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Building accountable justice in Sierra Leone

30/01/2009 By Clare Castillejo

Sierra Leone's civil war left the country's justice system severely damaged, and rebuilding and reforming this system has been a major priority for Sierra Leone's government and donors following the end of the conflict. Within this, there has been a particular focus on developing a justice system that is accountable to citizens, as both lack of justice and unaccountable and unresponsive governance were root causes of the conflict.

This Working Paper by Clare Castillejo examines the extent to which a more accountable justice system is being built in Sierra Leone and the challenges and opportunities for doing this. It analyses five key components of accountability - access, equality, information, oversight and participation - and asks to what extent these are being developed within Sierra Leone's justice institutions. Based on this analysis the Working Paper suggests policy options for strengthening accountability as part of current justice sector reform initiatives. 

This Working Paper is based on field research conducted by FRIDE and Campaign for Good Governance in Freetown and Kono, Koinadugu and Moyamba districts in June 2008.

 


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Keywords

Civil society Gender Judicial reform Justice Peacebuilding Sierra Leone West Africa

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Bio author: Clare Castillejo

Civil society. Conflict. Development. Donors. Gender. Governance. Human rights. Inequality. Peacebuilding. Security.