Event Summary
The Independent Media Commission has ruled that the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) unlawfully terminated journalist Umu Thoronka: a decision media advocates say represents an important step toward fairness and accountability in the country’s media sector. She was terminated because she posted a video to her TikTok account. The video documented an incident at a Presidential Town Hall Meeting in which a woman was publicly humiliated for questioning President Julius Maada Bio about the rising cost of living and food prices in Sierra Leone. The Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) management deemed the video critical of the President, and it led to Ms. Thoronka’s dismissal.
Following three hearings that began in November 2024, the Commission concluded that SLBC “failed to exercise due diligence in handling the termination process.” The IMC subsequently ordered the broadcaster to compensate Thoronka. The IMC reached this conclusion during its meeting on 25 February 2026, but this was made public few weeks after. The media advocacy group Women in the Media Sierra Leone (WIMSAL) has called on SLBC to comply promptly with the ruling. This is a positive stride within the media landscape and encourage the need of protection of women in the media, freedom of expression and press freedom.
Reacting to the ruling, WIMSAL President Eastina Taylor said the decision reinforces the need for fairness and respect for women journalists in the workplace. “This ruling affirms that women journalists deserve fairness, dignity and respect in the workplace,” Taylor said, urging SLBC to comply with the commission’s directive and demonstrate accountability within the sector. Thoronka’s lawyer, Paul Kamara, described the decision as a restoration of his client’s dignity and confirmed that the matter will also proceed before the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice. The case filed by the Kennedy Human Rights Center and WIMSAL alleges that Thoronka’s rights to dignity, freedom of expression and fair working conditions were violated. Advocates say that while the IMC ruling represents a significant victory, further steps are needed to address sexual harassment and strengthen protections for journalists in Sierra Leone’s media sector.