4 Security and Justice
51. Dr Garth Glenworth said that Sierra Leone was
the first country in which DFID had played a major role in post
conflict reconstruction. The security situation there in the mid-1990s
was the catalyst to amending the International Development Act
to allow DFID to become involved in Security Sector Reform, which
has now become a major feature of its support in nearly all fragile
states.[68] Alex Vines
said of the UK approach to Security Sector reform in Sierra Leone:
"the fact that Sierra Leone has been able
to deploy its armed forces abroad now, including in Sudan and
in Somalia, where it is currently operational, is a testament
to the training and investment."[69]
DFID stated that it had "helped to transform
security structures" with a shift in security service provision
from the military to the police.[70]
However, although the UK has had significant success reforming
the Sierra Leonean army, we heard that it has had far less success
working with the police force, which we consider in this chapter.
UN Missions
52. In Sierra Leone the UN Peace Keeping Mission
(UNIPSIL) closed in March 2014. However the Liberian UN Peace
Keeping Mission (UNMIL) is remaining until at least 2017 although
its military strength has been reduced from 15,000 to just under
5,300.[71] Liberia is
reportedly one of the UNs most expensive peace keeping missions[72]
and we are concerned whether the mission provides value for money.
We saw many UN 4x4 vehicles in car parks in Monrovia and we were
told vehicles given to the police were left in remote areas because
they could not afford the petrol for them or the repairs.
53. We explored why the Liberian Mission was lasting
longer than the Sierra Leonean Mission but were unable to get
a satisfactory answer. The Minister told us:
I do not think there is a hugely differentiated
situation, other than I believe the Government of Liberia has
asked them not to go until after that point.[73]
The Acting Head of DFID Sierra Leone and Liberia
informed us that:
the UK's position in the Security Council has
been to push for a more rapid draw-down so that the mission in
Liberia does not stay at the same scale.[74]
We understand that President Johnson Sirleaf is keen
for the UN Mission to stay until after the 2017 Presidential Elections
in case of unrest before or during elections in a country which,
unlike Sierra Leone, has not experienced a democratic transfer
of power. The Liberian Minister of Finance added that an alternative
way to prevent unrest in Liberia would be by improving links between
the East of the country and Monrovia. He was concerned that without
this the East would fall further behind economically with serious
risks; 75% of the army officers who staged the coup in 1980 were
from there.
54. The UN is carrying out a review in 2015 of the
Peacebuilding Architecture. The UK Ambassador to the UN, Martin
Shearmanallow, has stated that the review would allow for the
UN "to reflect on progress and consider ways in which we
can improve our approach to peacebuilding." He said it was
hoped the review would revisit the original vision behind the
creation of the architecture in 2005 and take stock of the developments
in UN peacebuilding over the last 10 years.[75]
We recommend the UK encourage the UN's 2015 Review of the Peacebuilding
Architecture to consider the cost of UN missions and the consistency
of decision-making, including criteria used for deciding when
missions should come to an end particularly in reference to Liberia,
where our impression was that money could be better spent.
Police
55. UK Ministers decided in 2012 that it should use
the UK reputation for policing, and its access to the security
sector in Sierra Leone to re-focus Security Sector Reform assistance
to include Sierra Leone's police service.Box
5: IMATT and ISAT
| The International Military Advisory and Training Team (IMATT) assisted with the transformation of the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF) into a self-sustaining, democratically accountable and affordable force in order that it can meet Sierra Leone's defence missions and tasks. The International Security Advisory Team (Sierra Leone)—ISAT (SL) was formed in April 2013 when IMATT drew down. IMATT's mandate was judged completed when the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces deployed its first battalion of peacekeepers to participate in the African Union Mission in Somalia demonstrating that RSLAF is now a contributor to regional peace and security, rather than a threat to it.
In 2013-14 ISAT received £2.6 million from the Africa Conflict Pool and over £4 million in funds and direct assistance from the Minister of Defence—ISAT reports directly to the Ministry of Defence which manages it on behalf of the other Conflict Pool Partners: DFID and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
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Source: DFID visit briefing
56. DFID told us that the
Sierra Leone police struggle to deliver an effective
policing service with limited resources, poor pay and conditions
of service and political interference. These problems have been
exacerbated by a weak Ministry of Internal Affairs which has resulted
in the absence of effective executive oversight of police.[76]
In Transparency International's 2013 Global Corruption
Barometer, Sierra Leone ranked bottom of the 107 countries surveyed
based on the percentage of people who reported having to pay bribes,
with 90% of Sierra Leoneans reporting to have paid a bribe to
the police in the past year.[77]
At our meeting with ISAT we were told of the problems of police
corruption and its causes: the police are not paid enough; they
do not have the trust of the public; the press dislike them immensely;
the leadership is affected by political interference and there
is a stagnated old boy network at the top.
57. Dr Jeremy Allouche questioned the ability of
the police in Sierra Leone to deal with the new forms of violence
emerging linked to "youth, music and gangs" and the
proliferation of small arms.[78]
Research by Action Against Armed Violence has found that:
while widespread political or communal conflict
is minimal, violence is still a serious issue affecting the lives
of both countries' citizens.[79]
The US Ambassador to Burkina Faso estimated that
there were eight million light arms circulating in West Africa.[80]
58. Breaking up the current top tier of command of
the Sierra Leone police is not considered possible as they are
in place as a result of the post-war peace settlement. Instead,
ISAT is training bright, younger police officers to take over
as the older generation retire.[81]
Alex Vines argued that the UK should concentrate on community
policing; there was evidence from other African countries where
DFID had supported community policing of a significant decrease
in levels of crime, for example the programme in the peri-urban
areas of Windhoek, Namibia.[82]
The Minister told us:
it is necessary to have police who behave like
police and who keep the rule of law. […] that relationship
with people is incredibly important in changing the nature of
police who used to simply be there to take a bribe or to damage
you into people who will protect you and work with you as a partner.[83]
She added that DFID was working with the Ministry
of Internal Affairs, and had established an independent police
complaints board.[84]
59. Dr Garth Glenworth said that the police's "continuing
effectiveness and freedom from political interference" was
the main guarantee that the country would not "regress into
instability and conflict." He also believed that the UK was
"uniquely qualified to provide this assistance" and
if Britain did not do it no-one else would.[85]
He said that:
The country could slip back if a 'spark' such
as rioting among the youth or large- scale corruption in service
provision were to appear. Poverty may be reducing but frustration
among ordinary citizens is not. [86]
60. The UK has played an effective role in training
the army in Sierra Leone. Much needed work has recently begun
with the police, who are widely seen as corrupt; it is clear that
this should have started earlier. We recommend that in future
post-conflict situations, DFID make police reform a higher priority
at an early stage.
Justice
61. DFID noted that the majority of the population
in Sierra Leone still did not have access to—or chose not
to use—formal justice services, as they were slow, costly
and affected by corruption and political interference.[87]
In Transparency International's 2013 Global Corruption Barometer,
86% of Sierra Leoneans reported to have paid a bribe to the judiciary.[88]
Alex Vines said that it was an area which was "yearning for
further support". He told us that
The number of people who are in jail in Sierra
Leone for lengthy periods on remand and never get to trial is
a massive burden on the criminal justice system.[89]
62. DFID said it was supporting the Government of
Sierra Leone's Justice Sector Reform by working with the judiciary
to address blockages in the criminal justice system. It is providing
technical assistance and funding to both formal and informal institutions,
and it is working with state and civil society to improve access
to justice for ordinary citizens, especially women and girls.
The focus of the programme is on improved services at point of
delivery.[90] Its headline
targets to be achieved by 2015 are:
· 50%
of remote communities with access to community mediation and paralegal
services; and
· 700,000 women
and girls with increased access to security and justice services.[91]
63. We visited two of these projects on our visit:
the training and provision of paralegals in communities through
Timap for Justice[92]
who monitored police stations and local prisons to ensure people
on remand had actually broken a law and were provided with legal
advice; and Fambul Tok[93]
which was a community mediation programme working on injustices
within the community without the recourse to the police or legal
services.
64. We were impressed by these programmes, but concerned
about their future. We questioned the Minister about the future
of the programmes and their sustainability. She told us:
It is not going to be self-financing in the short
term and we have recognised that, so we are planning to continue
our support of access to justice. […]. We are discussing
with other donors who have supported this sector in the past,
such as the Open Society Foundation, joint funding arrangements
to move forward together. We are also supporting strengthening
of central Government's institutions. That has resulted in a marked
increase of central Government allocation to the justice sector
in the 2014 Budget. We will continue this process in 2014 and
2015 to help reduce the dependency of the justice system on DFID
and other donors.[94]
The Acting Head of DFID Sierra Leone and Liberia
told us it was also working on the legal framework for legal aid
in Sierra Leone.[95]
65. We were impressed by DFID's Access to Justice
projects in Sierra Leone where they seem to be making a difference
to people's lives and community cohesion but we have serious concerns
about their sustainability without donor support. We recommend
that DFID consider how the justice work could be funded in future,
whether there are other donors who could be involved or whether
it is something the Sierra Leone Government could one day consider
subsidising in a similar way to Citizens Advice or Legal Aid in
the UK.
68 Dr Garth Glenworth (SLL01) Back
69
Q3 Back
70
DFID (SLL05) Back
71
UN Mission in Liberia: Factsheet Back
72
BBC website, Liberia profile Back
73
Q114 Back
74
Q122 Back
75
https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/effective-and-well-planned-un-peacebuilding-interventions-can-improve-peoples-lives
"Effective and well-planned UN peacebuilding interventions can improve people's lives"
UK Mission to the UN, NewYork Back
76
DFID (SLL05), para 30 Back
77
Transparency International's 2013 Global Corruption Barometer Back
78
Q3 Back
79
Action On Armed Violence (SLL04), para 4 Back
80
Dr Jeremy Allouche, IDS (SLL03), p 3 Back
81
Q5 Back
82
Q5 Back
83
Q118 Back
84
Q119 Back
85
Dr Garth Glenworth (SLL01) pg 1 Summary Back
86
Dr Garth Glenworth (SLL01) para 15 Back
87
DFID (SLL05), para 30 Back
88
Transparency International's 2013 Global Corruption Barometer Back
89
Q6 Back
90
DFID (SLL05) pg 12 Back
91
DFID (SLL05) Back
92
Timap for Justice ('Stand up for Justice') is a prominent Sierra
Leonean national NGO. It was formed in 2005 in the aftermath of
the war to focus on improving the management of conflicts within
communities by deploying trained community mediators. Back
93
The name 'Fambol Tok' comes from Krio for 'Family Talk'. The organisation
was established in 2007 with the objective of supporting community
reconciliation after the war. Back
94
Q123 Back
95
Q123 Back
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