PRESS STATEMENT
WHEN JOURNALISTS ARE TARGETED, DEMOCRACY IS WOUNDED: SLAM-GLOBAL DEMANDS INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATION AND PROTECTION OF LIFE IN SIERRA LEONE
SLAM-GLOBAL, speaking on behalf of the people of Sierra Leone, issues this statement as a moral appeal grounded in human dignity, constitutional rights, and the sanctity of life.
Freedom of the press and freedom of association are not privileges conferred by power; they are fundamental human rights. When journalists, bloggers, and civic voices are arrested or detained for reporting, questioning authority, or associating freely, the damage extends far beyond individual cases-it strikes at the heart of democracy itself. When such actions expose individuals to fear, prolonged detention, or degrading treatment, human life and dignity are placed at risk.
A Pattern Across Years – Intensifying in 2025 and 2026
Sierra Leone has experienced a recurring pattern of journalist and civic-actor detentions over multiple years. While earlier cases raised serious alarms, the most concerning escalation has occurred in 2025 and into 2026, amid unresolved national tensions and heightened political sensitivity.
Regarding reports about a social-media activist known as ?Moriba,? SLAM-GLOBAL notes that while civil society and online sources have expressed concern over his alleged detention and safety, no authoritative confirmation from major press-freedom monitors has yet substantiated the details. We emphasize that all such reports warrant careful, independent verification rather than dismissal.
In August 2025, Shar Maturi, a senior reporter with Standard Times, was detained by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) in Freetown on allegations of
?cyberbullying? and ?stalking? linked to investigative reports on alleged misappropriation of public funds. He was released the same day only after intervention by the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists and his media house. Rights groups viewed this
detention as part of a troubling trend in which broad provisions of the Cyber Security and Crime Act are used to intimidate journalists reporting on corruption and governance.
Earlier in February 2025, Sophie Van Leeuwen, a Dutch Africa correspondent for RTL Nieuws, was arrested and detained by the Sierra Leone Police while investigating sensitive matters, including the reported presence of a fugitive drug lord in Sierra Leone. She was accused of unlawfully capturing images and espionage, held at CID, and interrogated for over 15 hours. She was later released after several days, but her equipment was seized and some video materials deleted. Her local aide, Joseph Turay, Managing Editor of Public Review newspaper, reportedly fled the country following the incident. This case underscored the risks faced by investigative journalists probing corruption, drugs, and alleged state collusion.
The Night Watch Pattern: Repeated Arrests and the Weaponisation of Pretexts (2025 and Prior Years)
When a journalist is arrested under private pretexts for public criticism, the law is no longer neutral-it becomes an instrument of silence. The case of Emmanuel Christian Thorli, Proprietor and Managing Editor of Night Watch Newspaper, illustrates how repeated arrests across years can be used to silence a persistent critical voice.
In 2025, Thorli was arrested by the Criminal Investigations Department under what authorities described as a “domestic issue.” However, independent reporting and civil- society assessment made clear that the detention closely followed a Night Watch publication sharply critical of government leadership and governance. The framing of a private matter as the basis for arrest was widely viewed as a scapegoat pretext, deployed to obscure the real motive: punishing dissent and intimidating the press.
This 2025 arrest did not emerge in a vacuum. In prior years, Thorli had already faced detentions, questioning, and sustained police pressure linked to Night Watch reporting critical of those in power. Across these episodes, the pattern is consistent: vague or shifting justifications, opaque legal processes, and enforcement actions that coincide with critical journalism rather than demonstrable criminal conduct. Taken together, these arrests reveal a method of suppression by repetition-where no single incident is presented as extraordinary, but cumulatively they function to exhaust, warn, and ultimately silence. Thorli’s experience demonstrates how press freedom is eroded not only by overt censorship but by the systematic misuse of legal pretexts over time.
SLAM Global therefore strongly condemns the escalating pattern of intimidation, harassment, and targeted arrests of journalists, media practitioners, and social commentators in Sierra Leone. A recent and deeply troubling example is the arrest of Mohamed Moriba, the Public Relations Officer of the APC Party in the Southern District and a widely followed social media commentator.
Moriba’s arrest is not an isolated incident; it reflects a broader and increasingly systematic effort to silence critical voices and suppress independent commentary. His detention underscores the shrinking civic space in which journalists and commentators are expected to operate – often under fear of reprisal for simply exercising their constitutional right to free expression.
SLAM?Global views this case as emblematic of the victimization of journalists in Sierra Leone, where political affiliation or public influence appears to make individuals more vulnerable to state pressure. Such actions undermine democratic accountability, weaken public trust, and violate international norms on press freedom and human rights.
We call for the immediate cessation of all forms of intimidation against media actors, the protection of journalists regardless of political alignment, and the unconditional respect for freedom of speech as guaranteed under Sierra Leone’s laws and international commitments.
The highlighted recent incidents are not isolated. In 2020, Sylvia Olayinka Blyden, publisher of Awareness Times, was arrested and charged with sedition, defamation, and
?perversion of justice? over social media posts critical of government handling of sensitive political issues. Police seized her phones and laptops, and she faced repeated arrests around court appearances. The case drew strong international condemnation from press- freedom advocates.
Similarly, Theophilus Sahr Gbenda, a presenter with Culture Radio FM 104.5, was reportedly detained by CID in connection with social-media posts related to public health reporting during the Ebola period, highlighting longstanding risks faced by journalists covering governance and public-interest issues.
Beyond named cases, multiple journalists-including editors and managing editors of newspapers such as The Independent Observer and Premier Media-were arrested in earlier years under defamation or seditious-libel laws, often accompanied by equipment seizure and prolonged legal harassment, as documented by international press-freedom monitors. International journalists were also detained in December 2023, with equipment confiscated while they were reporting in Sierra Leone.
Human Life and Dignity Are Non-Negotiable
Every journalist is a human being before they are a reporter. Every blogger is a citizen before they are a critic. Arbitrary arrest, intimidation, and detention-however brief-can inflict lasting physical and psychological harm. No political objective justifies placing human life and dignity at risk.
Freedom of the Press Is a Safeguard, Not a Threat
A free press does not destabilize a nation-it protects it. When journalists are silenced, corruption flourishes, accountability collapses, and instability deepens. Peace without rights is repression. Stability without freedom is an illusion.
Call for International Investigation and Responsible Engagement
SLAM-GLOBAL formally calls on the United Nations, its human-rights mechanisms, the
African Union, the ECOWAS, and global press-freedom institutions to:
” Conduct independent investigations into the arrest, detention, and treatment of journalists, bloggers, and civil-rights leaders in Sierra Leone, with particular focus on 2025 and 2026, while situating these cases within a broader historical pattern.
” Assess Sierra Leone’s compliance with international obligations on freedom of expression, freedom of association, and protection from arbitrary detention.
” Engage directly with affected journalists, media unions, and civil society-not solely through official state channels.
” Publish findings and recommendations to ensure accountability and non- recurrence.
A Call to International Financial Partners
SLAM-GLOBAL also urges international financial and development partners, including the International Monetary Fund, to ensure that grants, loans, and budgetary support are not divorced from respect for human life and fundamental freedoms. Development assistance must not underwrite repression or impunity.
Closing
This is not a partisan appeal-it is a human one.
SLAM-GLOBAL calls for truth, protection, and life. We call for a Sierra Leone where journalists are protected, civic voices are respected, association is free, and no human being is treated as expendable.
Signed,
Dr. Alfred A. Veenod Fullah
DIRECTOR-GENERAL
CC:
” Office of the President of Sierra Leone
” Office of the Vice President of Sierra Leone
” Speaker of the Sierra Leone House of Parliament
” Office of the Chief Minister of the Government of Sierra Leone
” Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone (ECSL)
” Inspector General of Sierra Leone Police
” Chief of Defence Staff, Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF)
” Office of National Security, Sierra Leone
” Independent Commission for Peace and National Cohesion
” Leonardo Santos Simao, Representative of the Secretary-General & Head of UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS)
” African Union (AU)
” Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)
” Amnesty International
” Marco Rubio, United States Secretary of State
” Vice President, Congressional and Public Affairs
” The Commonwealth Secretary-General
” Karim Ahmad Khan, Chief Prosecutor, International Criminal Court (ICC)
” Richard YOUNG, Chief de Division, Afrique de l’Ouest
” Ms. Ursula Von Der Lyen, European Commissioner
” The United Nations Representative in Sierra Leone
” H. E. Oumar Touray, President of ECOWAS Commission
” Madam Fatoumata Jallow-Tambajang, former VP of The Gambia
” H.E John Dramani Mahama, President of Ghana
” H. E. Bassiru Faye, President of Senegal
” H.E. Mamadi Doumbouya, President of Guinea
” H.E. Joseph Boakai, President of Liberia
” David Lammy, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth & Dev Affairs, UK
” Neil Alan John Coyle, MP for Bermondsey & Old Southwark, UK
” Ambassador Aly Diallo, Ambassador of the Republic of Guinea to the UK&I
” Ambassador Mohammad Maidugu, Acting High Commissioner of Nigeria in the UK&I
” Her Excellency Dr Fatou Bensouda, Head of Mission, The Gambia high Commission, UK&I
” H.E Fatimata Dia, Ambassador of Senegal to the UK&I
” H.E Gurly T. Gibson-Schwarz, Ambassador of Liberia to the UK&I
” Her Excellency Josephine Gauld, British High Commissioner to Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of the United States of America to Sierra Leone
” Head of the European Union Delegation in Sierra Leone
” General Consul of Canada in Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of China to Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of Germany to Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of Lebanon to Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of Iran to Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of Brazil to Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of Sweden to Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of Libya to Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of Egypt to Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of Cuba to Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of Guinea to Sierra Leone
” Ambassador of Liberia to Sierra Leone
” High Commissioner of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to Sierra Leone
” High Commissioner of Ghana to Sierra Leone
” High Commissioner of The Gambia to Sierra Leone
” General Consul of Italy in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul-General of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul-General of Ireland in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul-General of Japan in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul-General of India to Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Senegal in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Switzerland in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Syria in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Turkey in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Mali in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Romania in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Norway in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Hungary in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of France in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Belgium in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of The Netherlands in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Spain in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Serbia in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Austria in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Denmark in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Russia in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of Malaysia in Sierra Leone
” Honorary Consul of South Africa in Sierra Leone
” Civil Society Movement – Sierra Leone (CSM – SL)
” Media Reform Coordinating Group of Sierra Leone (MRCG)
” Sierra Leone Association of Non-Governmental Organizations (SLANGO)
” Civil rights Defenders – Sierra Leone
” National Elections Watch (NEW) – Sierra Leone
” Campaign for Good Governance (CGG) – Sierra Leone
” Women’s Forum – Sierra Leone
” Network Movement for Justice and Development (NMJD)
” Sierra Leone Legal Aid Board
” Faith-Based and Interfaith Organizations – (Interreligious Council of Sierra Leone)
” Council of Churches in Sierra Leone (CCSL)
” Fourah Bay College – University of Sierra Leone
” Institute of Governance Reform (IGR)
” Youth Partnership for Peace and Development (YPPD)
” Children’s Forum Network
” Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) – Sierra Leone
” Awoko Newspaper – Sierra Leone
” Liberty TV Online – Sierra Leone
” Radio Democracy 98.1 FM Station – Sierra Leone
” The New York Times
” The Washington Post
” The USA Today
” The Cable News Network (CNN)
” The MicroSoft National Broadcast Corporation (MSNBC)
” The Fox News
” The Associated Press
” Thomson Reuters
” The National Public Radio (NPR)
” The Brookings Institution
” The Heritage Foundation
” The Center For American Progress
” The National Association For The Advancement Of Colored People (NAACP)
” The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
” The MoveOn
” The Democratic National Committee
” The Republican National Committee
” The EMILY’s List
” The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
” The Sky News
” Al Jazeera
” The Independent Television (ITV)
” The Times
” The Financial Times
” The Guardian
” The Daily Telegraph