Kadiatu Sesay, a local businesswoman who lived in the eastern part of the capital city of Freetown, has called for justice after being intimidated and suppressed by the Sierra Leone Police.
Madam Kadiatu explained her ordeal, claiming that the SLP brutally assaulted her during the August 10th, 2022 demonstration in Freetown, even though there was no evidence of her involvement in the protest. Speaking to the Gleaner Newspaper, the mother of three and an active member of the main opposition All People’s Congress (APC) Party, described the tragic incident in which Sierra Leone Police stormed her home in Thunder Hill Community and entered their compound, claiming that they were sheltering fleeing protesters. “They came here and ransacked my house, destroyed my property, beat me up, and fired live canisters into my living room, resulting in the death of my elder sister,” she said.
Madam Kadiatu, a prominent member of Sierra Leone’s main opposition party, believed she had been targeted because of her affiliation with the APC Party. She demanded justice for her family members, including herself and her older sister, whose lives were cut short by the live canister that was fired inside her home. Madam Kadiatu Sesay also claimed that she was severely beaten by police and was denied the right to make an official statement at any police station in Freetown; instead, members of the Sierra Leone Police Force threatened to deal with her if she returned to the station.
“I am currently living in fear for my own and my family’s lives, and I am unable to return home due to a series of threatening remarks made by supporters of the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party.”
Madam Kadiatu Sesay is now hiding in fear for her life, while her elder sister’s body is still at the mortuary awaiting an autopsy. Madam Sesay, speaking from her hiding place, urged Sierra Leone’s international community to assist her in obtaining justice for her family members. The Sierra Leone police declined to comment on the allegations.
Protests erupted in the capital city of Freetown, as well as in Makeni, Magboruka, and the Western Rural area, early on August 10, 2022. The high cost of living prompted young people to take to the streets to demand better living conditions.
More than twenty protesters and bystanders were killed, including Madam Kadiatu Sesay’s elder sister.
