A/HRC/13/28 4. Freedom of expression 11. Although the right to freedom of expression was generally respected, there were instances of violations of this right. In May, the editor of a newspaper, For Di People, was assaulted, allegedly by a press photographer associated with the Office of the Presidency, for publishing news and articles criticizing the Government. A reporter associated with United Nations Radio in Kenema was allegedly assaulted and humiliated by women of the Bondo society, a secret society for women, for airing discussions on the negative effects of female genital mutilation. A youth leader of the ruling political party, the All People’s Congress, in Kambia district wrote a threatening letter to a local radio journalist who had reported on the local radio station on the misuse of hospital vehicles by the chairman of the district council. 12. Journalists continued to advocate for the abolition of the seditious libel provisions under the Public Order Act of 1965. The writ petition filed by the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists challenging the constitutionality of the act was quashed by the Supreme Court on 10 November 2009. On 8 December, however, the President of Sierra Leone, during a press conference, promised that the Government would review the act. 13. In December, the Parliament of Sierra Leone approved the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation Bill establishing a national independent public broadcaster to ensure impartial access to all opinions. The initiative is considered to be the first of its kind in the West Africa region. UNIPSIL has plans to handover United Nations Radio to the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation in 2010. 5. Human rights defenders 14. Reports of threats against human rights defenders were made during the period under review. In February, death threats were made by an anonymous person, via e-mail, against a prominent human rights activist and director of the Society for Democratic Initiatives, a local non-governmental organization. He was reportedly intimidated and physically attacked after his organization released a media report on the status of the media a year since the APC Government came to power. In September, the chairperson of the Human Rights Committee of the Bombali district was harassed by the provincial secretary of the northern region for having raised a case of torture of a woman by a chiefdom policeman in Bombali. The same person was also detained for two days in November by the magistrate in Makeni, allegedly for criticizing the ruling of the court on a rape case. 6. Land disputes 15. The absence of a clear land policy in Sierra Leone has caused several disputes and violent attacks resulting from disputes over the ownership of lands; at least six such incidents were reported to the Human Rights Section.1 Lack of appropriate demarcation, proper registration and record-keeping were some of the causes of such disputes. 1 6 In January, three houses were set alight in a clash between the residents of Tissor village and Hanga village over a plot of land. In January, Mandingoes of Rogbalan village and Lokos of Tambayama and Mayemeh villages in Bombali district clashed over a plot of land; six people were subsequently charged in court. In June, fighting erupted in Mokong Betty village, Mobamba district, between the residents over a plot of land used for a palm oil plantation. In April, violence erupted between the residents of Gohun and Kuiva villages in Mandu Chiefdom in Kailahun district over a land issue. In June, locals of Panderu and villages were involved in a violent clash over farming land. GE.10-10771