scheme cannot be over emphasized.
‘Access to legal aid during the
early stages of the criminal justice process that is the first hours or days of
police custody or detention is crucial for those who have been arrested in
respect of a criminal offence. The way in which suspects and accused persons
are treated up to and including their first appearance in court has a
significant impact on the efficiency and effectiveness of the justice system’
she stressed.
To mitigate this challenge, she
said the Board will be deploying lawyers and paralegals at Police stations to
assist with offering assistance at the early stages to persons falling foul of
the law. She however cautioned that deploying lawyers and paralegals in the 36
police stations in the Western Area and 149 chiefdoms upcountry will be a
formidable task.
She said that the Board is
working with the Sierra Leone Bar Association to decongest the Pademba Correctional Center
Justice Showers closed her
presentation by lending a voice to appeals for financial assistance especially
from donors.
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| Fatmata Claire Carlton-Hanciles, Executive Director, Sierra Leone Legal Aid Board |
The Executive Director of the
Legal Aid Board, Mrs. Claire Carlton-Hanciles emphasized the importance of the
scheme in ensuring a fair, humane and efficient criminal justice system that is based on
the Rule of Law. She added that the scheme is highly needed to ensure the right
to fair trial and equality before the law.
She therefore
commended the government for establishing the Legal Aid Board in fulfilment of both its national and international legal obligations.
She
drew attention to a number of human rights instruments, international
conventions and protocols the government has signed, ratified and domesticated.
“One of the most outstanding instruments signed is the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which provides for the right to fair
trial and legal aid in Article 14(3) (d). This is also provided for in the
Legal Aid Act and Section 23 of the 1991 Constitution” Mrs. Carlton-Hanciles
said. “Also Pillar 7 of the Agenda for Prosperity stipulates: ‘Justice Sector Reform is based on making
Justice accessible locally; ensuring that justice is expedited, and that rights
and accountability are respected.”
Mrs. Carlton-Hanciles noted that the civil society groups – Bike Riders
Association, Market Women Association, Motor Drivers Union and Petty Traders
Association – that have come to celebrate the launch of the Board make up the
majority of those affected by the criminal justice system in the sense that
they are poor and therefore cannot afford to hire a lawyer. ‘A good
number of these people never had access to legal aid until the Board came into
existence’ Mrs Carlton-Hanciles said.
She underscored the indispensability of lawyers and paralegal in
providing effective legal services. ‘In sierra Leone
Speaking on future
plan, Mrs. Carlton-Hanciles said the Board will be
embarking on a massive legal education programme in partnership with local
authorities, the Sierra Leone Police, University Law Clinics and civic society
organizations.
‘We will target youths across the country. We will target specifically
cliques which have become a potent threat to security’ Mrs. Carlton-Hanciles
said. “We will also organize Legal
Education and literacy for paralegals and local court officials.” She also
noted that the Board will strengthen its Alternative Dispute Resolution
Mechanism for increased delivery of legal aid.
Highlighting some of the achievements of the Board since its inception,
Mrs. Carlton-Hanciles said the Board has gone into partnership with various
justice departments and cooperated with various organizations and unions. In
addition, the Board is discussing with the Departments of Law and Peace and Conflict
Studies for short and long term training of staff and contractors.
She had this to say regarding successes in the courts: “Of the 289
Pademba Correctional Centre intimates attending the September Session of the
High Court, the Board secured the release of the 78 out of a total of 88’. In
addition, the Board is providing legal representation to 237 cases since the
inception of the September Session of the High Court.
Also, Mrs. Carlton-Hanciles told
her audience that the Board and the Sierra Leone Correctional Service are in
the process of setting up the Legal Aid and the Sierra Leone Correctional
Service Counselling and Rehabilitation Committee for the purposes of
counselling inmates and empowering them through sensitization and other
activities to become good citizens that will contribute meaningfully to
society. The committee, according to Mrs. Carlton-Hanciles will soon embark on
Town Hall Meetings for inmates.
Speaking on challenges facing the Board, Mrs. Carlton-Hanciles
indicated the issue of inadequate resources to build a sustainable legal aid
board. In addition, there are issues around managing expectations especially in
the area of funds to pay stipend to assigned counsel, training for lawyers
assigned to provide legal aid service, educating personnel from the justice and
security sectors and the general public on legal aid services, well resourced
environment with space and equipment to house lawyers, paralegals and ADR
Mediators, official means of transportation, capacity building and training
resources for continuing education and also training programmes with the
National Legal and Justice Institute for the provision of legal aid and getting
development partners to assist the Board in fully exercising its mandate as
provided for in the Legal Aid Act,
Mrs. Carlton-Hanciles closed her presentation on an issue that is close
to her heart. She drew attention to the plight of 326 remand inmates who have
been at the Pademba Correction Centre since 2006 and a good number of who have
not been served an indictment. ‘The Board is pleased with the discontinuance of
all actions in respect of the Public Health Emergency provision. At the same
time, we are following with keen interest the issue of the 326 inmates, some do
not even know when their matters will come up’ she said.
Goodwill
messages were delivered by the Chief Justice, Attorney General and Minister of
Justice, the President of the Sierra Leone Bar Association and DFID/ASJP
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Hon. Justice Valesius Thomas, Chief Justice of
Republic of Sierra Leone
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Underscoring the challenges facing the justice system in the country,
he recalled visiting the three regional towns last May and was shocked to be
told by Justice Gooding that there have not been trails in Kono for two years.
‘Justice Gooding told me he receives regular reports of persons on
remand dying in prison because the courts are not in session in that part of
the country. That is a poor state of affairs’ he said. “That is why we tried in
the Judiciary to establish some criminal sessions during the months of July to
September when we reviewed and tried to decongest the Correctional Centers. I am
happy to report that we have made massive progress in this direction. I see the
role of the Board as vital in improving the justice delivery system’ Justice
Thomas said
He called on the Board to address the natural imbalance in society that
exists among persons and between government and the citizens. He elaborated
further by noting that while some people are capable of defending their rights
and interests without any help using their own resources, there are those who
are unable to do so without some financial assistance. ‘It is this imbalance
that the Board will hopefully address from its activities’ he said.
The Chief Justice lent his voice to appeals for funding for the Board.
He called of all to support the Board financially especially those who can
afford it. He described the relationship between the Board and the Judiciary as
a partnership. ‘The Judiciary is there to dispense justice but we can only do
so if those who are brought before the Courts are adequately represented. So that people do not have to die in prison.
There have been occasions when people have not obtained justice they deserve
because they have not received adequate private resources to do so’ Justice
Thomas emphasized.
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| Hon. Franklyn Bai Kargbo Attorney General and Minister of Justice |
Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Hon. Franklyn Bai Kargbo
recalled how upon appointment to the office almost five years ago, the President reiterated the need to build a
strong, trusted, dependable and transparent justice sector as envisaged in the
then Agenda for Change. He added that the President stressed the need for an
inclusive and an expanded access for affordable justice for the ordinary
people.
He further recalled implementing a 18-month pilot legal aid project at
the time, which found that most Sierra Leoneans lack understanding of how the legal
processes work.
He noted that the Legal Aid Act was drafted almost immediately after
the conclusion of the project. ‘The results of the pilot project were reflected
in the mandate of the Legal Aid Board’ Hon. Kargbo said.
He recalled that on a couple of occasions he had appeared before the
United Nations Human Rights Council, the issue of access to justice and fair
trial has always come up. ‘I have promised them that by the next appearance I
will have information regarding the Legal Aid Board. At the second cycle of
review which comes in January next year I will be flaunting the Legal Aid Board
both in terms of its enactment and results’ he said.
The AG told his audience that some ten days ago, he had the opportunity
of presenting the first ever Human Rights Report on Sierra
Leone to the African Commission on Human and People’s
Rights in the Gambia
The AG acknowledged the remarkable progress made by the Board but was
quick to point out that as a Government they see it as work in progress. He
underscored the need to manage perceptions and expectations. In this regard, he
informed that he will be summoning a meeting of agencies connected with the
justice delivery sector to synchronize mandates or remits which may be
overlapping.
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| Hon. Alpha Kanu, Minister of Information and Communication |
The Minister of Information and Communication, Hon. Alpha Kanu
described the massive turn out of civil society groups and traditional rulers
for the launch as a celebration of the achievements of the Legal Aid Board and
also a show of gratitude to the President.
Hon. Kanu described the concept of Legal Aid as new in West African
where Sierra Leone is the
third country to set up the scheme after Nigeria
and Ghana
‘Sierra Leone
He further lauded the democratic credentials of the President in
guaranteeing freedom of speech. ‘We have a President who after eight years at
the helm of affairs nobody has been held as a political prisoner nor are there
any prisoners of conscience incarcerated because of their colour, creed or
belief. A president in whose tenure journalists can freely comment on issues’
he stressed.
Hon. Kanu praised the Board especially it Chair and Executive Director
for selfless commitment in executing the mandate of the Board.
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| Mr. Ibrahim Sorie, President Sierra Leone Bar Association |
The President of the Sierra Leone Bar Association, Mr. Ibrahim Sorie
described the relationship between the Legal Aid Board and the Bar Association
as a ‘natural partnership’.
He underlined that the mandate of the Board which bothers on providing
legal representation and advice fits into the core value of the Bar
Association.
He lauded the government for creating and funding the Board. ‘We
believe this is a project that is sustainable. We believe this is a project
that can only do one thing and that is bring positive results for the people of
this country’ Mr. Sorie said.
He called on the government to continue to provide more resources to
the Board notwithstanding the harsh economic climate. “As an Association, we believe
a just society is a catalyst for a stable society and a stable society is a
catalyst for a prosperous society’
The representative of the Department for International Development and
Access to Security and Justice Programme (DFID/ASJP) noted the support her
organization has given to the Board ranging from equipping the office to
developing of the Legal Aid Strategy.
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| Representative, Department for International Development /Access to Security and Justice Program |
She acknowledged ongoing efforts by the Chief Justice and the Judiciary
to reform the justice sector to be more efficient, effective and accountable.
She stressed that the provision of an appropriate and sustainable legal aid
system provides an opportunity to deal with cases in a timely manner and
prevent people from being held in the Correctional Centres unnecessarily. ‘This
is something we demonstrate a strong commitment to’ she emphasized.
She underscored the need for collaboration with justice sector
departments including the judiciary in the training of paralegals and
regulating the professionals involved in the provision of legal aid. She stressed that pro-bono networks have a
fundamental role to play in this.
The Outreach Coordinator in the Office of the Government Spokesman, Mr.
Abudulai Bayraytay earlier on declared the ceremony open while the
Administration and Finance Manager of the Board, Mr. Joseph Peter Kaikai
delivered the welcome address and introduced the Chairperson for the
launch.
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