Keeps gettin' worst

by PK Jarju
It is common believe that a new year brings new habits and better things. However, with regard to the Gambia, the more the years come and go, the darker and dangerous the atmosphere in which the media operate becomes.

Since the coming to power of the AFPRC/APRC government, the Gambian media has never enjoyed the rights and freedoms that are enshrined in the laws of the country. Their rights and freedoms are trampled upon by a government that funnily swore to protect and defend them.

While the rest of the African continent is well on the road to democracy and good governance, the Gambia is moving hundred steps the opposite direction, as the government continues to do everything possible to kill and bury the press.

The government is using the repressive criminal code it enacted in 2004 to clamp down on its critics and opponents. The criminal code makes criticism of the Jammeh regime a criminal offense liable to heavy fine, imprisonment or both.

Local media houses are today afraid to embark on investigative journalism, writing editorials or publish articles that are critical to regime.

The government is yet to repeal Decree 70/71, which increased the bond to be executed by a newspaper from D1, 000 to Dl00, 000 before it commences operation. The Newspaper Amendment Act enacted in 2004 is also yet to be repealed. The Act which further increased the bond to be executed before a media house commences operation from D100, 000 to D500, 000, is making it very difficult for Gambians to establish private and independent media houses.

Decree 45, which abrogates constitutional safeguards against arbitrary search and permits search and seizure of property without due process, is still not repealed by the government despite criticisms from international human rights organisation.

These allows the NIA, which centres its operation on journalists and critics of the regime to arrest and detain people arbitrarily as well as tap phone lines without a court warrant. These harassments, arbitrary arrests, torture and disappearances have forced many journalists and critics into exile.

There has never been a year since 1994 in which a journalist has never been arrested and detained in the Gambia for writing or publishing articles that are deemed critical of the Jammeh regime.

2008 was the same as the previous years. The Gambian media witnessed arrest and detention, harassment, intimidation.

On June 14, 2008, Dida Halake, managing editor of the pro-government Daily Observer, was arrested and detained for many days by the police before being charged with sedition. Mr Halake's arrest came in the wake of fallout he had with the paper's board. He was later acquitted and discharged but not without losing his job.

On July 17, 2008, Abdulhamid Adiamoh, editor of TODAY newspaper was arrested and detained for several hours by the police before been charged with sedition. He was arrested in connection with an article on his July 15 publication captioned: Children dodge school to pick scrap metal.

While the matter is still ongoing, Mr Adiamoh, a Nigerian, was convicted on a separate charge and ordered to pay a fine of D10, 000 in default to serve six months imprisonment for failure to renew his business certificate with the registrar of companies at the AG Chambers contrary to Section 3 (1) and punishable under Section 2 (a) (1) of the Business Registration Act 2005.

On 18 August 2008, Fatou Jaw Manneh, a US based journalist received a heavy fine after been found guilty of sedition by Magistrate Buba Jawo of the Kanifing court. Ms Manneh was arrested on March 28, 2007 by NIA officers upon arrival at Banjul International Airport for granting an interview to this paper [AllGambia]. In the interview, she criticised the manner in which the country is being rule by the president, whom she accused of betraying and tearing the country into shreds.

On December 30, 2008, two Scottish Christian missionaries, David and Fiona Fulton, were fined D250, 000 and sentenced to one year in prison with hard labour by Magistrate Idrissa Mbai of the Banjul court for sedition.

The couple were arrested in November after sending e-mails to groups and individuals outside the country which criticised the government of Yahya Jammeh.

Until now, the government is yet to comply with the June 5, 2008 ruling of the Abuja based Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States for the immediate release of Chief Ebrima Manneh.

Mr Manneh a journalist with the Daily Observer was arrested at the newspaper premises on July 11, 2006 by plain clothes security officers and detained incommunicado. He has since been sighted several times in the custody of state security personnel.

The Jammeh regime has consistently denied any knowledge of the whereabouts of the journalist, and has demonstrated gross disrespect for the Ecowas court by refusing to appear throughout the proceedings.

By the end of the year, there is no development with the government investigation into the gruesome murder of Deyda Hydara, managing editor of The Point Newspaper, who was gunned down by unknown assailants on December 16, 2004 while driving home.

For comments, write to papak196@yahoo.co.uk or info@allgambian.net. U can also read my blog www.pkjarju.blogspot.com