Topic: 2025-Preserving Free and Fair Elections
Country: Sierra Leone
Delegate Name: Sylvia Duncan
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
Free and Fair Elections
Sierra Leone
Sylvia Duncan
Groves High School
Free and Fair Elections
The delegation of Sierra Leone believes that fair and free elections should be protected. Many countries don’t have fair elections because of corrupt government leaders who want to maintain power and influence the results of those elections. Elections are important for citizens to use their voice in their representative government and taking that away can create regimes that limit fundamental rights, like freedom of speech. Countries that don’t have fair and free elections hurt their own representatives because of greed and power.
Sierra Leone has a Presidential Republic system as well as judicial, executive, and legislative branches. The constitution was adopted in 1991 and states that the Republic of Sierra Leone is based on the principles of freedom, democracy, and justice. After the 11 year civil war, the election process from 2002 to 2007 was aided by the United Nations Mission In Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) to help regulate the elections and make sure that everything was fair. To make sure that elections are accessible to all, Sierra Leone has implemented the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Act of 2022 (GEWE) which President Julius Maada Bio signed into law. This law implements that there is at least a 30 percent quota for women’s participation in government for both appointed positions, including cabinet, ministry, and ambassador roles, and elected rules such as parliamentary and local council seats. As a result, Sierra Leone is working to ensure there is accurate female representation and ensuring women’s participation in the political process. Making sure that there is accurate female representation in government is a principle in Sierra Lione’s mission of keeping elections free and fair. Other countries should make sure that there is accurate female representation in their government by implementing opportunities or laws like Sierra Leone has done.
In the future, Sierra Leone hopes to help maintain free and fair elections domestically and in countries abroad. Sierra Leone supports full transparency in the voting process to reduce corruption and ensure that elections are correctly counted. Election violence needs to be dealt with and resources must be given to countries to allow that this task is completed. Overall, Sierra Leone hopes to allow other countries to implement laws for women’s representation and is open to hearing other ways to deal with corruption in elections.
