By Amin Kef Sesay
The Sierra Leone Police has officially signed a Memoramdum of Understanding with the National Emergency Medical Services and Aberdeen Women Centre at the Office of the First Lady with the objective of combating Sexual and Gender Based Violence. The signing ceremony took place on Wednesday 29th July 2020 in the Office of the First Lady, Madam Fatima Bio.
The event clearly demonstrates the commitment of the Sierra Leone Police to create a synergy between the two medical service providers that deals directly with rape and gender based violence cases in the country. Coordination between the different organisations makes service delivery more effective.
Speaking at the official signing ceremony, the Country Representative for the Aberdeen Women Center, Dr. Kofi King, pledged their continued support to the Sierra Leone Police, as they officially sign a partnership which is something they have done with Rainbow, LAWYERS and a few other organizations in ensuring that survivors of rape and gender based violence thrive in a safe environment.
Dr. King also said their doctors will not only write reports about rape incidents, they will also give evidence in court. Doctors’ reports will support the investigations of the Police that will lead to conviction. This is important because before now, Sierra Leone only had one doctor that gave evidence in court . Dr Kofi said they are very happy to formalise the partnership they have with the Police.
Making a statement on behalf of the National Emergency Medical Services, Francesco Venturi registered their support to provide free 24/7 ambulance services to all reported cases of rape and Gender Based Violence in all 16 districts nationwide. He furthered that they are ready to commit the 81 ambulances they have in different districts to officially transport victims of rape. The agreement will make it official for victims of rape to call 112, and be attended to.
The Inspector General of the Sierra Leone Police, Ambrose Sovula, commended the efforts of the Office of the First Lady since the launch of the Hands Off Our Girls saying Madam First Lady has been very proactive in helping the Police in identifying the fundamental challenges the institution is faced with and together work on rectifying those challenges to ensure swift and accurate prosecution of all rape, sexual penetration and Gender Based Violence cases.
The IG made it clear that rape is now considered a security issue and there is also need to be dealt with as a national emergency. The IG said the Police had inadequacies, but they are implementing policies to curb them. He stated that the signing of the MOU with these partners will make the Police more effective and they will deliver more results.
Madam Fatima Maada Bio in giving a vote of thanks expressed gratitude to all the stakeholders for the partnership saying it means a lot to her office and the Hands Off Our Girls campaign which is geared towards protecting girls. The First Lady said she has visited the Aberdeen Womens Centre severally to meet with rape survivors, and that has strengthened her resolve to deal with the rape scourge.
She said the HOOG campaign has led to an increase in reporting rape cases, and she is poised to take it to another level. According to her,the establishment of the Sexual Offences Model Court, sends a strong message that the Government means business as there will be no sacred cows further underscoring how the fight against rape is championed by President Julius Maada Bio. This fight, Madam Bio said, is one we must win as they empower the Family Support Unit.
Madam Fatima Bio made a public appeal to all perpetrators of rape to desist from such an act as it destroys the lives, dignity and future of children or women, while establishing an open challenge to bring them to book.
She advised human rights activists to also fight for the rights of the survivors and encouraged mothers not to compromise when it comes to reporting rape cases. She touched on “voodoo” based rape, where some persons are misinformed by Native doctors (Voodoo priests ) that the solution to the problem they face is to rape a virgin. This form of rape, she syayed, is usually not discussed but said it is an unfortunate aspect of our social reality.
The program was climaxed by the official signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Sierra Leone Police, Aberdeen Women Centre and the National Emergency Medical Services.
