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ESSAYS

GOVERNMENT
WHITE PAPER ON THE SHEARS-MOSES COMMISSION OF INQUIRY INTO INCIDENTS OF
POLITICAL VIOLENCE AND INTOLERANCE OCCURING IN GENDEMA, FREETOWN AND KENEMA

1.     The Shears-Moses Commission of
Inquiry into incidence of political violence and intolerance occurring in Gendema, Freetown
and Kenema was established by His Excellency Dr.
Ernest Bai Koroma,
President, by Constitutional Instrument No. 8 of 2009.

2.     The Commission consisted of
Emmanuel Ekundayo Constant Shears-Moses Esq. as
Chairman and Brigadier (Rtd) Mustapha Kahuta Dumbuya, Mr. William
Jessie Siafa and Mr. Harun
Alrashid Bah as Secretary.

3.     The Commission’s terms
of reference were:

(a)  to review and determine the circumstances as well as
establish the facts relating to –

(i)
incidents of political violence and intolerance that occurred during the
month of March, 2009 in Gendema(Pujehun
District), Freetown(Western
Area) and Kenema (Kenema
District);

(ii)
the roles and responsibilities of political parties, law enforcement agencies
or other persons or groups in relation to the incidents of political violence
and intolerance referred to in (i) above;

(b) to make necessary findings or conclusions that shall
provide a full understanding of the circumstances that resulted in the
incidents referred to in (a) above; and

(c)  to recommend measures
to be taken and mechanisms to be put in place to effectively prevent the
occurrence of such incidents in the future.

4.     The commission after its
investigations observed that the root cause of the unrest and violence in the
areas investigated has been the spate of political intolerance which if not
nipped in the bud can have the tendency to recur.

5.     As a consequence of the
observation made in paragraph (4), the Government accepts the following
recommendations of the Commission:-

(a)  that to eradicate political intolerance there must
be-

(i)
effective education in primary, secondary and tertiary education
institutions;

(ii)
workshops and seminars to be conducted for the security forces, consisting of
the Army, Police, Prisons and Fire Force to enable them perform their
functions fully, effectively and most importantly, impartially;

(b)  that
Parliamentarians, both from the majority and minority sides, should through
concerted and peaceful means pursue their political objectives and be role
models for their constituencies. They should also display respect for all
shades of opinions and organize campaigns in their constituencies with strict
adherence to electoral codes of conduct;

(c)  that traditional rulers who constitute the
nearest arm of government to the vast majority of people and have the ability
to put them under restraint should be accorded due respect and be divorced
from any form of political influence whilst encouraging them to guide their
subjects to be peaceful and law abiding;

(d)  that in view of paragraph (c) partnership
between the traditional rulers and the Political Parties Registration
Commission should be encouraged;

(e)  that civil society
groups which have influence over a sizable percentage of the populace be
encouraged to lead in the efforts at eradication of political intolerance and
violence. They are also to be encouraged to work with local communities and
authorities to prevent the making of malicious statements;

(f)   that Government
recognizes that both the print and electronic media are vital if political
intolerance and violence are to be eradicated, since they have the ability to
reach all corners of the country. Government will therefore encourage them to
give the necessary information in the public interest without being biased or
partisan;

(g)  that the media must be objective in their
reports and comments and avoid inflammatory comments or statements which may
have the tendency to inflame passions and promote political intolerance and
hatred;

(h) that the Independent Media
Commission should have improved monitoring machinery of the media and ensure
strict observance of the code of conduct.

6.     The Government further
accepts the following other recommendations of the Commission:-

(i)    that the Political Parties Registration Act be amended to
empower the Political Parties Registration Commission to penalize parties
involved in political violence and other related political offences. This
amendment should also empower the Commission to require every political party
to organize seminars or workshops on the eradication of political violence in
every constituency failing which a party should not be allowed to field
candidates in any constituency where such requirement has not been fulfilled.

(j)    that
Government re-affirms its absolute abhorrence of violence, political or
otherwise, and restates its implacable opposition to the use of the youths of
Sierra Leone
in that venture. Progress has been made in that regard, through the
implementation of the National Youth Policy by the Youth Commission.
Government further accepts that there is the need to get the youths to be
more gainfully engaged.

7.     Government notes the
recommendation that steps be taken against persons allegedly responsible for
acts of violence in Freetown
and Gendema to be relieved of their
responsibilities and banned from holding public office for a period of at
least five years.

Government however regrets its inability to legally
effect that recommendation as the banning of citizens from holding public
office (other than by law) recommended by the Commission is not provided for
in the laws of Sierra Leone accordingly;

(a)  In the case of the Mayor of Freetown, Herbert
George Williams, he was duly elected by popular vote for a term of four
years. This mandate cannot therefore be overturned by the government through
administrative action;

(b) Government notes the findings and recommendations of
the Commission relating to the erstwhile Resident Minister, South, Musa Tarawallie, and assures
the public that appropriate action will be taken in due course in that
regard.

8.     Government further notes the
recommendation of the Commission in respect of Mr. Mohamed Turay (alias Yete Yete) and Idrissa Kamara (alias -Leatherboot) and
considering their respective ranks in the police force, will refer the matter
to the Police Council in respect of the former and to the Inspector-General
of Police in the case of the latter.

Government is of the view that the violence under reference
was perpetrated not only by members or sympathizers of political parties but
also ordinary persons who may not have belonged to any political party. To
combat or forestall this, Government is actively considering the enactment of
the Political Violence Act which will provide for punishment and the banning
of convicted individuals from holding public office for a number of years.

9.     Government accepts the
recommendation of the Commission that members of the security forces who
betray public trust to protect citizens and are found to have acted
unprofessionally should be disciplined to serve as a deterrent to others.
Government also wishes to state that in addition to the Police Council
created by the Constitution, which is empowered to discipline serving police
officers, it is in the process of creating an Independent Police Complaints
Committee that will be staffed by persons and organizations of integrity and
good standing. The proposed body will add an extra layer of disciplinary processes
of serving police officers and will enhance public confidence in the Police.

10.
Regarding the recommendation for the restructuring of the Police, Government
wishes to state that a restructuring exercise of the police was carried out a
few years ago, and that the current challenges confronting the police are
being addressed by the Police Council.

11.
Government intends to set up a Victims Board to alleviate the pain and
suffering of victims of serious offences such as attempted murder, sexual
assault, etc. It is therefore, in the light of this, not appropriate to
establish a board only for the single offence of “political
assault”.

12.
Government reiterates its firm and total commitment to a democratic Sierra Leone
in which the rule of law, good order and fairness are the hallmark. In
consequence, Government notes and applauds the observations of the Commission
that “in any liberal democracy there must be a determined willingness
to accord basic rights and liberties to all persons everywhere. There is
always a variety of ideas and beliefs in such a situation which run contrary
to various segments of the population. If majority rule does not safeguard
the free and divergent expression of the opinions of the minority, there is a
risk of tyranny. Political tolerance at its height ensures protection of the
rights of individuals with whom we strongly disagree, and dislike their
view”.

13.
Government would like to highlight the fact that the above principle is of
general application. It also presupposes that the minority is equally
committed to respecting the democratic rights of the majority, in particular,
the right to government and carry out its constitutional mandate. The
minority must abide by this democratic tenet as well as respect and enhance
the integrity of our national institutions and not seek to disrupt the good
order of society and in so doing impose a “tyranny of the
minority” on the general populace. It is only through the adoption of
this patriotic and national consciousness that our nascent democracy can be
developed and strengthened.

14.
Government wishes to register its thanks and appreciation to members of the
Commission and its support staff and all those who in various ways
contributed to the achievement of its task.

Issued this 23rd day of March, 2012

FRANKLY BAI KARGBO

Attorney-General and Minister of
Justice