The Election Conflict Prevention and Mediation Working Group (ECPMG) on Thursday 9th February 2033 held a multi-sectoral dialogue with Elections Management Bodies (EMB), Political Parties’ Leadership, and the Security Sector at the New Brookfield Hotel.

In his remarks, the Team Lead of ECPMG, Abdul M. Fatima, stated that elections are key to nurturing and strengthening a democratic culture; and if not inclusive and fair, it can have negative effects on post conflicts and transitioning democracies.

He explained that CHRDI and its partners are working vehemently hard to ensure that peace ensues before, during, and after the 2023 National elections.

“This is why we have taken the bold step to engage the Market Women, Persons Living With Disabilities, Political Parties’ Leaders, and Security Sectors”, he added.

The Vice President of Eminent Women for Peace Mediators, Hajia Mariama Fofana; in her presentation as part of their previous engagements submitted a series of concerns discussed by different bodies for the attention of the stakeholders concerned.

She affirmed that market women and persons living with disabilities have been engaged in discussions related to conflict prevention and management before, during, and after elections.

According to her, representatives of these groups submitted that series of complaints and recommendations to the Political Parties Regulation Commission (PPRC) including various Political Party’s leaderships and supporters, Electoral Commission Sierra Leone (ECSL), Human Rights Commission (HRCSL), Security apparatus and forces.

She outlined that the main concerns covered issues of police brutality and excessive use of force, insufficient sensitization on the use of textile ballots, the need for better means of communication for persons with disabilities, popularizing the ECSL disability policy for PWDs, etc.

The Secretary General of the Mano River Union (MRU), Maria G. Harrison, thanked the organizers, especially the Campaign for Human Rights and Development International (CHRDI) and Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA)

She added that since Sierra Leone is now included in the MRU, the agreed protocols mandated the member states to ensure regional peace and stability by working with various stakeholders in mitigating all forms of violence, including electoral violence.

The representative of the Chairperson of the Human Rights Commission, Victor Idrissa Lansana stated that the commission i more concerned about the protection of Human Rights during electoral processes irrespective of race, tribes, regions, etc.

According to him, from experiences, the commission developed a  different strategy for this year’s elections to ensure that fundamental rights are highly protected throughout all the processes of elections.

The Facilitator, Dr Julius Spencer, guided the discussions, triggering political parties to focus their discussions on their plans and strategies developed to prevent and mitigate conflicts in the forthcoming general elections.

A host of political party representatives presented their plans, including the NGC, PDP, ADP, UDM, SLPP, RUFP, and NDA.