A team of Gambian lawyers has formally petitioned President Julius Maada Bio to provide security guarantees for Sierra Leonean historian and investigative journalist Dr. Chernoh Alpha M. Bah ahead of his planned visit to Sierra Leone later this year.
In a letter dated May 30, 2025, and addressed directly to the President, Modou Drameh, Esq., Principal Counsel at Modou Drameh & Associates, urged the Sierra Leonean government to ensure the personal safety and protection of Dr. Bah during his upcoming trip. The letter has also been widely circulated to key government ministries, international human rights organizations, and diplomatic missions.
Dr. Bah, a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at Brown University in the United States, intends to travel to Sierra Leone to visit family and conduct academic research. However, concerns over his safety have grown in recent years due to threats and harassment allegedly tied to his work as a journalist and public intellectual.
According to Drameh’s letter, “Dr. Bah has been the subject of sustained threats and harassment in recent years, including death threats linked directly to his professional work… These threats have been documented and condemned by international academic and press freedom organizations.”
The letter references several public interventions that highlight concerns for Dr. Bah’s safety, including:
• A May 2025 open letter from the Committee of Concerned Scientists to President Bio urging action on Dr. Bah’s case.
• A July 2024 petition signed by over 100 academics worldwide, published by Africanist Press.
• A statement from Reporters Without Borders (RSF) issued in September 2024, calling out impunity around cyber-harassment targeting Dr. Bah.
The lawyers’ request calls for the coordination of protective measures through the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Sierra Leone Police Force, including the appointment of a liaison officer to oversee Dr. Bah’s security throughout his stay.
“This request is made in the spirit of preserving the dignity of academic freedom, protecting human rights, and upholding Sierra Leone’s obligations under international instruments,” the letter states, referencing the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The letter was copied to key figures within the Sierra Leonean government and international community, including the U.S. Embassy in Freetown, the Gambian High Commission, the African Union, United Nations human rights officials, and press freedom groups such as RSF and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
The move has sparked increased attention in The Gambia, where journalists from The Point, The Standard, and other outlets have begun covering the case extensively.
Dr. Bah is widely known for his work on exposing government corruption and historical injustices in Sierra Leone through both scholarly research and investigative reporting. His platform, Africanist Press, has published a series of in-depth reports on public accountability and governance in West Africa.
No official response has yet been issued by the Government of Sierra Leone at the time of publication. However, pressure is mounting for the authorities to publicly guarantee Dr. Bah’s safety, particularly in light of international scrutiny and diplomatic interest.
By Austin Konneh Moiwo
