By Foday Moriba Conteh
Christian Lawyers Centre which is referred to as LEGAL LINK is a legal advocacy group that defends the rights of religious communities and vulnerable groups in Sierra Leone.
In a well-attended Legal Compliance training held on the 25th September 2020, LEGAL LINK launched a comprehensive survey report on the impact of COVID-19 on the religious community in Freetown, Sierra Leone.
It could be recalled that even before the country recorded its first COVID-19 index case on the 31st March 2020, the Government, in a Press Release dated 20th March 2020, announced a ban through the Ministry of Social Welfare restricting all social and religious gatherings in the country. A state of public emergency was subsequently declared on the 24th March 2020.
After almost four months of the ban on communal worship, on the 9th July 2020, the President of Sierra Leone, His Excellency Julius Maada Bio lifted up the ban on communal worship throughout the country.
To minimize the risks however, COVID-19 guidelines were subsequently issued by NaCoVERC on the 10th of July 2020 to guide the safe operations of religious institutions in the country.
These guidelines included the practice of washing of hands, wearing of face masks whilst in church/mosque, maintaining 6ft physical and social distance during prayers and fumigating of places of worship amongst many others.
The guidelines were issued in order to prevent the risks of an outbreak of COVID -19 within religious institutions as they return to congregational worship and prayers.
This survey report therefore gives a critical assessment of the impact of COVID -19 on the religious community of Freetown and further unravels the level of compliance as well as the challenges currently faced by these institutions as they seek to implement the COVID-19 guidelines given to them by NaCoVERC.
LEGAL LINK said as an organization that advocates for and defends the rights of religious communities and vulnerable groups in Sierra Leone, they feel enthused to have put together the report in good faith so as to showcase not only best practices but also the impacts as well as the challenges being faced by religious institutions in this COVID-19 era as they seek to worship and offer prayers to God/Allah.
In sum, the report findings revealed that despite the challenges, 90% of the religious institutions surveyed in Freetown are adhering to the COVID-19 Guidelines issued by NaCoVERC.
More importantly also, the survey shows that unlike secular leaders, religious leaders (Bishops, Pastors and Imams) are making a great deal of effort during their respective services and prayer times to live by example with regards the COVID-19 guidelines. That is, they lead, preach and say prayers with their masks on, maintain social distancing and also emphasize on the importance of adhering to the COVID-19 guidelines to their congregation. The high level of compliance within the religious community in Freetown therefore could be largely attributed to their efforts.
On the flip side, however, the survey report revealed that many of the congregation members in both churches and mosques showed outright disrespect to the COVID-19 guidelines before they enter the compound of the church or mosque; and further expressed same immediately after they end their services or prayers and step foot out of the compound of the mosque or church.
For instance, many do not bother to wash their hands after services or prayers or even have their facemasks on or maintain social distancing when interacting with each other outside the precincts of the church or mosque.
Also, notwithstanding the inconveniences that COVID-19 has brought along with it, the report findings showed that 85% of the participant religious institutions surveyed admitted that it is quite premature at this moment for religious institutions to return to normal ways of worship without reference or strict adherence to the COVID-19 guidelines.
It stated that to have a better understanding and appreciation of the full survey report, one could please find attached to this media update, the version of the report as well as a summary of the power point presentation of the report done by Rashid Dumbuya Esq, Executive Director of LEGAL LINK during the launching ceremony.
The report has been published and submitted to the Inter- Religious Council and other stakeholders.
