S Leone rape victims 'not helped'

The RUF rebels waged a campaign of rape and human rights abuse

Amnesty International has called on the government of Sierra Leone to do more for the victims of sexual abuse from the country's decade-long civil war.
During that war human rights abuses were carried out on the population and rape was used as a weapon.

Some estimate that one-third of the total female population suffered from rape and other sexual crimes.

But victims have received no help dealing with the long-term effects of rape, according to Amnesty's report.

It is widely known that Sierra Leone's civil war was one of the most brutal conflicts in recent history.

Although rape was committed by all sides, Amnesty International's report stresses the fact that rebel groups were dependent on thousands of women and girls who served as wives, cooks, labourers, fighters and sex slaves.