POLITICS/SECURITY
By Sulaiman Jalloh
Counter-terrorism laws vary by country but generally criminalize acts intended to cause death, serious harm, or widespread fears and often address activities like terrorist financing, recruitment, and incitement to violence. These Laws also aim to prevent and punish acts of terrorism, often encompassing a broad range of activities, including financing, planning, and engaging in terrorist acts, as well as advocating for, or supporting them.
In Africa, the principal instrument against terrorism is the OAU convention on the prevention and combating of terrorism (adopted on 1 July 1992, entered into 6 December 2002), which requires state parties to criminalize terrorist acts under their national laws as defined in the convention.
The sixth Parliament of the Second Republic of Sierra Leone on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, drying its 37th plenary sittings, passes some amendments to the Counter Terrorism Act 2024.
The Act seeks to provide for the establishment of the National Counter-terrorism Coordination Committee, to provide for offenses of terrorism and terrorism-related matters to provide for enforcement measures on terrorists’ funds and other assets, to provide for the prohibition of financial support to terrorism, and to provide other related matters.
Before its enactment, the bill had some contentious clauses that were opposed by the opposition All People’s Congress (APC) party in Parliament, the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ), and other civil society organizations.
Among the contentious clauses that were opposed include but are limited to as it was in part five of the bill, which had talked about terrorism and related matters. In the bill, it was proposed that a person shall commit a terrorist offense if he dangers a person’s life, causes serious bodily harm to a person, or causes serious property damage, among other contentious clauses.
After its enactment, the leader of the opposition, Honorable Abdul Kargbo, said the definition of a terrorist act is broad and that they had raised an eyebrow at it for something he referred to as a muscle to the opposition.
In the African model, after the definition of the Terrorist Act, an exemption was given for advocacy, protest, industrial actions, decent, and those opposing the government. Hon. Kargbo raises concerns about the risks of misusing the definition of terrorist acts, which include violence against persons, property damage, and other serious offenses. He, however, emphasized that without proper exemptions, the law could be used to target opposition groups, protestors, and those voicing dissent against the government while thanking the government for listening and addressing their concerns. He added that his party was not surprised because their concerns were reasonable; hence, the government listened. “We the opposition, we don’t want it to be like we are supporting terrorist acts” he stated
During its second reading on 8, January 2025, Hon. Mathew Nyuma, leader of government business, argued that the drafting of the Act started under the previous government, noting Parliament is progressive and wants to make progressive Laws that will stand the test of time, adding they don’t want to make Laws that will be used to target others. “If you behave like a terrorist, you can be labeled and dealt with like a terrorist,” he lamented, stressing that they follow standards.
The Sierra Leone Association of Journalists in their position paper said while there is a need for robust legislation to address national security threats, the association called on parliament to; expand the definition of terrorism in a way that could encompass journalistic reporting on protests, security issues, and government actions, reduce excessive penalties that could intimidate journalists and lead to self-censorship, judicial oversight, and review to prevent misuse of the Act and safeguard journalists from arbitrary arrest and prosecution amongst others.
“We have seen how the cyber security and crime Law has been used to detain journalists and civil actors, effectively replacing the notorious criminal libel law. A Counter-Terrorism law on top of that opens more opportunities for suppression of critical journalists and dissenting views,” Ahmed Sahid Nasralla, SLAJ president, stated in their position paper. He added “This law, like the cyber law, may appear neutral, but they are always enforced selectively. Today, it may seem targeted at one group; tomorrow, it will be used against another. We are against the criminalization of journalism under the guise of national security. So, we kindly urge Parliament to take our concerns into consideration when enacting this bill”. He assured that SLAJ remains committed to engaging with Parliament, civil society, and international partners to ensure that any counter-terrorism legislation strikes the right balance between national security and fundamental freedoms.
In an engagement with Parliamentary journalists, Honorable Abdul Sulaiman Marry-Conteh, chairman legislative committee said the purpose of the act is to reveal punishment against anyone who attempts, or plans, to carry out an act of terrorism, noting the single objection that was raised by the opposition in Parliament was looked into by stating the exceptions of a terrorism act. “If someone is trying to push for advocacy, it is not a terrorist act; anything about a decent is not a terrorist act. Of course, lawful protest is not a terrorist act. Industrial actions are not terrorist acts as long as you are guided by Law” he explained
He added that the thing about terrorism is a global phenomenon, adding is not something someone would think about or create at the corner. He said the things raised by the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists SLAJ were looked at even before the association could present its position paper.
Copyright –Published in Expo Magazine, May-June 2025 Edition Vol.3, No.4, (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)
