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Community arms programme extended

    ABIDJAN

    The Community Arms Collection and destruction programme in Sierra Leone has been extended by two weeks until mid-March, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in its latest situation report.

    The CACD programme, which was scheduled to end on 28 February, has so far collected more than 7,000 weapons. In its next phase, which includes a cordon and search operation, anyone found holding weapons without a proper licence could face prosecution, OCHA said.

    Coordinated by the Sierra Leone police force in conjunction with the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL), the programme aims to gather lethal weapons, including shotguns, which were not recovered by the recently ended government disarmament programme. Under that programme, over 45,000 former combatants surrendered weapons to the authorities between 18 May 2001 and January 2002.

    Meanwhile, crime rates and human rights abuses in newly accessible areas of the country are reportedly declining following the deployment of government armed forces and police. However, crime rates in the capital, Freetown, remain high, OCHA reported.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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