Monday, August 14, 2023, will go down in history as the beginning of optimism to achieve proper justice for all victimised Sierra Leoneans since April 4, 2018, when the violent-oriented SLPP regime took power. This is because the International Criminal Court ICC in Den Haag (The Hague) in the Netherlands on August 14 wholeheartedly welcomed the representatives of Concerned Sierra Leoneans Worldwide with a smile. As a result, we successfully handed the historic petition letter against Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio and his deadly SLPP cohorts over to the ICC. Never in the history of the ICC had protesters presented a petition complaint physically as was done on Monday. (Photo: The gallant quartet from CSLW who delivered the petition letter to the ICC. Dr Fullah, APC Chairlady Holland, Sal Kamara, and Mama Hawa Germany).

The presentation was the first of its kind to happen at The Hague and thus protesters of Concerned Sierra Leonean Worldwide CSLW luckily achieved such an enviable historic feat on August 14, 2023, much to the admiration of all patriotic Sierra Leoneans inside and outside Sierra Leone. The protest and subsequently the presentation of the petition to the ICC Chief Investigator Mark Dillon went on successfully as planned thereby ushering in a huge sigh of relief to all patriotic Sierra Leoneans and foreign friends. In Sierra Leone, compatriots were equally elated having watched the events unfold live on social media platforms including WhatsApp and Facebook. (Photos: Mark Dillon received the petition letter from lawyer Dr Alfred Fullah and Madam Salamatu Kamara).

And the ICC reportedly did the facilitation of the live coverage on Facebook to spread the message to a larger audience around the world. There was a mystery drone hovering above the protesters in the air throughout the protest and I later understood the drone to have transmitted the event live on Facebook. It clearly indicated the seriousness with which the ICC took the entire protest and presentation. I sent four representatives of Concerned Sierra Leoneans Worldwide to bodily hand over the petition complaint to the ICC. The quartet majestically walked into the ICC building as the ever-growing chants from the invigorated protesters reverberated in the sunny weather in Den Haag.

At the entrance of the imposing ICC building, only two of the Concerned Sierra Leonean Worldwide CSLW representatives could entire the edifice to present the petition complaint. It made history. Dr Alfred Fullah an International Criminal Lawyer and Madam Salamatu Kamara physically handed over the petition letter dossier (with a USB stick containing evidential videos and pictures) to the Chief Investigator Mr Mark Dillon. Lawyer Dr Fullah used the minutes allocated for the visit to give a synopsis of the petition regarding the continuous human rights abuses by Julius Maada Bio’s barbaric SLPP regime among other vices. Dr Fullah’s summary was so impressive that the Chief ICC Investigator gave the CSLW team a contact address to forward any further evidence to boost up the case. (Photos: Protesters including Adebayor. And the Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan KC).

Monday’s petition submission was clearly historic in that it was the first time that a petition letter has been presented to the ICC physically. Even petition letters in the post do not always get the attention of the ICC. Only through the ICC website, could petitions be presented and responded to. The Chief Investigator confirmed this historic first himself. Thanks to the blessings of God and the spirits of the thousands unjustly murdered by the Bio regime, everything went well to the satisfaction of all the protesters in Den Haag. Messages of defiance from the protesters were made by various speakers including the most radical social media activist of our time Adebayor, real name Mr William Kamara. Holding placards with pictures of victimised Sierra Leone, the protesters continued chanting against Bio and his violent cronies from 9 am to 1 pm. Many Sierra Leone protesters from Europe, the UK, and the US, were in attendance. Below is the synopsis of the petition read publicly by the astute lawyer Dr Alfred Fullah –

PETITION/COMPLAINT PRESENTED BY CONCERNED SIERRA LEONEANS WORLDWIDE, TO THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT (ICC), 14th AUGUST 2023

1. KARIM KHAN KC PROSECUTOR,

INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT IN THE Hague, THE NETHERLANDS

DEAR MR. KHAN KC,

RE: PETITION AGAINST PRESIDENT JULIUS MADDA BIO, HIS WIFE, MRS. FATIMA BIO AND THE SENIOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS IN RELATION TO GROSS AND GRAVE HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS WHICH INCLUDE TORTURE, ARBITRARY ARRESTS, EXTRA JUDICIAL KILLINGS, UNLAWFUL ARRESTS AND IMPRISONMENTS, AND THE WIDESPREAD AND SYSTEMATIC SUPPRESSION OF CIVIL LIBERTIES IN SIERRA LEONE. (Photos: Adebayor, the star man, poses with sisters and Lebanese Adebayor Mr Adnan and Abu Shaw).

1. Mr. Prosecutor, Sierra Leone is one of the 123 States Parties of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, having ratified this sacred instrument on 15 September 2000.
2. Further to the Court’s procedures on preliminary examination, we know that any individual group or state can send information or communication to your Office regarding alleged crimes that fall within the jurisdiction of the Court.

Sir, by introduction, we are a Worldwide group of like-minded concerned Sierra Leoneans (hereinafter called Concerned Sierra Leoneans Worldwide) who came together in August 2018 to agitate for an end to a catalogue of blatant targeted bullying, and political intimidation, harassment, selective justice, arbitrary arrest, 2 detention, rape, kidnapping and unlawful killings of Sierra Leoneans, plus many other forms of serious human rights violations. As an advocacy group, we have been holding several legitimate, peaceful, and successful demonstrations in London and other cities across the globe. We have also been raising concrete awareness and challenging the menace, by publishing a series of press releases to highlight and inform Sierra Leoneans living in Sierra Leone, in the Diaspora, the diplomatic community in Sierra Leone, and the wider international community, relating to these atrocities and human rights violations being continuously committed by the Bio-led Government. Hence, our group has held successful and peaceful demonstrations, submitting petitions in our respective countries and jurisdictions globally. As true believers in the Rule of Law, Democracy, and Human Rights, we felt vehemently obliged to formally petition grave offences and particularly draw your esteemed attention to the 10th August 2022 peaceful demonstrations by Sierra Leoneans who continue to endure tremendous pain and suffering under the leadership of President Julius Maada Bio since he assumed office on 4th April 2018, for which he has not accounted to anyone to date.

3. We the Concerned Sierra Leoneans Worldwide are submitting this petition paper and/or complaint to you as Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court against President Julius Maada Bio, the current President of Sierra Leone, his wife, and his government/ state actors regarding systematic and widespread gross human rights violations committed against the people of Sierra Leone, which we believe make up crimes against humanity under the Rome Statute.
4. Regarding this, we would like to present evidence of awful incidents that took place under President Bio and his administration in Sierra Leone from 2018 to 2023 as described below: Sierra Leone has become one of the very few countries in Africa whose citizens have been selectively, systematically and widely subjected to many human rights cases of abuse, murder, arbitrary arrests, unlawful imprisonment orchestrated and executed by the government via well-armed state security personnel against innocent Sierra Leoneans resident mostly in the strongholds of the main opposition All Peoples Congress (APC) party – leaving many dead, some badly injured and others still in detention without trial. (Photos: Abu Shaw with Dr Fullah and Gbanabome and Salamatu Kamara).

5. Prosecutor v. Charles Ghankay Taylor (SCSL) case Finally, and in citing the Prosecutor v. Charles Ghankay Taylor (SCSL) case law, it is abundantly clear that President Bio and his cohorts have a case to answer. This is because, on 26 September 2013, the SCSL Appeals Chamber upheld Charles Taylor’s conviction that was initially made by the SCSL Trial Chamber on 26 April 2012 for abetting the commission of crimes by RUF and AFRC rebels in Sierra Leone. The SCSL ruling was both symbolic and a historical landmark in the sense that within the context of the emergence of international criminal law and SCSL’s jurisprudence, the judgement reinforced the fact that ‘abetting can be established where there is a substantial effect as opposed to a specific direction on the crimes’. The historic landmark ruling in Taylor’s case, the conviction and sentence by the SCSL hybrid court, although it generated mixed reactions worldwide, brought an end to the judicial proceedings in the Taylor within the SCSL, and closure for the Sierra Leone people who could see that justice had been done. In conclusion, and regarding the above, we can compare the Taylor case law to President Bio’s high-handedness, suppressive and dictatorial administration. As already mentioned, and with hard evidence accompanying this submission, we are with the conviction that Bio, his wife, and some state actors could be guilty and should be indicted on several counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Perhaps the Bio administration would be liable for each 28 counts in relation to individual responsibility and Joint Criminal Enterprise (JCE) I liability. (Photo: Refreshment time).

The evidence adduced in our presentation and/or complaint above will relate to and could determine Bio and his wife’s guilt under several different doctrines: 1) responsibility for planning, instigating, ordering, committing, or otherwise aiding and abetting the planning, preparation or execution of these heinous crimes; 2) superior and individual responsibility arising from his failure to prevent or punish unlawful acts by his subordinates; and 3) Bio intended to gain both political and physical control of Sierra Leone by selectively subjecting our people to many human rights cases of abuse, arbitrary arrests, unlawful imprisonment, murder, extrajudicial killings orchestrated by the government and executed by well-armed state security personnel against innocent Sierra Leoneans resident mostly in the areas of the main opposition APC party strongholds leaving many dead or some badly injured and some still in detention without trial. These acts mentioned in each of the alleged crimes can be argued like Bio and his wife ‘intended some crimes, and that others were foreseeable consequences of the common purpose, triggering both JCE I and JCE III liability…’ Given the above, Concerned Sierra Leoneans Worldwide hopes that the same principle and case law would apply to the Bio Administration and state actors for potential investigation, indictment, prosecution, conviction, and sentencing soon. This way, Bio’s responsibility for grave and heinous crimes that caused untold suffering to many thousands, if not tens of thousands, of victims in Sierra Leone will bring some measure of justice to those victims who suffer so horribly because of Bio, his wife and security personnel and/or state actors. Just like Taylor, Bio’s future indictment, prosecution, conviction, and sentencing will not only bring an end to many years of human rights violations and impunity meted out to many Sierra Leoneans but will also set a precedent and prove that no Head of State or leader could commit grave violations of crimes against humanity without being held to account. Also, the conviction of Taylor for ‘atrocities such as crimes against humanity provides valuable evidence that would be extremely useful to the injured state if it sought additional reparation for the harms suffered’. As a result, the immediate adjudication of justice for the victims’ families and loved ones who lost their lives and victimised in various ways by the ruling SLPP government of President Julius Maada Bio since April 2018 when this government succeeded the last APC 29 government of President Ernest Bai Koroma, will illustrate some measure of natural justice, and bring some closure for the affected victims in Sierra Leone. (Photos: Sal with Imran T, wearing hat).

Mr. Prosecutor, to support the above submission, we hereby enclose a USB stick that contains evidentiary video recordings/materials that will substantiate or support our claim as already stated above. All of which bears evidence of gross human rights violations, arbitrary arrests, crimes against humanity such as torture, unlawful imprisonments, and extrajudicial killings committed against the people of Sierra Leone and perpetrated by Julius Maada Bio, the current President of Sierra Leone, his wife, and his government/ state actors. And if the need arises, we will provide you with further information and/or evidence relating to such heinous crimes perpetrated by President Julius Maada Bio, his wife, and his government/ state actors.

Mr. Prosecutor, given the above submission, please consider our petition/complaint to trigger or open an investigation, indictment, prosecution, conviction, and sentencing on such grave and heinous crimes soon. We hope you will consider our PETITION/COMPLAINT in good faith and act accordingly. We look forward to hearing from you, sir, For and on behalf of Concerned Sierra Leoneans Worldwide.

Yours faithfully,

Dr. Alfred A V Fullah