Sierra Leone police suppress student protests, 1 dead

By Alpha Kamara

DAKAR, Senegal (AA) - Police Thursday have confirmed a death of a student of Njala University, one of the more prominent universities in Sierra Leone, after protesters engaged in running battles with police in various Liberian cities.

Protests against the closure since October of the university took place in the capital Freetown as well as in the southeastern cities of Bo and Kenema.

The closure -- the consequence of a the long-running lecturers’ strike -- threatens the entire academic year .

In the capital Freetown police fired teargas and arrested six protesters as they converged in front of the residence of the president chanting for the reopening of college, according to local reports.

In Bo, the students burned tires which prompted the intervention of the police forcing shops to close in the morning hours. Five students were also arrested by the police in Kenema.

Lecturers of Njala University have been on strike since October 2016 allegedly over years of unpaid allowances, end-of-service benefits and non-payment of inheritance to families.