Umu Thoronka v. Sierra Leone: Unlawful Dismissal Exposes Gender Bias in Sierra Leone Media

What is the status of the case? The petition was submitted to the Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on September 19th, 2025. Umu Thoronka is currently living in exile. Umu Thoronka, a Sierra Leonean female journalist, was unlawfully dismissed from her position at the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) on July 26, 2024, in retaliation for exercising her right to freedom of expression and opinion by posting a video deemed to be critical of the president of Sierra Leone on her TikTok account. Following her dismissal, Ms. Thoronka faced intimidation and death threats, ultimately forcing her into exile. Her dismissal was the culmination of a long-standing pattern of gender-based discrimination and sexual harassment that she suffered at the hands of her supervisors at SLBC since 2017. Why is This a Key Case? This case reflects the entrenched problem of sexual harassment and gender-based violence in Sierra Leone’s media industry. The government of Sierra Leone has previously declared a state of national emergency on sexual violence, underscoring its prevalence and severity across the country. The petition alleges that Sierra Leone violated Ms. Thoronka’s rights to freedom of expression and opinion, as well as her right to freedom from discrimination, which ultimately led to her unlawful summary dismissal. It specifically highlights how systemic sexual harassment and gender-based discrimination in the media industry created the conditions for her unlawful dismissal. How is RFK Human Rights Supporting Umu Thoronka? On September 19, 2025, RFK Human Rights submitted a petition to the Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States, acting as counsel for Women in the Media Sierra Leone and Umu Thoronka. https://rfkhumanrights.org/litigation/umu-thoronka-v-sierra-leone-unlawful-dismissal-exposes-gender-bias-in-sierra-leone-media/