—–As Regional Block Condemns Violence and Call for Investigation
IPNEWS: At least Six police officers were killed in anti-government protests in northern and western Sierra Leone on Wednesday, the head of police said on Thursday.
Two officers were killed in the capital, Freetown, three in the northern town of Kamakwie and one in the northern city of Makeni, police inspector general William Fayia Sellu told reporters.
Protests were concentrated in the north and west – opposition heartlands – of the West African country. At least two civilians also died in coastal Freetown.
Sierra Leone’s government previously said that there had been deaths, but not how many, as hundreds of protesters threw rocks and burned tyres in the streets out of frustration at worsening economic hardship and other issues.
The internet was shut down on Wednesday and the government imposed a 3 p.m. curfew in a bid to stem the violence.
The West African country, which has been struggling with rising inflation and a fuel crisis, imposed a nationwide curfew from 3 p.m. local time (1500 GMT) in a bid to stem the violence.
“As a government, we have the responsibility to protect every citizen of Sierra Leone. What happened today was unfortunate and will be fully investigated,” said President Julius Maada Bio on Twitter.
In addition to the three bodies at the mortuary, a Reuters reporter saw another civilian body on a street in eastern Freetown.
The police chief and spokesman could not be reached for comment.
Videos on social media verified by Reuters showed large crowds of protesters and piles of burning tyres in parts of the capital, Freetown. Other footage showed a group of young men throwing rocks on a street filled with whitish smoke.
“People are upset about the country’s justice system, which is sickening, daily price rises, and economic hardship,” said Daniel Alpha Kamara, a university student.
The violence started at around 10:30 a.m. local time, he said, when he saw clouds of tear gas rising up outside his dormitory room.
“These unscrupulous individuals have embarked on a violent and unauthorized protest which has led to the loss of lives of innocent Sierra Leoneans, including security personnel,”
“These unscrupulous individuals have embarked on a violent and an unauthorized protest, which has led to the loss of lives of innocent Sierra Leoneans including security personnel,” Jalloh said, adding that some public buildings including police stations had been attacked and burned down. “The government hereby declares a nationwide curfew,” he said. “The security sector has been authorised to fully enforce this directive.”, said Vice President Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh in a video address.
“The government hereby declares a nationwide curfew,” he said. “The security sector has been authorized to fully enforce this directive.”
Regional political and economic bloc ECOWAS said it condemned the violence and called in a Twitter post for “all to obey law and order and for the perpetrators of the violence to be identified and brought before the law.”
Discontent has been boiling over for a number of reasons, including a perceived lack of government support for ordinary people who are struggling, said Augustine Sorie-Sengbe Marrah, a constitutional lawyer and governance activist.
“There has been little empathy from the central government to encourage folks that they see them suffering and that they understand these are tough economic times,” he told Reuters.
Long-standing frustration has also been exacerbated by rising prices for basic goods in Sierra Leone, where more than half the population of around 8 million lives below the poverty line, according to the World Bank.
Earlier on Wednesday, internet observatory, NetBlocks said Sierra Leone faced a near-total internet shutdown during the protests, with national connectivity at 5% of ordinary levels.
Additionally, Tuesday, August 9, the national security coordinator asked the armed forces to be prepared to back up the police from Aug. 9-12, warning of a “potentially volatile security situation”, according to an internal letter shared widely online.
In related development, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Mano River Union (MRU) have sharply reacted to the violent protests in a number of places in Sierra Leone, including the Capital city, Freedom, where it was reported that at least 3 persons were killed on Wednesday, August 10, 2022 and call for calm and prosecution of the perpetrators just as the government has imposed an indefinite curfew to avert further widespread of the crisis.
The regional body, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) condemned the violence and called in a Twitter post for “all to obey law and order and for the perpetrators of the violence to be identified and brought before the law.”
Commenting also on the protest, the Executive Secretary of the Mano River Union, Mrs. Medina Wesseh in a social media post said the organization is deeply concerned over the protests of Monday 8th and Wednesday, 10th August 2022 in Sierra Leone and that it condemned the violent protest of Wednesday August 10 that led to the loss of human lives and the destruction of properties.
“The Mano River Union Secretariat calls for calm and is ready to join other international partners to encourage national dialogue”, the Madam Wesseh concluded.
The government has also shut down the country’s internet service to prevent the sharing of images of the protests taking place in the northern cities and towns, as well as the capital Freetown believed to be the strongholds of the opposition All People’s Congress (APC).
The protesters on Wednesday were calling for President Julius Maada Bio, who was elected in 2018 and still has 10 months left in his term to step down immediately and chanted “Bio must go” as they made their way through the capital, Freetown.
President Bio is accused of rampant corruption, human rights abuses, the killing of unarmed civilians and prisoners, abuse of State of power, poor leadership and the acute economic hardship that people in the country are experiencing
The cost of living in Sierra Leone has risen by more than 40% within the last few months: A bag of rice that used to cost 350 leones now costs more than 500, consumers say. Meanwhile, electricity and fuel prices also have spiked.
The government has criticized the unidentified organizers of the protest, warning that the country already has suffered enough through more than a decade of civil war that ended in 2002. Courtesy of Reuters
