Sierra Leone
We have been working in Sierra Leone since 2007, alongside our local partners, including AdvocAid.
Together, we were instrumental in achieving abolition of the death penalty in 2021.
Sierra Leone abolished the death penalty for ordinary crimes in 2021. The Abolition of the Death Penalty Act 2021 passed unanimously in parliament. Although no executions had been carried out since 1998, judges had continued to impose death sentences until abolition was passed.
We began working in Sierra Leone in 2007, providing free legal assistance to individuals on death row, with a particular focus on women and other vulnerable individuals.
Of note, we supported local lawyers in the case of Betty*, convicted of murder and sentenced to the mandatory death penalty. At the time, she was the first woman in five years to receive a mandatory death sentence in Sierra Leone, and one of only two women on death row in the country. After more than two years on death row, Betty received a full pardon.
Over the years, we engaged with key stakeholders and policymakers on capital punishment to build momentum for reform. Alongside our partners, we presented the case for abolition directly to the President and submitted a formal memorandum to the Attorney General and senior ministers, setting out alternatives to the death penalty. In 2021, Sierra Leone abolished capital punishment entirely.
In 2026, following an invitation from the Attorney General, we conducted training for the judiciary, state prosecutors, defence lawyers and other key civil society organisations on new sentencing guidelines for serious offences in Sierra Leone. The development of the sentencing guidelines – a process we have been closely involved in over the last five years – is a key part of dismantling the legacy of capital punishment and promoting impartiality, consistency and transparency in sentencing.
Our work dismantling the legacy of the death penalty in Sierra Leone continues. We have been supporting the Attorney General in efforts to bring about ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which commits a state to never returning to executions. We anticipate this may be ratified by Parliament in the very near future.