By Mariama Dakowa
This statement documents the persecution faced by Ishmeal Alfred Charles and his family in Sierra Leone as a direct result of his outspoken opposition to Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), a deeply entrenched harmful practice enforced through powerful traditional structures. Their experience demonstrates a credible and ongoing fear of persecution, the absence of effective state protection, and the impossibility of safe internal relocation.
Mr. Charles and his wife, Isata Charles, are the founders of the Johnthrope Girls Empowerment Program, a grassroots initiative established in 2016 in the Rokel community, Western Area. The program supports girls’ education, mentorship, and protection from FGM. Through community engagement, the family worked with at least 13 girls, educating them about the health risks and human rights violations associated with forced initiation into the Bondo secret society.
Their advocacy placed them in direct conflict with influential traditional leaders. John Thrope, their place of residence, reportedly contains approximately six Bondo bushes where initiation rites involving FGM are carried out. Senior members of the Bondo society publicly accused the Charles family of undermining cultural authority. A senior Sowei, widely known as Oya Bongo, openly condemned the family and questioned their right to challenge what she described as a protected secret society.
The threats against the family escalated significantly due to Mrs. Isata Charles’s personal opposition to Bondo. She is not a member of the society and has consistently rejected it following the death of her elder sister from FGM-related complications. This history made her and her daughters specific targets of retaliation.
On 22 August 2025, Mr. Charles was arrested at his residence in Rokel. Following this arrest, members of the Bondo society reportedly held a meeting in which it was proposed that Mrs. Charles and her daughters be forcibly initiated as punishment for the family’s activism. Such forced initiation would constitute serious physical harm and gender-based violence.
A local woman, herself a beneficiary of the Charles family’s program, secretly warned Mrs. Charles of the plan. Fearing imminent harm, she fled immediately with her children to Lungi, where they remain in hiding. Their displacement was sudden and unplanned, underscoring the urgency and credibility of the threat.
The danger they face is not limited to their home community. The Bondo society operates nationwide, with Soweis present across Sierra Leone. In a telephone conversation, Mrs. Charles expressed her belief that no part of the country offers safety for her or her children, as Bondo networks are highly organized and able to identify and target perceived opponents. This makes internal relocation neither reasonable nor safe.
The family’s experience occurs within a broader national context where FGM remains widespread and largely unregulated. Approximately 83% of women and girls aged 15–49 in Sierra Leone have undergone FGM, with an estimated 61% of girls aged 15–19 already affected. Despite international commitments, Sierra Leone lacks a comprehensive national ban on FGM, and enforcement against perpetrators is weak or nonexistent.
Anti-FGM activists in Sierra Leone routinely face intimidation, harassment, threats, and violence. Some are forced into hiding or exile. Traditional authorities often operate with impunity, and victims of threats receive little to no protection from state institutions. This environment enables persecution against individuals who oppose FGM, particularly when they challenge powerful secret societies.
The targeting of Ishmeal Alfred Charles and his family is therefore not an isolated dispute, but a pattern of persecution based on their political opinion, human rights advocacy, and opposition to a harmful traditional practice. Their continued presence in Sierra Leone places them at serious risk of harm.
Their case illustrates a stark reality: in Sierra Leone, speaking out against FGM can endanger not only activists, but entire families, especially women and children, while the state remains unable or unwilling to provide protection.