A/HRC/13/28
and dependency on donor support, have severely affected the enjoyment of socioeconomic and cultural rights. Limited access to health, education and employment
continues to be a serious challenge. There are also serious human rights issues
associated with customary and traditional practices; impunity for the perpetrators of
forceful initiation, including female genital mutilation, domestic and sexual violence,
continues to be a serious concern. There are also human rights issues resulting from
the weakness of the justice system. Prolonged pretrial detention, delayed justice and a
chronic backlog of cases continues to frustrate the system. The slow pace of law
reform and the lack of effective implementation of new laws, including the Child
Rights Act and Domestic Violence Act, are also a concern. Lack of necessary resources
for the Human Rights Commission and the delay in constitutional review process
should also be noted.
64.
In the light of the above conclusions, the United Nations High Commissioner
for Human Rights strongly urges the Government of Sierra Leone:
(a)
To speed up the implementation of the recommendations of the Truth
and Reconciliation Commission, including through the allocation of adequate human
and financial resources, and to mobilize resources to implement the reparations
programme; and to fast-track the law reform process, particularly in relation to the
pending sexual offences bill and the matrimonial bill, ensuring the integration of
critical human rights treaties, including the Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities, into national law;
(b)
To investigate and prosecute security officials involved in violating
human rights, notably in the Lungi incident, in which three people were killed
following the use of firearms by police;
(c)
To improve the conditions of service of judges and magistrates, to
further strengthen the independence of the judiciary and prosecutors, and to fill
vacant positions of magistrates and prosecutors;
(d)
To provide adequate budget resources to the Human Rights Commission
to allow it to carry out its core statutory functions, and to implement the
recommendations made by the Commission in its state of human rights reports for
2007 and 2008;
(e)
To submit, in a timely manner, pending reports to the treaty bodies,
pursuant to the international human rights conventions that it has ratified;
(f)
To adopt a clear land policy, including with regard to the demarcation
and proper registration of land;
(g)
(h)
women.
To repeal the criminal libel provision of the Public Order Act of 1965;
To adopt a national strategy for the elimination of violence against
65.
The High Commissioner also urges international partners to continue
supporting the Government in addressing the human rights challenges and, in
particular, to assist in the funding of the reparations programme.
16
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