Death sentences for 11 civilians in Sierra Leone

By Christo Johnson

FREETOWN, Oct 21 (Reuters) - A judge in Sierra Leone on Wednesday sentenced 11
civilians, including a woman aged 75, to death on treason charges linked to a
coup that temporarily supplanted elected President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah.

The sentences pronounced in the High Court by Judge Bankole Rashid brought to
27 the number of civilians condemned to death by hanging in connection with
the May, 1997, coup and its aftermath.

Veteran politician Nancy Steele, 75, and two other women were among the 11
sentenced on Wednesday.

The judge sentenced a further five civilians, who were convicted on the same
treason charges as the 11, to 10 years jail each.

Unlike 24 soldiers executed in public by firing squad on Monday after
conviction by a court martial, the civilians have the right of appeal. Defence
lawyers said all 11 would appeal.

The coup by disgruntled soldiers plunged Sierra Leone into its worst violence
since independence from Britain in 1960 and a military junta supplanted Kabbah
for 10 months.

A Nigerian-led West African force chased the junta from power in February and
reinstated Kabbah in March. Junta loyalists and their rebel allies, who took
up arms in 1991, remain active upcountry, particularly in the east and north.

Sixteen civilians were sentenced to death on the same charges by a court
hearing in September. They are appealing against their sentences.

A separate high court is trying another 20 civilians on treason charges
related to the same coup.

The flurry of death sentences triggered appeals for celemency from around the
world. Kabbah faced intense pressure in Freetown to carry out the sentences
against the soldiers.

Nigeria's state radio said Kabbah arrived there on Tuesday for a two-day visit
and talks with military ruler General Abdulsalami Abubakar.

London-based human rights watchdog Amnesty International on Tuesday condemned
as ``deplorable'' the execution of the 24 soldiers, saying they had been
convicted after unfair trials.

Britain criticised Monday's executions by firing squad, saying they undermined
efforts towards national reconciliation in the impoverished country beset by
civil strife since 1991.

But the executions were popular in Sierra Leone itself where the junta and its
associates are held responsible for widespread atrocities against civilians
following the coup.

Thousands of Freetown residents cheered as the 23 men and one woman were shot
at a stone quarry on the western outskirts of the capital.

Justice ministry officials say more soldiers and civilians are expected to be
put on trial from next week.

Hundreds of civilians and soldiers were arrested after the West African troops
evicted the junta from Freetown in February.

14:02 10-21-98


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