Threats Against Public-Facing Women in Sierra Leone

"...supporting and protecting safe spaces for women's voices and expression is one of the critical imperatives for the peaceful advancement of the society."

This report shares the results of research conducted by the Sierra Leone Association of Women in Journalism (SLAWIJ) that sought to explore the nature, scale, and impact of threats faced by public-facing women (PFW) in Sierra Leone, with a specific focus on women human rights defenders (HRDs) and women journalists. It also offers recommendations to help overcome existing barriers and threats and to support PFW to continue to carry out their public-facing work safely and securely.

As stated in the report, "In Sierra Leone, it has been documented in recent years that public-facing women - including women leaders, women human rights defenders (HRDs) and women journalists - face an increased risk of harassment, threats, intimidation, and violence, as well as targeted efforts to push them out of key public spaces, and censor/diminish their voices, both online and offline." The research outlined in the report sought to better understand the evolving nature, scope, and scale of the threats experienced by PFW in the country and to identify some of the challenges and opportunities that exist to keep women leaders active in vital spaces, including civil society and the media.

Specifically, the objectives of the research project were to:

• establish whether women journalists and HRDs face harassment in Sierra Leone;
• identify some of the types of (online and offline) harassment and/or threats experienced by women HRDs and women journalists;
• explore the legal landscape in Sierra Leone and identify existing laws and/or legislation that relate to both online/technology-facilitated and offline violence against women and girls;
• explore the programmatic landscape in Sierra Leone and identify any existing initiatives aimed at addressing, responding to, and/or deterring threats against PFW; and
• identify opportunities that exist for further protecting, addressing, responding to, and/or deterring threats against PFW in the country.

Information was gathered through a desk and literature review, a stakeholder mapping exercise, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions involving a range of civil society, human rights, and media organisations.

The following are some of the conclusions highlighted in the report, as well as some of the recommendations suggested by SLAWIJ for areas of possible intervention, advocacy, and/or programmatic activities:

1. There is extremely low awareness and understanding of the existing laws and policies that protect women from threats and violence in Sierra Leone. Women (and, particularly, PFW) need training on the laws and policies that exist to protect them, in their work and in their daily lives. Recommendations, therefore, include continued, sustained efforts, beyond any election cycle, to ensure that women and girls are made aware of laws in the country protecting them from violence, including the Public Order Act, 1965, which prohibits stalking, as well as the Cyber Security and Crime Act, 2021, which criminalises cyber harassment.
2. Even when online attacks against PFW "go viral", it remains the responsibility of the individual targeted to report the incident. However, a lack of knowledge regarding the relevant laws and policies, how to effectively collect evidence, and how/where to report such incidents to authorities is often combined with pressure from family/friends/communities to avoid taking action - frequently resulting in the non-reporting of such incidents. Efforts are needed to support PFW to identify, document, and confidently report online attacks (in addition to offline attacks). The report therefore recommends, among other things, educational initiatives that focus on: how to identify the various forms of abuse (particularly online and technology-facilitated abuse); how to collect and properly store evidence of the abuse as soon as it happens (and before blocking the abuser online); and how to create a strong, complete, and clear incident report for the police, for employers (if the abuse should occur at the workplace), and/or for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) or civil society organisations (CSOs) that may be able to offer support (particularly legal or advocacy support) to those affected.
3. Low self-esteem among PFW may contribute to a lack of reporting of online/offline threats and discourage PFW from taking on or continuing in leadership roles when they experience barriers and/or threats. There is a need for activities and initiatives that aim to improve and bolster the confidence of PFW - particularly when it comes to overcoming the effects of abuse - and/or speaking out about issues that are important to them and/or which affect them individually. In line with this approach, the report recommends initiatives that provide self-esteem and morale-boosting support, psychosocial support, and counselling and/or mentoring to PFW in order to prepare PFW to resist and survive these attacks, and build the confidence and resilience they need to overcome barriers and continue in leadership roles.
4. Although many PFW admit to experiencing online and/or offline abuse, a lack of reporting and a lack of public awareness about these incidents may contribute to ongoing and/or increased occurrence of such incidents (as perpetrators continue without consequence), while those affected "suffer in silence". Efforts to identify and address specific incidents, as well as efforts to increase public awareness about the negative impacts of such abuse, could help to reduce the enabling environment for such perpetrators to commit abuse and provide crucial support to the PFW being targeted. SLAWIJ, therefore, encourages other individuals and organisations passionate about this issue to join their efforts in tracking and documenting threats and/or abuse against PFW and encourages other actors to join SLAWIJ in additional efforts, such as developing advocacy initiatives aimed at highlighting the issue and/or awareness materials calling for a stop to abuse targeting PFW in Sierra Leone.
5. Female journalists have voiced concerns regarding abuse by persons in authority positions. SLAWIJ encourages media houses and media management to consider developing/updating and enforcing carefully considered policies (such as gender ethics policies, equal pay policies, and/or stopping sexual harassment in the newsroom policies), which aim to support and protect female journalists. SLAWIJ also encourages efforts to train male media managers about the risks of not protecting female workers from abuses by people in positions of authority (including senior staff, management, board members, news sources, sponsors, and/or advertisers), as well as training of female staff on how to effectively document and safely report various types of abuse, should they experience it.
6. Women have voiced their frustrations and disappointment at the failure of existing systems and laws to bring an end to the levels of sexual and other harassment that women in Sierra Leone face and endure. Further steps are encouraged to ensure the effective implementation and enforcement of existing laws and policies and to protect women (including PFW) from harassment and abuse. SLAWIJ also urges authorities to prioritise the investigation and prosecution of cases in which PFW are threatened, abused, harassed, and/or injured.