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| Sierra Leone's President Julius Maada Bio addresses the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., September 26, 2019. (Photo by= Reuters/Carlo Allegri) |
[Asia News = Reporter Reakkana] DAKAR: Sierra Leone's parliament voted unanimously on Friday (Jul 23) to repeal the death penalty more than two decades after the West African country carried out its last execution. President Julius Maada Bio is expected to soon sign the bill into law, which will make Sierra Leone the 23rd African country to abolish capital punishment, Reuters reported.
The bill also gives judges additional discretion when issuing sentences, which opponents of capital punishment say is particularly important in cases where the person convicted is a victim of sexual violence. Sierra Leone has observed a moratorium on executions since 1998, but prisoners sentenced to death still live separately from other inmates, which activists say is dehumanising. "This is exactly what we were calling for," said Rhiannon Davis of Advocaid, an advocacy group in the capital Freetown.
Sierra Leone is one of several African countries moving to end capital punishment. Malawi's Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional in April, and Chad ended executions for those charged with terrorism last year. Sierra Leone's last executions took place in 1998, when 23 soldiers were executed by firing squad at the height of an 11-year civil war. But death sentences have continued to be issued.
