Despite numerous efforts by the international community to convince the Sierra Leonean government to release Paul Kamara, the For Di People editor and publisher remains in prison.
On 5 October 2004, Justice A.B. Rashid found Paul Kamara, editor and publisher of the independent daily For Di People, guilty on two counts of seditious libel. Rashid sentenced Kamara to two years’ imprisonment on each count, to run concurrently. The original charges stem from articles in For Di People stating that a 1967 inquiry allegedly found Sierra Leonean President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah guilty of fraud when it reviewed the work of the country’s Produce Marketing Board. At the time, Kabbah was serving as a permanent secretary at the Trade Ministry.
After his conviction, Kamara’s lawyer has made several attempts to file an appeal and obtain the journalist’s bail, However, these motions have been consistently thwarted by the authorities. As a result, although the necessary documents have been filed in the appeals court, Kamara continues to be held in prison.
Commenting on the present situation, IPI Director, Johann P. Fritz, said, “Kamara’s continued imprisonment tarnishes Sierra Leone’s reputation as a country making steady improvements and slowly escaping its troubled past.”
“The truth is that Sierra Leonean press freedom is also in prison with Kamara and, until he is released, it is impossible for the country to claim that it has made a clean break from a period when journalists were ruthlessly suppressed.”
“The true test of a democracy is the willingness of governments and its officials to accept criticism from the media. The authorities should also resist the temptation to apply the criminal law because the incarceration of journalists not only undermines the country’s reputation, but also damages its relations with the international community which rightly views freedom of the press as essential to all democracies.”
“Kamara should be released immediately, and the government should undertake a thorough review of the criminal law to ensure that there is no repeat of his imprisonment,” said Fritz.
