'Women can do it better' Female MPs fight double standards

Ahead of elections in June, women in politics are speaking out over the abuse and intimidation they face

- Isabel Choat

When Femi Claudius Cole decided to form a political party, to address what she saw as Sierra Leone's slow economic development and poor governance, she knew it would be tough. But the former nurse could not have predicted quite how gruelling it would be: spending time in jail and fighting for her reputation.

The Unity party, registered by Cole in 2017, failed to win any seats in the 2018 general election. But she persevered and co-founded the Consortium of Progressive Political Parties, an opposition alliance in 2021. "People thought that once I lost, I would disappear into thin air - they didn't know me," she said.

In July 2022, women organising a rally to protest at the soaring cost of living asked for her backing, and she agreed, allowing them to make placards in her office. They planned to dress in black and hold a prayer service. But the day before the rally, armed police surrounded Cole's house. She was accused of inciting the protests and detained for four nights.

They confiscated her passport, which has yet to be returned.