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Sierra Leonean journalist relentlessly persecuted by government
Outdated legislation, illegal detention and charges of sedition and defamation are being used to torment publisher and activist, Sylvia Olayinka Blyden.
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Sports journalists assaulted during FIFA World Cup qualifier
Three sports journalists were assaulted by a group of men assumed to be bodyguards of President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone during a FIFA World Cup qualifier.
![Sierra Leone Peoples Party (SLPP) presidential candidate, former general Julius Mada Bio (C) answers journalists' questions in Freetown, 25 March 2018, ISSOUF SANOGO/AFP/Getty Images](https://ifex.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/sierra-leone-president-journalist-getty.jpg)
Criminal libel law to be scrapped in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leonian President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone has promised the media sector that his government is looking to repeal criminal libel and sedition laws and also create a fund to support journalists.
![Supporters of Samura Kamara celebrate in the streets of Makeni, northern Sierra Leone, on 16 October 2017, after he was selected as a candidate for the ruling All People Congress (APC) for the 2018 presidential elections, SAIDU BAH/AFP/Getty Images](https://ifex.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/sierra-leone-elections-getty.jpg)
Media outlets perceived to be taking partisan positions
With elections less than 2 weeks away, the political landscape in Sierra Leone has evolved dramatically from peaceful to a verbally abusive and brutish environment. In this furore, the media seems focused solely on party campaigns.
![MFWA](https://ifex.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/sierra-leone-protests-cropped.jpg)
Student protestor killed in Sierra Leone
Police officers in Sierra Leone have killed one student, injured several others and arrested dozens in an attempt to quell protests by students of the University of Njala, located in the city of Bo in South-Eastern part of the country.
![Anti-corruption activist Abdul Fatoma at a conference in London, England, 2016, AFEX](https://ifex.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/sierraleone_anticorruption_afex_28feb2017_cropped.jpg)
Sierra Leone authorities arrest anti-corruption activist, confiscate passport
On 31 January 2017, anti-corruption activist Abdul Fatoma was arrested without a warrant, shortly after speaking on the radio about a national corruption scandal. Police confiscated Fatoma’s passport the following day.
![Slain Journalist Ibrahim Foday](https://ifex.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/foday.jpg)
An open letter calling for justice for slain journalist Ibrahim Foday
Four years after Sierra Leone Journalist Ibrahim Foday’s death, members of IFEX join the Media Foundation for West Africa in calling for more rapid progress.
![Sierra Leone's president Ernest Bai Koroma is photographed in Freetown, 10 September 2014., AP Photo/Michael Duff](https://ifex.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/sierraleone_president_apimages.jpg)
Sierra Leone: Journalist goes into hiding to escape presidential detention order
Tamba Fanday, the station manager for privately-owned Citizen Radio in Koidu Town, Kono District, in eastern Sierra Leone, is currently in hiding for fear of being arrested and detained under a presidential executive order.
![People protest outside a hospital as Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf visits the area after Ebola deaths in Monrovia, 17 June 2014., AP Photo/Jonathan Paye-Layleh, File](https://ifex.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/liberia_ebolaprotest_16september2014_apimages.jpg)
Access to timely, accurate information is critical to Ebola response
Media crackdowns in Liberia and Sierra Leone may be cutting off access to potentially life-saving information about Ebola.
![Link to: Sierra Leonean activists and journalists harassed, accused of defamation](https://ifex.org/wp-content/themes/ifex/assets/images/placeholder.png)
Sierra Leonean activists and journalists harassed, accused of defamation
Within the last six months, at least five senior journalists have been arrested and detained by Sierra Leone’s police at the instance of government officials.
![Link to: Sierra Leonean president urged to drop libel charges against editors](https://ifex.org/wp-content/themes/ifex/assets/images/placeholder.png)
Sierra Leonean president urged to drop libel charges against editors
After publishing a column describing President Ernest Bai Koroma’s behaviour to that of a rat, two editors of the Independent Observer were accused of libel and sedition. They face a 29 November court date and could face prison sentences of six months to three years if convicted.
![Link to: Editors released after 19 days of detention in Sierra Leone](https://ifex.org/wp-content/themes/ifex/assets/images/placeholder.png)
Editors released after 19 days of detention in Sierra Leone
Jonathan Leigh and Bai Bai Sesay were granted bail on 4 November 2013 by a Freetown-based High Court. The editors still face charges for publishing an article deemed defamatory to Sierra Leonean President Ernest Bai Koroma.
![People queue to vote during presidential elections in Freetown, 17 November 2012. The recently passed freedom of information law will allow Sierra Leoneans to find out just how accountable their elected officials are., REUTERS/Joe Penney](https://ifex.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/sierraleone_freetown_30oct2013_reuters.jpg)
Sierra Leone’s new freedom of information law will increase government transparency
The Right to Access Information Act establishes a right to access government information and requires the government to disseminate a plan for making records publicly available.
![People walk past a campaign poster for President Ernest Bai Koroma. Two Sierra Leonean editors are currently facing charges for "defaming" the president in a recent news article., AP Photo/Tommy Trenchard](https://ifex.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/sierraleone_president_25oct2013_apimages.jpg)
Sierra Leonean editors face 26 counts of libel over article about president
Jonathan Leigh and Bai Bai Sesay could face up to three years in prison for publishing of an article that criticised President Ernest Bai Koroma.
![Link to: Journalists in Sierra Leone detained without charge for six days](https://ifex.org/wp-content/themes/ifex/assets/images/placeholder.png)
Journalists in Sierra Leone detained without charge for six days
Jonathan Leigh and Bai Bai Sesay were detained on 18 October 2013. They have been accused of publishing an article that is “defamatory” to President Ernest Bai Koroma.
![Link to: Man given jail term, fine, for assaulting journalist in Sierra Leone](https://ifex.org/wp-content/themes/ifex/assets/images/placeholder.png)
Man given jail term, fine, for assaulting journalist in Sierra Leone
On 12 July 2013, Mohamed Ambrose Koroma was sentenced to three months in prison and ordered to pay 2,500 Leones (about US $600) in compensation for assaulting Paul Lamin, a reporter for the privately-owned Awareness Times newspaper.