August 4-11, 2003: a joint No Peace Without Justice...

August 4-11, 2003: a joint No Peace Without Justice and Hands Off Cain delegation, led by the President of the Transational Radical Party Sergio Stanzani, visited Sierra Leone to discuss the death penalty and the country's opinion with regard to a worldwide moratorium on executions through a UN resolution with government authorities.
Vice-President Solomon Berewa said he was personally favourable to the abolition of the death penalty and had himself put forward a proposal for an internal moratorium on executions in 1993, that had however been rejected. He also expressed his awareness of the fact that with the institution of the Special Tribunal for Sierra Leone - that does not prescribe the death penalty for the grave crimes that it has been assigned to judge - a national paradox has been created: capital punishment can be meted out to people found guilty of crimes like murder under national jurisdiction, but the perpetrators of the worst crimes during ten years of civil conflict will never be condemned to death.
Justice Minister Eke A. Halloway told the delegation he was absolutely favourable to the abolition of the death penalty, and was preparing a paper entitled "The Path to Peace" that was to be included among the official proceedings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
He committed himself to inserting the abolition of the death penalty among the recommendations that he was to make on behalf of the Justice Ministry.
With regard to the country's position on a moratorium resolution at the UN General Assembly, both authorities said they would discuss the issue with the council of ministers.*
Tunde Cole, Solicitor General and General Secretary to the Justice Ministry, said that his position does not empower him to taka decisions on the matter, but that he was favourable to the abolition of the death penalty.
Oliver Nylander, President of Sierra Leone's Bar Association said he was absolutely favourable to the abolition of the death penalty.
He pointed out that since 1998, prosecutors have, as a rule, charged criminals with second-degree crimes rather than first-degree ones in order to avoid death sentences.

*In September, Sierra Leone's Ambassador to the United Nations, Allieu I. Kanu, informed HOC's office in New York that his government had instructed him to vote in favour of a resolution calling for a moratorium at the UNGA and against the "domestic jurisdiction" amendment likely to be presented by retentionist countries to nullify the resolution.