SLAJ condemns killing of journalist
Freetown – The Sierra Leone Association of Journalists condemns in the strongest possible term the killing on Sunday 12 June of journalist Ibrahim Foday formerly of Exclusive Newspaper. He was in his 30s.
Ibrahim was stabbed during a land dispute between the Grafton and Kossoh Town communities in the outskirts of Freetown. The exact motive of his killing is yet unclear but it came as he had published stories on the land dispute which apparently did not go down well with especially the Kossoh Town community.
SLAJ President, Umaru Fofana, has held a series of meetings with the Kossoh Town headman Victor Haffner and some member of the Grafton community and pleaded with them to help bring the killer(s) to book. He has also held meetings with the Assistant Inspector General of Police for Freetown East, Mohamed Kamara, the police Local Unit Commander Amos Kargbo and the Government Chief pathologist Dr Owis Koroma. SLAJ has also been in contact with other senior police officers on the matter and has provided the name of someone suspected to be behind the slaying of the journalist.
“We urge the police to speed up investigations and bring to justice those behind this cowardly and reprehensible killing of the journalist”, says the SLAJ president. “The fact that people can take the law into their own hands and kill someone else, no matter who the victim is or what could be their motive, is worrisome for our society,” he says. An autopsy will be carried out tomorrow at the Connaught Hospital at 12:00 noon and journalists are encouraged to be there.
This is the first fatal attack on a journalist in the country since 2005 when Harry Yansanneh was beaten to death. The then Editor of For Di People newspaper died after being beaten by family members of a sitting parliamentarian of the then ruling SLPP party Dr Fatmata Hassan who never faced justice. Following her party’s loss of power in 2007, she switched her allegiance to the present ruling APC party who unconscionably allowed her into their fold. SLAJ also calls on that case to be reopened even if the family of the late Harry no longer seem interested in it. This was a crime against the state and must be pursued by any government that is serious in the fight against impunity.
SLAJ, Freetown
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Fuad
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It is very ridiculous and unacceptable in a civilized society for someone to destroy a man’s life which he or she didn’t create and will never create. I support SLAJ president to go for the killers and bring them to book.
14th June 2011However I am dismayed with the so called human right organisations roaming the four corners of Sierra Leone calling for the abolition of death penalty. The same goes to SLAJ who have been writing and calling on government to abolish the said law in Sierra Leone. It is because of these, some people are now taking the law into their hand because even if they kill someone they will just be jailed and maybe at the end he or she can get presidential pardon. This sound nonsensical to me. I believe, an eye for an eye, no matter who you are whether you be a woman or a man, when you kill, you too should die.
Let us stop buying the Western culture, they have their own rules and regulations, no African nation has ever condemn theirs. Therefore our borrowed culture is splitting us apart as we have abandoned our own culture, custom and tradition.
May the soul of the deceased journalist rest in perfect peace. To the police, note that you have an obligation to save life and property of innocent people and God shall hold you responsible for failure to do the right thing.
I personally support death penalty for anyone who there kills another man not on accident but willful act.
Just should be done to the killers and those who were behind it.Note, justice denied is justice delayed and justice delayed is just frustrated. This is the case of Harry Yansaneh. SLAJ is a shame and disgrace for you because you were SLPP and therefore you just sat and gave deaf ears to the issue of Harry yansaneh. Now that APC is in power and you SLAJ president is anti APC you now want to take the issue of Harry Yansaneh. This is all about journalism in Sierra Leone. May God prevail on the killers and their supporters.