Promoting Freedom of Expression in Post-War Sierra Leone: Strategies and Effects

With the end of the civil war, Sierra Leone embarked on a governance reform program with the help of the international community. Promoting freedom of expression is an important part of this post-war governance reform program. This fundamental human right is considered crucial for the operationalization of democratic principles and practices and for the protection of other human rights. It is also vital for consolidation of the country's hard-won peace and for facilitating the development process. In spite of these promising potentials, an investigation of how it is promoted by local and international translators and how the targeted beneficiaries perceive and exercise this right will reveal that there are certain contextual realities that have to be transcended. Otherwise, in spite of promising signs of progress, efforts at promotion run the risk of becoming counterproductive by generating rather than mitigating conflict.