In his engagement with a team from Human Rights Commission Sierra Leone led by its Chairperson Patricia Narsu Ndanema, the Opposition Whip of Parliament, Hon. Abdul Karim Kamara, relating to a proposed policy engagement with Members of Parliament on the impact of Businesses on Human Rights, the Rtd. Hon. Speaker of Parliament Hon, Segepoh Solomon Thomas, on Monday, the 27th of May 2024, told the Human Rights Commission Delegation that they cannot change people’s attitude by mere radio talk shows or billboards but by implementing the required laws of the land. The proposed policy engagement with Members of Parliament is slated for the 7th and 8th of June 2024 in Makeni.
The Speaker of the Sixth Parliament of the Second Republic of Sierra Leone the Rtd. Hon. Segepoh Solomon Thomas, reassured the Human Rights Commission led by its chairperson, that they have the unwavering and full support of parliament. He expressed his enthusiasm for such initiatives, particularly for citizens to start thinking out of the box. He acknowledged that radio stations are often filled with human rights issues but not enough has been done to address them, further emphasizing the Parliament’s support for the proposed policy engagement.
He recalled that 2012 when the Attitudinal and Behavioral Change Secretariat was established, he constantly told parliament that they don’t change people’s attitudes through mere radio discussions and billboards. Speaker Segepoh Thomas proffered that citizens’ attitudes are changed by implementing the country’s laws.
“if you tell a taxi driver not to use a particular road, and if he does, let the exact punishment be brought to bear on him. And then, no other taxi driver will use that road again wrongly. So that is my position on some of those issues. Yes, radio discussions and television shows are helpful. But let’s come down and have our boats on the ground to look at certain aspects of our daily lives and to see how they impact human rights”, said Speaker Thomas.
The Director for the Directorate of Business and Human Rights and Labour Relations, Abdulai Yollah Bangura, at the Human Rights Commission, said they are looking at how businesses impact the enjoyment of rights, taking into consideration the negative and the positive impacts. He said they would be conducting monitoring activities for all businesses, especially major establishments like multi-national companies. He added that they had started developing a policy to help the government understand the implementation for the promotion of human rights. He assured the House Speaker that the proposed meeting was meant not only for members of Parliament but also for ministers of government in different sectors and with company operations in their ministries.
He elucidated that the conference for Ministers of Government would be staged in Bo on the 15th and 16th of June 2024. He also made it very clear that the engagement with Members of Parliament would be staged on the 7th and the 8th of June 2024. He continued that the purpose of the engagement is not just to discuss the draft policy but to validate it and present it to the cabinet for approval and also for parliamentary approval. He also disclosed that the Human Rights Commission had even established a directorate to look at the operations of businesses and how they impact human rights, highlighting the potential positive outcomes of this engagement.
The Chief Whip of the Opposition Party, Hon. Abdul Karim Kamara, intimated to the Speaker that the engagement would be targeting key committees such as Agriculture. He said there are Agro-businesses all over the country, adding that the Agro-business agencies are areas where people’s Human rights are mostly violated. He added that they want to have an interface with the workers of those Agro-businesses. Hon. Abdul Karim Kamara reiterated that they intend to go beyond the labor laws by looking into personal relationships and how they are treated in industries relating to human rights. He continued by saying that they had invited the Parliamentary Committee on Trade, the Committee on Mines, and the Committee on Works.
He also informed the House Speaker that the team for the Human Rights engagement in Makeni is composed of forty (40) Members of Parliament. He concluded that they thought it fit to have the Speaker of Parliament in such a very important gathering, adding that, at least, they would be the very set of people to take the speaker out of the city after his election.
