A portrait of Aminata Kanu
By: Hafsatu Bangura
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the Sierra Leone Police has declared Aminata Kanu wanted after her family reported her for engaging in a same-sex relationship with another woman, Isatu Sall.
Sources close to the investigation revealed that Aminata was allegedly caught twice in compromising situations with Isatu at her father’s house, which led to her being reported to the authorities after serious mob.
Aminata’s family, deeply entrenched in traditional and religious values, viewed her sexuality as a severe betrayal. Her father, Brima Kanu, a fervent Muslim cleric and local imam, reportedly threatened to kill her, seeing her sexual orientation as a source of shame, sin, and a generational curse.
Aminata, a mother of a daughter named Hawanatu Kanu, also has two younger siblings, Abubakar and Zainah, whom she had been taking care of. Police wanted warrant indicates that Aminata was born on 4th, July 1998 and was residing at 13 Ball Street, Mountain Cut, Freetown.
Family insiders disclosed that Aminata attended Kankaylay Primary School and later enrolled at the Freetown Secondary School for Girls (FSSG), where she met her partner, Isatu Sall.
According to reports, Aminata began identifying as a lesbian at the age of 16, and her relationship with Isatu became known to the family when they were caught in a compromising situation.
In 2022, when Aminata’s father caught the two women together, the consequences were severe. Aminata faced physical punishment, including a brutal blow to her head from her father. Isatu and Aminata were separated, with Aminata being forced into an arranged marriage with an older man who already had three wives.
Faced with ongoing abuse and harassment from both family members and the community, Aminata fled to Freetown, where she rekindled her relationship with Isatu.
Unfortunately, the couple was discovered again, and both women faced violent torture. Isatu succumbed to her injuries and died shortly afterward, abandoned in her mother’s village. Meanwhile, Aminata’s father continued to threaten her life, claiming that God would absolve him of any wrongdoing if he killed her.
Fearing for her safety, Aminata fled the country. It is believed she may have left Sierra Leone in search of refuge. Despite her escape, the police, acting on her family’s report, have declared her wanted and issued a reward for information on her whereabouts.
Sierra Leone remains an unsafe environment for LGBTQ+ individuals. Same-sex relationships are criminalized under Section 61 of the Public Order Act, and those identified as LGBTQ+ face harsh legal and social consequences.
Beyond the threat of arrest, LGBTQ+ individuals in Sierra Leone often endure public humiliation, violence, and even death threats due to deeply ingrained prejudices reinforced by religious and cultural beliefs.
For Aminata, the relentless harassment and threats of violence have forced her into hiding, a stark reminder of the dangerous realities faced by the LGBTQ+ community in Sierra Leone.
