Parliament of Sierra Leone enacts the Cyber Crime Bill

The Parliament of Sierra Leone has on Wednesday, June 23, 2021, passed the Cyber Crime Bill into law, titled “The Cyber Security and Crime Act 2021”.

The act which is introduced in Sierra Leone for the first time will provide prevention on the abusive use of computers, and provide a timely and effective collection of electronic evidence for investigation and prosecution of cybercrime. It will also protect critical national information infrastructure, promote cybersecurity, protect computer programs, intellectual property and privacy rights.

The act was introduced by the Minister of information and Communication, Mohamad Rahman Swarray.

However, before the enactment of this act people from the public have drawn debate and discussion around the effect of the new act on ordinary citizens. 

After Parliament enacted the bill, Sierra Leoneans from across different platforms reacted to the new act saying that the government is using its power to silence the opposition.