Country Foundations

Sierra Leone

Constitution in force since 1996, 44,636 words. Rights measured for 2023.

Declared
83%
mean across compared rights
Practiced
68%
mean across compared rights
Gap
−15%
delivers less than promised
Executive respects constitution
44%
V-Dem, measured directly

The rights ledger

Each row compares what the constitution declares against what is measured in practice. The two values are always shown together — a gap on its own is easy to misread.

Declared in the constitutionPracticed (measured)Falls short / exceeds
0255075100Right to life — declared 100%, practiced 66%, gap −34%Right to life100%66%−34%Freedom from torture — declared 100%, practiced 62%, gap −38%Freedom from torture100%62%−38%Freedom from slavery and forced labour — declared 100%, practiced 76%, gap −24%Freedom from slavery and forced labour100%76%−24%Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) — declared 100%, practiced 71%, gap −29%Freedom from arbitrary detention (ha…100%71%−29%Right to a fair and public trial — declared 100%, practiced 66%, gap −34%Right to a fair and public trial100%66%−34%Presumption of innocence — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Presumption of innocenceno practice measure100%——Right to legal counsel — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to legal counselno practice measure100%——Protection from self-incrimination — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from self-incriminationno practice measure0%——Protection from double jeopardy — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from double jeopardyno practice measure100%——Due process of law — declared 100%, practiced 63%, gap −37%Due process of law100%63%−37%Trial by jury or lay participation — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Trial by jury or lay participationno practice measure100%——Freedom of expression — declared 100%, practiced 72%, gap −28%Freedom of expression100%72%−28%Freedom of the press — declared 100%, practiced 66%, gap −34%Freedom of the press100%66%−34%Freedom of thought and conscience — declared 100%, practiced 74%, gap −26%Freedom of thought and conscience100%74%−26%Freedom of religion — declared 100%, practiced 81%, gap −19%Freedom of religion100%81%−19%Separation of religion and state — declared 50%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Separation of religion and stateno practice measure50%——Academic freedom — declared 0%, practiced 69%, gap +69%Academic freedom0%69%+69%Freedom of assembly — declared 100%, practiced 57%, gap −43%Freedom of assembly100%57%−43%Freedom of association — declared 100%, practiced 81%, gap −19%Freedom of association100%81%−19%Right to petition government — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to petition governmentno practice measure0%——Right to form and join trade unions — declared 50%, practiced 76%, gap +26%Right to form and join trade unions50%76%+26%Right to vote and universal suffrage — declared 0%, practiced 71%, gap +71%Right to vote and universal suffrage0%71%+71%Right to privacy — declared 100%, practiced 86%, gap −14%Right to privacy100%86%−14%Freedom of movement — declared 100%, practiced 87%, gap −13%Freedom of movement100%87%−13%Right to asylum — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to asylumno practice measure0%——Right to own property — declared 63%, practiced 70%, gap +8%Right to own property63%70%+8%Equality before the law — declared 100%, practiced 71%, gap −29%Equality before the law100%71%−29%Right to education — declared 100%, practiced 47%, gap −53%Right to education100%47%−53%Right to health care — declared 100%, practiced 45%, gap −55%Right to health care100%45%−55%Right to shelter or housing — declared 0%, practiced 54%, gap +54%Right to shelter or housing0%54%+54%Independent judiciary — declared 100%, practiced 60%, gap −40%Independent judiciary100%60%−40%Right to bear arms — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to bear armsno practice measure0%——decl.prac.gap

· marks a right with no provision in that country’s constitution. Scores run 0–100; practiced values are V-Dem indicators normalized across all country-years.

Promise and practice over time

The declared line steps when the constitution changes. The practiced line moves when behaviour does. The distance between those two moments is the part worth looking at.

Declared (the text)Practiced (measured)The text changed
0501001996: constitutional text changed (+15 pts declared)19752000

Mean across the 23 rights measured on both sides, 1961–2023. Vertical marks show years when the constitutional text changed enough to move the declared score.

Promised, but not delivered

  • Right to life −34%
  • Freedom from torture −38%
  • Freedom from slavery and forced labour −24%
  • Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) −29%

Delivered, though never promised

  • Academic freedom +69%
  • Right to vote and universal suffrage +71%
  • Right to shelter or housing +54%

Declared internationally

A constitution is only one place a country makes promises. These are the nine core UN human rights treaties.

Civil & Political Rights (ICCPR)ratified 1996
Economic, Social & Cultural Rights (ICESCR)ratified 1996
Racial Discrimination (ICERD)ratified 1967
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)ratified 1988
Convention against Torture (CAT)ratified 2001
Rights of the Child (CRC)ratified 1990
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)ratified 2010
Enforced Disappearance (CPED)signed only
Migrant Workers (ICMW)signed only

Compare with

AfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeriaAngolaArgentinaArmeniaAustraliaAzerbaijanBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBeninBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBrazilBulgariaBurkina FasoBurma/MyanmarBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaColombiaComorosCosta RicaCroatiaCubaCyprusDemocratic Republic of the CongoDenmarkDjiboutiDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEswatiniEthiopiaFijiFinlandFranceGabonGeorgiaGhanaGreeceGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyana

Data generated 2026-08-08.